Sir Stuart Neil McKinnon (14 August 1938 – 28 February 2022) was a British barrister and judge. He was a Justice of the High Court, sitting in the Queen's Bench Division, from 1988 until 2009.
Early life and legal career
Stuart McKinnon was the son of Australian-born Neil Nairn McKinnon QC, a barrister who became a circuit judge sitting at the
Old Bailey
The Central Criminal Court of England and Wales, commonly referred to as the Old Bailey after the street on which it stands, is a criminal court building in central London, one of several that house the Crown Court of England and Wales. The s ...
. Two of his brothers, Rodney McKinnon and Warwick Nairn McKinnon KC, also became circuit judges.
McKinnon was educated at King's College School, Wimbledon and
Trinity College, Cambridge
Trinity College is a Colleges of the University of Cambridge, constituent college of the University of Cambridge. Founded in 1546 by King Henry VIII, Trinity is one of the largest Cambridge colleges, with the largest financial endowment of any ...
(MA; LLB). He was
called to the bar
The call to the bar is a legal term of art in most common law jurisdictions where persons must be qualified to be allowed to argue in court on behalf of another party and are then said to have been "called to the bar" or to have received "call to ...
by
Lincoln's Inn
The Honourable Society of Lincoln's Inn, commonly known as Lincoln's Inn, is one of the four Inns of Court (professional associations for Barrister, barristers and judges) in London. To be called to the bar in order to practise as a barrister ...
in 1960 and began practicing at the junior common law bar, eventually becoming head of chambers at 1 Crown Office Row (now 3 Hare Court). He became a QC in 1980 and sat 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 1985 to 1988. He was elected a
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 c ...
of Lincoln's Inn in 1987.
Judicial career
McKinnon was appointed to the High Court bench on 20 January 1988 and received 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 ...
in March that year. He was assigned to the Queen's Bench Division.
In 1991–1992, he tried the Blue Arrow bank fraud case, though he had only recently appointed to the bench and had limited experience in criminal law. Tried over a year in a purpose-built courtroom in
Chancery Lane
Chancery Lane is a one-way street that forms part of the City of London#Boundary, western boundary of the City of London. The east side of the street is entirely within the City,County NatWest executives were convicted and given suspended sentences by McKinnon; but their convictions were soon quashed by the
Court of Appeal
An appellate court, commonly called a court of appeal(s), appeal court, court of second instance or second instance court, is any court of law that is empowered to Hearing (law), hear a Legal case, case upon appeal from a trial court or other ...
, which was critical of aspects of McKinnon's handling of the trial.
In 1994, he awarded £50,000 to Derek Threadway for being assaulted by members of
West Midlands Police
West Midlands Police is the territorial police force responsible for policing the metropolitan county of West Midlands (county), West Midlands in England.
The force covers an area of with 2.93million inhabitants, which includes the cities of ...
's serious crime squad, as a result of which he confessed to an armed robbery he did not commit and spent nine years in prison.
In 2002, he tried Stuart Campbell for the murder of his niece Danielle Jones.
In 2007, sitting as a
judge advocate
Judge-advocates are military lawyers serving in different capacities in the military justice systems of different jurisdictions.
Australia
The Australian Army Legal Corps (AALC) consists of Regular and Reserve commissioned officers that prov ...
, he sentenced Corporal Donald Payne to 12 months' imprisonment on a charge of inhuman treatment of a person protected under the
Fourth Geneva Convention
The Convention relative to the Protection of Civilian Persons in Time of War (), more commonly referred to as the Fourth Geneva Convention and abbreviated as GCIV, is one of the four treaties of the Geneva Conventions. It was adopted in August 1 ...
. It was the first time a High Court judge had been appointed to conduct a court martial. Payne was the first member of the
British armed forces
The British Armed Forces are the unified military, military forces responsible for the defence of the United Kingdom, its British Overseas Territories, Overseas Territories and the Crown Dependencies. They also promote the UK's wider interests ...
to be convicted of a
war crime
A war crime is a violation of the laws of war that gives rise to individual criminal responsibility for actions by combatants in action, such as intentionally killing civilians or intentionally killing prisoners of war, torture, taking hostage ...
under the provisions of the
International Criminal Court Act 2001
The International Criminal Court Act 2001 (c. 17) is an act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. The act incorporates into English law and Northern Ireland law the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court.
The principal aims of the ...
. McKinnon acquitted Payne of the remaining charges, as well as all his codefendants, although he suggested that there had been some level of covering-up with relation to the case.
Mr Justice McKinnon retired in 2009 and was succeeded by Sir Kenneth Parker. He died in Unknown on 28 February 2002.