Henry Shanks "Harry" Keith, Baron Keith of Kinkel, GBE, PC (7 February 1920 – 21 June 2002) was a British barrister and judge. The son of a law lord, Keith fought in the Second World War before practising at the Scottish bar. Appointed a sheriff in 1970, he became a Senator of the College of Justice the following year. In 1977, he followed in his father's footsteps when he was appointed a Lord of Appeal in Ordinary. He was Senior Law Lord from 1989 to 1996, when he retired. For his public and administrative work, he was appointed a Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the British Empire in 1997.
The Lord Keith of Kinkel | |
|---|---|
| Lord of Appeal in Ordinary | |
| In office 10 January 1977 – 30 September 1996 | |
| Monarch | Elizabeth II |
| Preceded by | The Lord Kilbrandon |
| Succeeded by | The Lord Hope of Craighead |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Henry Shanks Keith 7 February 1920 |
| Died | 21 June 2002 (aged 82) |
| Nationality | British |
| Occupation | Judge |
| Profession | Barrister |
Biography
editThe son of James Keith, Baron Keith of Avonholm, Harry Keith was educated in the Edinburgh Academy, at Magdalen College, Oxford, where he graduated with a Master of Arts and the University of Edinburgh, where he graduated with a Bachelor of Law. In the Second World War, he was an officer in the Scots Guards and was mentioned in dispatches, reaching the rank of captain. He was admitted to the Faculty of Advocates in 1950, and was made a Queen's Counsel in 1962. In 1951, he had been called to the English Bar at Gray's Inn, where he became a bencher in 1976.
He appointed as Sheriff of Roxburgh, Berwick and Selkirk in 1970, succeeding David Brand.[1] He was appointed a Senator of the College of Justice with the judicial courtesy title Lord Keith in 1971.
On 10 January 1977, he was appointed Lord of Appeal in Ordinary as a life peer with the title Baron Keith of Kinkel, of Strathtummel in the District of Perth and Kinross,[2] following in the footsteps of his father, Lord Keith of Avonholm. One year before he had been invested in the Privy Council. In 1996, he retired as Lord of Appeal and in 1997, he was awarded the Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the British Empire. It was humorously said within legal circles that wherever there was a negligence case, Lord Keith would always say 'no' to damages.[citation needed]
In 1955 he married Alison Brown; they had four sons and a daughter, Deborah. The family lived at Loch Tummel, near Pitlochry, Perthshire.
Lord Keith died in 2002.
References
edit- ^ "No. 18900". The Edinburgh Gazette. 24 July 1970. p. 635.
- ^ "No. 47120". The London Gazette. 13 January 1977. p. 471.
- Leigh Rayment's Peerage Pages [self-published source] [better source needed]
- "Burkes-Peerage". Archived from the original on 4 March 2006. Retrieved 5 January 2007.
- "Lord Keith of Kinkel". The Daily Telegraph. London. 27 June 2002.
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