William Drennan Andrews PC (18321924) was an Irish judge who served for many years as the

Probate In common law jurisdictions, probate is the judicial process whereby a will is "proved" in a court of law and accepted as a valid public document that is the true last testament of the deceased; or whereby, in the absence of a legal will, the e ...

Judge. He was the uncle of Sir James Andrews, 1st Baronet, the

Lord Chief Justice of Northern Ireland The Lord Chief Justice of Northern Ireland is a judge who presides over the courts of Northern Ireland and is the head of the Northern Ireland, Northern Irish judiciary. The present Lord Chief Justice of Northern Ireland is Siobhan Keegan, Dame ...

, (whose career he did much to foster), J. M. Andrews,

Prime Minister of Northern Ireland The prime minister of Northern Ireland was the head of the Government of Northern Ireland (1921–1972), Government of Northern Ireland between 1921 and 1972. No such office was provided for in the Government of Ireland Act 1920; however, the L ...

and

Thomas Andrews Thomas Andrews Jr. (7 February 1873 – 15 April 1912) was a British businessman and shipbuilder, who was managing director and head of the drafting department of the shipbuilding company Harland and Wolff in Belfast, Ireland. He was the naval ...

, architect of the ''

Titanic RMS ''Titanic'' was a British ocean liner that sank in the early hours of 15 April 1912 as a result of striking an iceberg on her maiden voyage from Southampton, England, to New York City, United States. Of the estimated 2,224 passengers a ...

''. There is a sympathetic sketch of his character in ''The Old Munster Circuit'' by Maurice Healy. He was a grandson of

William Drennan William Drennan (23 May 1754 – 5 February 1820) was an Irish physician and writer who moved the formation in Belfast and Dublin of the Society of United Irishmen. He was the author of the Society's original "test" which, in the cause of ...

, the United Irishman leader, and his wife Sarah Swanwick.

Biography

He was born in Comber, County Down, second son of John Andrews, a wealthy

flax Flax, also known as common flax or linseed, is a flowering plant, ''Linum usitatissimum'', in the family Linaceae. It is cultivated as a food and fiber crop in regions of the world with temperate climates. In 2022, France produced 75% of t ...

spinner, and Sarah, daughter of William and Sarah Drennan; his elder brother Thomas, the father of three eminent sons, inherited the family business. William was educated at

Trinity College Dublin Trinity College Dublin (), officially titled The College of the Holy and Undivided Trinity of Queen Elizabeth near Dublin, and legally incorporated as Trinity College, the University of Dublin (TCD), is the sole constituent college of the Unive ...

and the

Middle Temple The Honourable Society of the Middle Temple, commonly known simply as Middle Temple, is one of the four Inns of Court entitled to Call to the bar, call their members to the English Bar as barristers, the others being the Inner Temple (with whi ...

. He was called to the Irish Bar in 1855,

Queen'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 1872. He married Elizabeth Galloway, daughter of John Galloway of

Monkstown, County Dublin Monkstown (), historically known as ''Carrickbrennan'' (), is a suburb on the southside, Dublin, southside of Dublin, Republic of Ireland, Ireland, located in Dún Laoghaire–Rathdown. It is on the coast, between Blackrock, Dublin, Blackrock an ...

in 1857; she died in 1901. They had no children. He practised mainly on the North-Eastern Circuit, where his skill in persuading juries of the merits of his client's case became renowned. Maurice Healy quotes the remark: "Once Andrews has stated his client's case to the jury, the only uncertain thing is how great the award of

damages At common law, damages are a remedy in the form of a monetary award to be paid to a claimant as compensation for loss or injury. To warrant the award, the claimant must show that a breach of duty has caused foreseeable loss. To be recognized at ...

will be". He was appointed to the

High Court of Justice in Ireland The High Court of Justice in Ireland was the court created by the Supreme Court of Judicature Act (Ireland) 1877 to replace the existing court structure in Ireland. Its creation mirrored the reform of the courts of England and Wales five years ...

in 1882, first to the Exchequer Division, and on its abolition in 1897 to the King's Bench Division. He was the Probate Judge for many years, and Healy praises his efficiency in dealing with

probate In common law jurisdictions, probate is the judicial process whereby a will is "proved" in a court of law and accepted as a valid public document that is the true last testament of the deceased; or whereby, in the absence of a legal will, the e ...

cases"dealing out the orders like a pack of cards". In criminal cases he was known for his scrupulous fairness in summing up, but also for his exceptionally severe sentences: it was said that where another judge would think three years imprisonment a sufficient punishment, Andrews would often impose a sentence of ten years. He was made a member of the

Privy Council of Ireland His or Her Majesty's Privy Council in Ireland, commonly called the Privy Council of Ireland, Irish Privy Council, or in earlier centuries the Irish Council, was the institution within the Dublin Castle administration which exercised formal executi ...

in 1897. He retired in 1909 and died in 1924.

Character

Maurice Healy's portrayal of Andrews in ''The Old Munster Circuit'' is valuable but largely second-hand, since he apparently only met him once. He describes Andrews as a quiet, precise, modest and courteous man, diligent, upright, and with a great fund of legal knowledge. Despite the severity of the sentences he handed down in criminal cases, he was esteemed by all who knew him. V.T.H Delaney in his biography of Christopher Palles gives a similar view of Andrews's character. Serjeant Sullivan ranked Andrews as a judge as one of the four greatest he had known, whether in Ireland or England, together with Christopher Palles, Sir Andrew Porter and Gerald FitzGibbon "men whose superiors I have yet to meet".

Arms

References

*Ball. F. Elrington ''The Judges in Ireland 12211921'' John Murray London 1926 *Healy, Maurice ''The Old Munster Circuit'' Michael Joseph Ltd. London 1939 *Delaney, V.T.H. ''Christopher Palles'' Alan Figgis and Co. Dublin 1960 *Sullivan, A.M. ''Old Ireland'' London 1927 {{DEFAULTSORT:Andrews, William Drennan 1832 births 1924 deaths Members of the Middle Temple Alumni of Trinity College Dublin People from Comber Judges of the High Court of Justice in Ireland Lawyers from County Down