Ralph Vibert

OBE The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding valuable service in a wide range of useful activities. It comprises five classes of awards across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two o ...

(November 7, 1911 – November 10, 2008) was Solicitor General of

Jersey Jersey ( ; ), officially the Bailiwick of Jersey, is an autonomous and self-governing island territory of the British Islands. Although as a British Crown Dependency it is not a sovereign state, it has its own distinguishing civil and gov ...

(1948–1955) and a Senator of the

States of Jersey The States Assembly (; Jèrriais: ) is the parliament of Jersey, formed of the island's 37 deputies and the Connétable (Jersey and Guernsey), Connétable of each of the Parishes of Jersey, twelve parishes. The origins of the legislature of ...

(1959–1987).

Early life

The son of shopkeepers, Vibert was born in 1911. He obtained a scholarship enabling him to attend Victoria College but failed the Oxford University entrance examination. He obtained work as secretary to the Attorney General of Jersey and the future

Bailiff of Jersey The Bailiff of Jersey () has several roles: * Chief judge * President of the States of Jersey, States Assembly, carrying out functions of a presiding officer * Civic head of the Bailiwick of Jersey * Guardian of the constitution * President of t ...

, Alexander Coutanche and qualified as a Jersey advocate. During the War he served as a

cypher Cypher may refer to: Arts and entertainment * Cypher (French Group), a Goa trance music group * Cypher (band), an Australian instrumental band * ''Cypher'' (film), a 2002 film * ''Cypher'' (...And Oceans album) * ''Cypher'' (Spektr album) * C ...

instructor with the

Special Operations Executive Special Operations Executive (SOE) was a British organisation formed in 1940 to conduct espionage, sabotage and reconnaissance in German-occupied Europe and to aid local Resistance during World War II, resistance movements during World War II. ...

(SOE) in Beaulieu, New Forest before being promoted to Chief instructor of Force 136, the Asian outpost of the SOE in India.

Legal career

Upon returning to Jersey after its

liberation Liberation or liberate may refer to: Film and television * ''Liberation'' (film series), a 1970–1971 series about the Great Patriotic War * "Liberation" (''The Flash''), a TV episode * "Liberation" (''K-9''), an episode Gaming * '' Liberati ...

, Vibert co-founded a law firm with his brother, Vivian (Bob) and others. He was appointed

Solicitor General of Jersey A solicitor is a lawyer who traditionally deals with most of the legal matters in some jurisdictions. A person must have legally defined qualifications, which vary from one jurisdiction to another, to be described as a solicitor and enabled to p ...

, where he served from 1948 to 1955 when he resigned due to personal differences with the then Attorney General.

Political career

In 1957 he was elected a Deputy for St. Brelade; and in 1959 was elected a Senator of the States of Jersey, a position he held until his retirement in 1987. During this time in elected office he was President of the following committees:Vibert, Ralph. ''Memoirs of a Jerseyman''. La Haule Books, 1991, p.119 Defence (1967–1987), Legislation (1966–1981), Constitution and Common Market (1967–87), Industrial Relations (1972–1975), Establishment (1975–1980), Finance (1980–1984), Policy Advisory (1984–1987), Defence Contribution (1984–1987). During his presidency of the Constitution and Common Market Committee, he was the author of the constitutional position that Jersey enjoyed of being outside the

EEC The European Economic Community (EEC) was a regional organisation created by the Treaty of Rome of 1957,Today the largely rewritten treaty continues in force as the ''Treaty on the functioning of the European Union'', as renamed by the Lisbo ...

(later the EU), but within the

common external tariff A common external tariff (CET) must be introduced when a group of countries forms a customs union. The same customs duties, import quotas, preferences or other non-tariff barriers to trade apply to all goods entering the area, regardless of which ...

, during the United Kingdom's membership 1972-2020.

References

1911 births 2008 deaths Senators of Jersey Officers of the Order of the British Empire {{Jersey-bio-stub