Sir Michael John Turner,

FRGS The Royal Geographical Society (with the Institute of British Geographers), often shortened to RGS, is a learned society and professional body for geography based in the United Kingdom. Founded in 1830 for the advancement of geographical scien ...

(31 May 1931 – 7 October 2018) was a British barrister and judge. He was a High Court judge, sitting in the

Queen's Bench Division The King's Bench Division (or Queen's Bench Division when the monarch is female) of the High Court of Justice deals with a wide range of common law cases and has supervisory responsibility over certain lower courts. It hears appeals on point ...

, from 1985 until 2002.

Biography

Born in Kensington, London, Michael Turner was the son of Theodore Francis Turner QC and of Elizabeth Alice, ''née'' Schuster, daughter of Claud Schuster, 1st Baron Schuster, He was educated at

Westminster School Westminster School is a Public school (United Kingdom), public school in Westminster, London, England, in the precincts of Westminster Abbey. It descends from a charity school founded by Westminster Benedictines before the Norman Conquest, as do ...

and

Magdalene College, Cambridge Magdalene College ( ) is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. The college was founded in 1428 as a Benedictine hostel, in time coming to be known as Buckingham College, before being refounded in 1542 as the College of St Mary ...

. After

National Service National service is a system of compulsory or voluntary government service, usually military service. Conscription is mandatory national service. The term ''national service'' comes from the United Kingdom's National Service (Armed Forces) Act ...

with the

7th Hussars The 7th Queen's Own Hussars was a cavalry regiment in the British Army, first formed in 1689. It saw service for three centuries, including the First World War and the Second World War. The regiment survived the immediate post-war reduction in ...

, he was called to the English bar by the

Inner Temple The Honourable Society of the Inner Temple, commonly known as the Inner Temple, is one of the four Inns of Court and is a professional association for barristers and judges. To be called to the Bar and practice as a barrister in England and Wa ...

in 1954. He specialised in insurance and personal injuries cases. He

took silk A King's Counsel ( post-nominal initials KC) is a senior lawyer appointed by the monarch (or their viceregal representative) of some Commonwealth realms as a "Counsel learned in the law". When the reigning monarch is a woman, the title is Qu ...

in 1973. He had two children with his first wife, and another two when married to David Croom-Johnson's daughter. Having served as a

recorder Recorder or The Recorder may refer to: Newspapers * ''Indianapolis Recorder'', a weekly newspaper * ''The Recorder'' (Massachusetts newspaper), a daily newspaper published in Greenfield, Massachusetts, US * ''The Recorder'' (Port Pirie), a newsp ...

from 1972 to 1985, Turner was appointed a Justice of the High Court in 1985, receiving the customary

knighthood A knight is a person granted an honorary title of a knighthood by a head of state (including the pope) or representative for service to the monarch, the church, or the country, especially in a military capacity. The concept of a knighthood ...

, and was assigned to the Queen's Bench Division. Among his important trials as a judge were the miners’ respiratory disease litigation against

British Coal The British Coal Corporation was a nationalised corporation responsible for the mining of coal in the United Kingdom from 1987 until it was effectively dissolved in 1997. The corporation was created by renaming its predecessor, the National Co ...

and the manslaughter trial against P&O European Ferries (Dover) Ltd and seven others after the sinking of MS ''Herald of Free Enterprise''.

References

The Times
* https://www.ukwhoswho.com/display/10.1093/ww/9780199540891.001.0001/ww-9780199540884-e-38237?rskey=HjYUUX&result=1 * https://www.telegraph.co.uk/obituaries/2018/11/07/sir-michael-turner-high-court-judge-stood-miners-pursuit-compensation/ {{DEFAULTSORT:Turner, Michael 1931 births 2018 deaths Knights Bachelor Queen's Bench Division judges Lawyers from London People educated at Westminster School, London Alumni of Magdalene College, Cambridge 7th Queen's Own Hussars officers Fellows of the Royal Geographical Society