Sir Paget John Bourke,
SC (1906 – 7 November 1983) was an Irish barrister and British colonial judge who served as chief justice of Sierra Leone and Cyprus .
Biography
The son of H.C. Bourke, of Amana,
Ballina,
County Mayo
County Mayo (; ) is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. In the West Region, Ireland, West of Ireland, in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Connacht, it is named after the village of Mayo, County Mayo, Mayo, now ge ...
,
Ireland
Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...
, Bourke was educated at Mount St Mary's College, Chesterfield, and at
Trinity College, Dublin
Trinity College Dublin (), officially titled The College of the Holy and Undivided Trinity of Queen Elizabeth near Dublin, and legally incorporated as Trinity College, the University of Dublin (TCD), is the sole constituent college of the Univ ...
(Mod. BA, LLB). He was called to the Irish Bar at
King's Inns
The Honorable Society of King's Inns () is the "Inn of Court" for the Bar of Ireland. Established in 1541, King's Inns is Ireland's oldest school of law and one of Ireland's significant historical environments.
The Benchers of King's Inns aw ...
in 1928.
He joined the
Colonial Legal Service
The Colonial Service, also known as His/Her Majesty's Colonial Service and replaced in 1954 by Her Majesty's Overseas Civil Service (HMOCS), was the British government service that administered most of Britain's overseas possessions, under the aut ...
as Legal Adviser and Crown Prosecutor in
the Seychelles in 1933, where he was a member of the Executive and Legislative Councils.
He then served in
Palestine
Palestine, officially the State of Palestine, is a country in West Asia. Recognized by International recognition of Palestine, 147 of the UN's 193 member states, it encompasses the Israeli-occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem, and th ...
, as a Chief Magistrate in 1936 and Relieving President of a District Court in 1941, and President of a District Court in 1945. He was then a Judge of Supreme Court of Kenya in 1946,
Chief Justice of Sierra Leone
The Supreme Court of Sierra Leone is the highest court in Sierra Leone. It has final jurisdiction in all civil, criminal, and constitutional cases within Sierra Leone, and its decisions cannot be appealed. The Supreme Court has the exclusive ...
from 1955 to 1957;
Chief Justice of Cyprus
The chief justice of Cyprus was the head of the Supreme Court of Cyprus until 1961.
The administration of Cyprus was taken over by the British government, following the Russo-Turkish War, under the Cyprus Convention, Convention of 4 June 1878. C ...
from 1957 to 1960. He was called to the English Bar at
Gray's Inn
The Honourable Society of Gray's Inn, commonly known as Gray's Inn, is one of the four Inns of Court (professional associations for barristers and judges) in London. To be called to the bar in order to practise as a barrister in England and Wale ...
in 1957, and was
knighted
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 ...
the same year.
On his retirement from the Colonial Service, he returned to Dublin and became a
Senior Counsel at the Irish Bar in 1961. He then became, on a part-time basis, a judge of the Courts of Appeal for the Bahamas, Bermuda from 1965, and of Belize from 1968; he was president of these courts from 1970 to 1975. He was also a Justice of Appeal in Gibraltar from 1970 to 1976, having served as acting
Chief Justice of Gibraltar
The chief justice of the Supreme Court of Gibraltar is one of the four judges who make up the supreme court of Gibraltar. Previously the chief justice was appointed by the Governor of Gibraltar on the advice of the British Foreign and Commonweal ...
from October to December 1965.
He was kidnapped in Dublin in 1975, but managed to escape at the border with
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland ( ; ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, part of the United Kingdom in the north-east of the island of Ireland. It has been #Descriptions, variously described as a country, province or region. Northern Ireland shares Repub ...
.
He later retired to his daughter's ranch on the banks of the Kootenay River near
Cranbrook,
British Columbia
British Columbia is the westernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Situated in the Pacific Northwest between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains, the province has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that ...
,
Canada
Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...
, where he died.
Family
In 1936, Bourke married Susan Dorothy ( Killeen), whose cousin of the same name had once been
Michael Collins Michael Collins or Mike Collins most commonly refers to:
* Michael Collins (Irish leader) (1890–1922), Irish revolutionary leader, soldier, and politician
* Michael Collins (astronaut) (1930–2021), American astronaut, member of Apollo 11 and Ge ...
' girlfriend.
They had three sons and a daughter.
Lady Bourke died in 1982.
Sir Paget Bourke was a paternal uncle of Irish president
Mary Robinson
Mary Therese Winifred Robinson (; ; born 21 May 1944) is an Irish politician who served as the president of Ireland from December 1990 to September 1997. She was the country's first female president. Robinson had previously served as a senato ...
.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bourke, Paget
1906 births
1983 deaths
Alumni of Trinity College Dublin
People from Ballina, County Mayo
Irish emigrants to Canada
Irish knights
Irish Senior Counsel
Kidnapped Irish people
Members of Gray's Inn
Knights Bachelor
British Seychelles people
Sierra Leone Colony and Protectorate judges
British Cyprus judges
Mandatory Palestine judges
Colony of the Bahamas judges
20th-century Bahamian lawyers
Expatriate judges on the courts of the Bahamas
Expatriate judges on the courts of Bermuda
British Honduras judges
Expatriate judges on the courts of Belize
Irish colonial officials
Colonial Legal Service officers
British Kenya judges
Lawyers from County Mayo
People educated at Mount St Mary's College