Christian Maasdorp

Christian George Maasdorp (11 June 1848 – 21 May 1926) was a South African jurist and Judge of Appeal.[1]

Christian Maasdorp
Judge of the Appellate Division of South Africa
In office
1915–1922
Judge President of the Cape Provincial Division
In office
1910–1914
Preceded byNew position
Succeeded bySir Henry Juta
Judge of the Cape Supreme Court
In office
1896–1910
Judge of the Supreme Court of the Eastern Districts
In office
1885–1895
Attorney General of the Transvaal Colony
In office
1877–1880
Personal details
Born
Christian George Maasdorp

(1848-06-11)11 June 1848
Malmesbury, Cape Colony
Died21 May 1926(1926-05-21) (aged 77)
Grahamstown, Union of South Africa
NationalitySouth African
RelationsSir Andries Maasdorp (brother)

Early life and education

Maasdorp was the son of Gysbert Henry Maasdorp, a medical doctor, and his wife, Anna Maria Hartzenberg and the younger brother of Justice Andries Maasdorp.[2] He received his basic education at Graaff-Reinet and obtained both the Second-Class and First-Class Certificates in Literature and Science of the Council of Examiners, later to be known as the University of the Cape of Good Hope. He then continued his studies in London, where he obtained the BA degree in 1869. Thereafter he became a member of the Inner Temple, where he was a fellow student of John Gilbert Kotzé.[3]

Career

Maasdorp was admitted as a barrister in June 1871 and then returned to South Africa and was admitted to the Cape Bar on 3 August 1871. He then practised at the Supreme Court of Griqualand West at Barkly West and thereafter, for three years, at the Supreme Court of the Eastern Districts in Grahamstown. In October 1877 he was appointed as Attorney General of the Transvaal and in February 1880 he resigned and returned to Cape Town to resume his practice in the Cape.

Maasdorp then had several appointments as judge. In 1885 he was appointed Judge of the Supreme Court of the Eastern Districts and in 1896 he became Judge of the Cape Supreme Court.[1] After South Africa became a Union in 1910, Maasdorp was appointed Judge President of the Cape Provincial Division of the Supreme Court, as well as Additional Judge of Appeal. In 1915 he became Judge of Appeal.[4]

Personal life

Maasdorp was married to Ella Elizabeth Hutton and had six children. Two of his sons were killed in action during the First World War. He retired in 1922 and died in Grahamstown on 21 May 1926.[2]

References

  1. Beyers, C. J. (1987). Dictionary of South African biography: Vol V. Pretoria: Human Sciences Research Council. p. 479. ISBN 0-796-90420-0.
  2. GISA (1999). South African Genealogies Vol 5, L-M. Stellenbosch: Genealogical Institute of South Africa. p. 376. ISBN 0-7972-0732-5. OCLC 42873059.
  3. Wildenboer, Liezl (2019). "The judicial officers of the Transvaal High Court, 1877-1881". Fundamina. 25 (2): 256–290. doi:10.17159/2411-7870/2019/v25n2a9. ISSN 1021-545X. Text was copied from this source, which is available under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
  4. "History". Supreme Court of Appeal. Archived from the original on 25 September 2020.
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