Sir Sebag Shaw (26 December 1906– 27 December 1982)The Palgrave Dictionary of Anglo-Jewish History, W. Rubinstein and Michael A. Jolles, 2011 was a British barrister and judge. Sebag Sochaczewski (later Shaw) was born in

East London East or Orient is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from west and is the direction from which the Sun rises on the Earth. Etymology As in other languages, the word is formed from the fa ...

to Chaim Sochaczewski (later naturalised as 'Henry Shaw'; of Polish origin), owner of a photographic studio, and Marie (née Baumgart), and educated at

Central Foundation Boys' School ''(By hope, by work, by faith)'' , established = 1865 , closed = , type = Voluntary aided school , religious_affiliation = , president = , head_label = , ...

and

University College London , mottoeng = Let all come who by merit deserve the most reward , established = , type = Public research university , endowment = £143 million (2020) , budget = � ...

(LL.B). In his youth he had suffered a severe attack of polio, which left him with a pronounced limp, nevertheless becoming a skilled swimmer, rower and horseman. He was called 'Sib' by family and friends. In 1928, he married Sally, daughter of Oscar Baumgart. He was called to the Bar from

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 Wa ...

in 1931, appointed Q.C. in 1967, and

Bencher A bencher or Master of the Bench is a senior member of an Inn of Court in England and Wales or the Inns of Court in Northern Ireland, or the Honorable Society of King's Inns in Ireland. Benchers hold office for life once elected. A bencher ca ...

of Gray's Inn that same year, being later Leader of the South Eastern Circuit. Shaw served from 1958 to 1968 as Honorary Recorder of

Ipswich Ipswich () is a port town and borough in Suffolk, England, of which it is the county town. The town is located in East Anglia about away from the mouth of the River Orwell and the North Sea. Ipswich is both on the Great Eastern Main Line r ...

, succeeding Sir Stephen Gerald Howard, QC, MP (1947–1958). Shaw was succeeded by the Hon.

William McLaren Howard William is a masculine given name of Norman French origin.Hanks, Hardcastle and Hodges, ''Oxford Dictionary of First Names'', Oxford University Press, 2nd edition, , p. 276. It became very popular in the English language after the Norman conq ...

, QC.

Notable cases

In 1955 Shaw was junior counsel to Aubrey Melford Stevenson for the defence in the trial of

Ruth Ellis Ruth Ellis (née Neilson; 9 October 1926 – 13 July 1955) was a British nightclub hostess and convicted murderer who became the last woman to be hanged in the United Kingdom following the fatal shooting of her lover, David Blakely. In her te ...

; she was the last woman hanged in the United Kingdom.

Further career

Knighted in 1968, Shaw was appointed a High Court judge and promoted to be a

Lord Justice of Appeal A Lord Justice of Appeal or Lady Justice of Appeal is a judge of the Court of Appeal of England and Wales, the court that hears appeals from the High Court of Justice, the Crown Court and other courts and tribunals. A Lord (or Lady) Justice ...

in 1975; he served in this capacity until his death. He chaired the Justice Annual members conference in 1973. Shaw was a Member of the

Bar Council {{see also, Bar association A bar council ( ga, Comhairle an Bharra) or bar association, in a common law jurisdiction with a legal profession split between solicitors and barristers or advocates, is a professional body that regulates the profess ...

from 1964 to 1968, and of the

Parole Board A parole board is a panel of people who decide whether an offender should be released from prison on parole after serving at least a minimum portion of their sentence as prescribed by the sentencing judge. Parole boards are used in many jurisdiction ...

from 1971 to 1974 (Vice-Chairman 1973–4). Along with Judge Dennis Smith, Shaw wrote the seminal text ''The Law of Meetings'', which went through five editions over thirty years.

References

1906 births 1982 deaths English barristers English Jews Lords Justices of Appeal Members of Gray's Inn Knights Bachelor Members of the Privy Council of the United Kingdom People from Ipswich 20th-century King's Counsel English King's Counsel Queen's Bench Division judges 20th-century English lawyers {{England-law-bio-stub