Sir Thomas Abney (1690 or 1691 – 1750) was an English

barrister A barrister is a type of lawyer in common law jurisdiction (area), jurisdictions. Barristers mostly specialise in courtroom advocacy and litigation. Their tasks include arguing cases in courts and tribunals, drafting legal pleadings, jurisprud ...

and later

judge A judge is a person who wiktionary:preside, presides over court proceedings, either alone or as a part of a judicial panel. In an adversarial system, the judge hears all the witnesses and any other Evidence (law), evidence presented by the barris ...

. He was baptized at Willesley, Derbyshire (now in Leicestershire) on 30 April 1691 and was the younger son of Sir Edward Abney (who in turn was the elder brother of Sir

Thomas Abney Sir Thomas Abney (January 1640 – 6 February 1722) was an English merchant and banker who served as Lord Mayor of London from 1700 to 1701. Abney was the son of James Abney and was born in Willesley, then in Derbyshire but now in Leicestershi ...

Lord Mayor of London The Lord Mayor of London is the Mayors in England, mayor of the City of London, England, and the Leader of the council, leader of the City of London Corporation. Within the City, the Lord Mayor is accorded Order of precedence, precedence over a ...

), by his second wife, Judith, daughter and co-heir of Peter Barr, of London. He matriculated at Wadham College, Oxford, on 2 December 1707, aged 16. He became a

King's Counsel A King's Counsel (Post-nominal letters, post-nominal initials KC) is a senior lawyer appointed by the monarch (or their Viceroy, viceregal representative) of some Commonwealth realms as a "Counsel learned in the law". When the reigning monarc ...

in 1733, Attorney-General for the

Duchy of Lancaster The Duchy of Lancaster is an estate of the British sovereign. The estate has its origins in the lands held by the medieval Dukes of Lancaster, which came under the direct control of the monarch when Henry Bolingbroke, the then duke of Lancast ...

in 1733, Judge of the

Marshalsea Court The Marshalsea Court (or Court of the Marshalsea, also known as the Court of the Verge or the Court of the Marshal and Steward) was a court associated with the Royal Household in England. Associated with, but distinct from, the Marshalsea Court ...

(at which time he was also knighted) in 1735, Steward and one of the Judges of the

in 1736, in November 1740 a

Baron of the Exchequer The Barons of the Exchequer, or ''barones scaccarii'', were the judges of the English court known as the Exchequer of Pleas. The Barons consisted of a Chief Baron of the Exchequer and several puisne (''inferior'') barons. When Robert Shute was ...

, and in February 1743 a

Justice of the Common Pleas Justice of the Common Pleas was a puisne judicial position within the Court of Common Pleas (England), Court of Common Pleas of England and Wales, under the Chief Justice of the Common Pleas, Chief Justice. The Common Pleas was the primary court o ...

. Abney fell a victim to the gaol distemper at the 'Black Sessions' 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 ...

in May 1750, when, "of the judges in the commission, only the chief justice, (Lee) and the recorder (Adams) escaped. Those who fell a sacrifice to the pestilence were Mr. Justice Abney, who died 19 May; Mr. Baron Clarke, who died on the 17th; Sir

Samuel Pennant Sir Samuel Pennant (died May 1750) was a Lord Mayor of London. He was appointed a Sheriff of London for 1745, knighted in the same year, and then elected Lord Mayor for 1749 but died the following year in office, one of a large number of dignitar ...

, lord mayor; and alderman Sir Daniel Lambert; besides several of the counsel and jurymen." He was buried in Derbyshire (now in Leicestershire) with his ancestors. His wife died at Ashby de la Zouch in 1761, and his son Thomas in 1791."Births, Deaths, Marriages and Obituaries." Northampton Mercury orthampton, England20 Aug. 1791: 3. British Library Newspapers. Web. 8 Nov. 2020: Monday last, at Willesley-Hall, in Leicestershire, Thomas Abney, Esq. son of Sir Thomas Abney, one of His Majesty's justices of the Court of Common Pleas.

References

;Attribution {{DEFAULTSORT:Abney, Thomas 1690s births 1750 deaths 18th-century English judges English barristers Barons of the Exchequer Justices of the common pleas 18th-century King's Counsel