Legal Village

Pioneer Collins shows appeal of City-savvy judiciary

Posted 22/01/2007 by Ted Greeno

Bill Knight’s blog on life after partnership in a City firm (see entry) is timely.  Just last week, Sir Lawrence Collins was appointed a Lord Justice in the Court of Appeal. Lawrence was, of course, a partner at Herbert Smith and - probably his least distinguished role - my principal as an articled clerk.

In 2000 he became the first solicitor to be appointed to the High Court Bench direct from the solicitors profession and now he is the first former solicitor to be appointed to the Court of Appeal - something that reflects well on the profession as a whole. However, Lawrence is a true exception and he adds a different dimension to the Court of Appeal in at least two respects.

Firstly (and most importantly), his learning and expertise in international law – a result of many years practice in the area as well being general editor of Dicey Morris & Collins – will be a real asset for the court. As business and finance internationalises, people travel more widely, information is published without frontier and inter-government relationships become more complex, Lawrence's expertise in aspects of international law will be invaluable.

Secondly, his experience as a solicitor in the City is unique among the Lord Justices, as it was in the High Court. This will make him ideally suited to hear certain cases. Marks & Spencer v Freshfields was a case in point and the Court of Appeal itself observed in upholding his first instance judgment that "Lawrence Collins J's experience of matters such as this is unequalled amongst the judges of the higher courts". Indeed, through his experience, he will bring a different perspective to a three-person Court of Appeal in many cases.

Not many of us can expect to reach these judicial heights. However, there is an increasing role for solicitors in the judiciary, upon retirement from private practice or earlier.