Theobald Mathew (5 December 1866 – 20 June 1939), known as Theo Mathew, was a British barrister and legal humorist.

Life and legal career

Born in London, Mathew was the elder son of the Irish-born judge Sir James Charles Mathew and Elizabeth, ''née'' Biron, the daughter of a vicar. His great-uncle and namesake was the Irish temperance campaigner Father Theobald Mathew. His younger brother was the barrister and Labour MP Charles Mathew, while his sister Elizabeth was the wife of Irish Nationalist MP

John Dillon John Dillon (4 September 1851 – 4 August 1927) was an Irish politician from Dublin, who served as a Member of Parliament (MP) for over 35 years and was the last leader of the Irish Parliamentary Party. By political disposition, Dillon was a ...

. He was the uncle of Director of Public Prosecutions

Sir Theobald Mathew Sir Theobald Mathew, (4 November 1898 – 29 February 1964) was a British lawyer who served as Director of Public Prosecutions from 1944 to 1964, making him the longest-serving DPP. Mathew was born in London, the son of Anna and Charles ...

and of Irish politician James Dillon. Mathew was educated at

The Oratory School The Oratory School () is an HMC co-educational Private schools in the United Kingdom, private Catholic Church, Catholic boarding and day school for pupils aged 11–18 located in Woodcote, north-west of Reading, Berkshire, Reading, England. F ...

and

Trinity College, Oxford Trinity College (full name: The College of the Holy and Undivided Trinity in the University of Oxford, of the foundation of Sir Thomas Pope (Knight)) is a Colleges of the University of Oxford, constituent college of the University of Oxford in E ...

, where he obtained second-class honours in History in 1888. Like his father and brother, he was called to the bar at

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 1890, and practiced in the chambers of Joseph Walton, later a High Court judge. In 1896, Mathew became the editor of ''Commercial Cases'', a series of

law report A or is a compilation of Legal opinion, judicial opinions from a selection of case law decided by courts. These reports serve as published records of judicial decisions that are cited by lawyers and judges for their use as precedent in subsequ ...

s on the

Commercial Court Business courts, sometimes referred to as commercial courts, are specialized courts for legal cases involving commercial law, internal business disputes, and other matters affecting businesses. In the US, they are trial courts that primarily or ...

, which his father had helped to create, and in 1902, he published ''Practice of the Commercial Court''. Mathew had a large practice at the common law bar; after the First World War he frequently appeared in Canadian appeals to the

Judicial Committee of the Privy Council The Judicial Committee of the Privy Council (JCPC) is the highest court of appeal for the Crown Dependencies, the British Overseas Territories, some Commonwealth countries and a few institutions in the United Kingdom. Established on 14 August ...

. In his later years he became a libel specialist. He was

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 ...

of Margate from 1913 to 1927 and Recorder of Maidstone from 1927 to 1936. Like his father, Mathew never

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 ...

, but remained a

junior Junior or Juniors may refer to: Aircraft * Ekolot JK-05L Junior, a Polish ultralight aircraft * PZL-112 Junior, a Polish training aircraft * SZD-51 Junior, a Polish-made training and club glider Arts and entertainment Characters * Bowser Jr., ...

at the common law bar until his seventies. 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 1916. At the time of his death he has been scheduled to serve as treasurer of the Inn. Mathew was a popular pupil master: among his pupils at 4 Paper Buildings were the future prime minister

Clement Attlee Clement Richard Attlee, 1st Earl Attlee (3 January 18838 October 1967) was a British statesman who was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1945 to 1951 and Leader of the Labour Party (UK), Leader of the Labour Party from 1935 to 1955. At ...

(whose father was a friend of Mathew), Sir Stafford Cripps, Quintin Hogg, and

Peter Thorneycroft George Edward Peter Thorneycroft, Baron Thorneycroft, (26 July 1909 – 4 June 1994) was a British Conservative Party politician. He served as Chancellor of the Exchequer between 1957 and 1958. Early life Born in Dunston, Staffordshire, Thor ...

As a legal humorist

Mathew's fame among his contemporaries chiefly rests on his reputation as one of the greatest wits of his day. From 1925, writing under the pseudonym "O", he began to contribute a weekly series of "Forensic Fables" to the ''Law Journal'', which he illustrated himself. The ''Fables'' mocked many leading legal personalities of the day, under thin disguise. These were subsequently published in four volumes between 1926 and 1932. In 1937, he published ''For Lawyers and Others'', which brought his work to a broader audience. He was also famous for his spontaneous witticisms. On one occasion, Mathew, upon meeting a white friend in the library of an Inn of Court which had many African members, greeted him with " Dr. Livingstone, I presume", a remark which was said to have "acquired legendary status during his lifetime".

Family

In 1898, he married Ruth, daughter of the Rev George Henry Rigby and niece of the judge Sir John Rigby; they had five sons and two daughters.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Mathew, Theobald 1866 births 1939 deaths British barristers Members of Lincoln's Inn People educated at The Oratory School Alumni of Trinity College, Oxford British humorists