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Mark Saville, Baron Saville of Newdigate

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"Lord Saville" redirects here. For the hereditary peers, see Baron Savile.

The Right Honourable
The Lord Saville of Newdigate
PC
Justice of the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom
In office
1 October 2009 – 30 September 2010
Nominated byJack Straw
MonarchElizabeth II
Preceded byPosition created
Succeeded byThe Lord Wilson of Culworth
Lord of Appeal in Ordinary
In office
28 July 1997 – 30 September 2009
Preceded byThe Lord Mustill
Succeeded byPosition abolished
Lord Justice of Appeal
In office
1994–1997
High Court Judge
In office
1985–1993
Personal details
Born
Mark Oliver Saville

(1936-03-20) 20 March 1936 (age 88)
NationalityBritish
Spouse
Jill Gray
​
(m. 1961)​
Alma materBrasenose College, Oxford
OccupationJudge
ProfessionBarrister
Military service
Branch/serviceBritish Army
Years of service1954–1956
RankSecond lieutenant
UnitRoyal Sussex Regiment

Mark Oliver Saville, Baron Saville of Newdigate, PC (born 20 March 1936) is a British judge and former Justice of the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom.

Early life

Saville was born on 20 March 1936 to Kenneth Vivian Saville and Olivia Sarah Frances Gray, and educated at Rye Grammar School.[1][2][3] He undertook National Service in the Royal Sussex Regiment between 1954 and 1956 at the rank of second lieutenant.[1][2] He studied at Brasenose College, Oxford, graduating with first class honours in law[2] (Bachelor of Arts) and a Bachelor of Civil Law degree, and where he won the Vinerian Scholarship.[1][3] He was called to the bar by the Middle Temple in 1962, becoming a bencher in 1983, and became a Queen's Counsel in 1975.[1][2][3] He co-edited Essays in Honour of Sir Brian Neill: the Quintessential Judge[4] with Richard Susskind, former Gresham Professor of Law, and contributed to Civil Court Service 2007.[5]

Judicial career

Saville was appointed a judge of the High Court in 1985[2][3][6] and, as is tradition, was knighted at this time.[1][7] In 1994, he became a Lord Justice of Appeal,[2][3] a judge of the Court of Appeal of England and Wales, and was appointed to the Privy Council,[1] affording him the style, The Right Honourable. On 28 July 1997, he replaced Lord Mustill as a Lord of Appeal in Ordinary, receiving a life peerage as Baron Saville of Newdigate of Newdigate in the County of Surrey.[1][2][3][8] He and nine other Lords of Appeal in Ordinary became Justices of the Supreme Court upon that body's inauguration on 1 October 2009. He sits as a crossbencher.

Between 1994 and 1996 Saville chaired a committee on arbitration law that led to the Arbitration Act 1996.[9]

In 1997 Saville received an honorary LL.D. from London Guildhall University.[1]

Since 2006 he has held the post of President of The Academy of Experts[10]

Bloody Sunday Inquiry

Main article: Bloody Sunday Inquiry

On 29 January 1998, Lord Saville of Newdigate was appointed to chair the second Bloody Sunday Inquiry, a public inquiry commissioned by Prime Minister Tony Blair into Bloody Sunday, an incident in 1972 in Derry, Northern Ireland, when 27 people were shot by members of the 1st Battalion of the British Parachute Regiment, resulting in 14 deaths. The previous inquiry, the Widgery Tribunal, had been described by nationalists as a whitewash. Other members of the panel were Sir Edward Somers, former judge of the Court of Appeal of New Zealand, and William Lloyd Hoyt, former Chief Justice of New Brunswick.

The inquiry came into controversy for attempts to force journalists Alex Thomson, Lena Ferguson and Toby Harnden to disclose their sources,[11] and for its 12-year duration.[12] Its report was published on 15 June 2010 at a cost of £195 million.[13] British Prime Minister David Cameron addressed the House of Commons that afternoon where he acknowledged, among other things, that the paratroopers had fired the first shot, had fired on fleeing unarmed civilians, and shot and killed one man who was already wounded.[14] He then apologised on behalf of the British Government.[15]

Personal life

Lord Saville of Newdigate married Jill Gray in 1961, with whom he has two sons (William Christian Saville and Henry Saville).[1][2] He enjoys sailing, flying and computers, and is a member of the Garrick Club in London.[1]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j "SAVILLE OF NEWDIGATE". Who's Who. Oxford University Press. December 2008. Retrieved 20 July 2009.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h "Profile: Lord Saville of Newdigate". The Times. London. 7 November 2009. Retrieved 20 July 2009.
  3. ^ a b c d e f "Background to the Inquiry". Bloody Sunday Trust. Archived from the original on 20 July 2009. Retrieved 20 June 2009.
  4. ^ Amazon: Essays in Honour of Sir Brian Neil: the Quintessential Judge (Paperback). ASIN 0406970335.
  5. ^ Amazon: Civil Court Service 2007 (Hardcover). ASIN 1846610699.
  6. ^ "No. 50015". The London Gazette. 23 January 1985. p. 939.
  7. ^ "No. 50078". The London Gazette. 29 March 1985. p. 4499.
  8. ^ "No. 54849". The London Gazette. 31 July 1997. p. 8779.
  9. ^ Gibb, Frances (14 June 2010). "Lord Saville — an outstanding legal mind defined by Bloody Sunday inquiry". The Times. London. Retrieved 16 June 2010.
  10. ^ "Academy of Experts: Officers". Retrieved 20 January 2009.
  11. ^ Toby Harnden (13 February 2004). "Lord Saville should be ashamed". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 20 June 2009.
  12. ^ Sharrock, David (7 November 2008). "Bloody Sunday inquiry delays report again, four years after hearing evidence". The Times. London. Retrieved 20 July 2009.
  13. ^ "Bloody Sunday Report Published". BBC News. 15 June 2010. Retrieved 15 June 2010.
  14. ^ "Saville: Bloody Sunday killings unjustifiable". Raidió Teilifís Éireann. 15 June 2010. Retrieved 15 June 2010.
  15. ^ "Bloody Sunday report published". BBC News. 15 June 2010. Retrieved 15 June 2010.
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