Edward Somers

Sir Edward Jonathan Somers QC (9 September 1928 – 3 June 2002) was a New Zealand jurist and member of the Privy Council.

Biography

Somers was born in Christchurch in 1928, and was educated at Christ's College and the University of Canterbury, where he gained a Bachelor of Arts and a Bachelor of Laws.[1] In 1952, Somers became engaged to Mollie Louise Morison, and they later married and went on to have three children.[2][3]

Somers practised as a barrister and solicitor between 1952 and 1971, and solely as a barrister thereafter. In 1973, he was appointed Queen's Counsel, and the following year he became a judge of the Supreme Court (now High Court). He was appointed a judge of the Court of Appeal in 1981, a role from which he retired in 1990.[1] In 1981, he was also appointed to the Privy Council.

Somers was a part-time lecturer at the University of Canterbury from 1954 to 1974.[4]

In 1998, Somers was appointed by the British government to be a member of the Bloody Sunday Inquiry. He resigned from that role for personal reasons in 2000.[5]

Somers died of cancer in Christchurch in 2002.[3] His wife, Louise, Lady Somers, died in Christchurch in 2021.[6]

Honours

In the 1989 Queen's Birthday Honours, Somers was appointed a Knight Bachelor.[7] He was awarded an honorary Doctor of Laws by the University of Canterbury in 1992.[8]

References
  1. Sir Edward Somers Archived 20 July 2009 at the Wayback Machine. Bloody Sunday Trust. Retrieved 18 May 2013.
  2. "Engagements". The Press. Vol. 88, no. 26834. 12 September 1952. p. 2. Retrieved 29 September 2021.
  3. "Sir Edward Somers". The Times. 24 June 2002. p. 35.
  4. Van Beynen, Martin (15 June 2002). "'Enormously able' judge". The Press. p. 13.
  5. Foster, Peter (3 August 2000). "The loss of Sir Edward does not invalidate any tribunal decisions". The Telegraph. Retrieved 18 May 2013.
  6. "Lady Somers death notice". The Press. 29 September 2021. Retrieved 29 September 2021.
  7. "No. 51774". The London Gazette (3rd supplement). 17 June 1989. p. 31.
  8. Honorary Graduates. University of Canterbury. Retrieved 18 May 2013.
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