Florence Baron

Dame Florence Jacqueline Baron, DBE (7 October 1952 – 9 December 2013), judicially styled The Hon. Mrs Justice Baron, was a British barrister and High Court Judge.

Early life and education

Baron was born to Owsiej ("Jose") and Ellen Elizabeth Baron in Kingsbury, London. The family emigrated to the Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland a couple of years later and remained there until 1960 when they returned to London, then Jersey.[1]

Baron was educated at Jersey College for Girls. She studied Philosophy, Politics and Economics and then law (changing subject after her first year) at St Hugh's College, Oxford.[2] As an undergraduate she met her lifelong partner, John Pringle Nodwell Tonna, whom she did not marry until 29 January 2013 after she was diagnosed with terminal breast cancer.[1]

Barrister

Baron was called to the Bar at Middle Temple in 1976 and became a QC in 1995. She specialised in matrimonial finance law at Queen Elizabeth Building (QEB) chambers, becoming the head of the chambers in 2000.[3]

In 1997, she was described by The Lawyer magazine as "such a star, she is just excellent, and rated the highest. She is gutsy, thorough and very clever".[4]

Baron represented Jacqueline Cowan in her 2001 appeal against her divorce settlement. In the initial trial, Mrs Cowan had been awarded £1.7 million of her husband's £12 million.[5] Following the appeal, Mrs Cowan's award was increased to £3 million. The case was one of the first examples of increased protection for 'business wives'.[6]

Judge

Baron was made a Recorder in 1999. She was created a Dame upon her appointment as a Justice of the High Court (Family Division) in 2004.[7]

One of Baron's notable cases as a judge is NG v KR, in which she ruled that it would be unfair to enforce a pre-nuptial contract to restrict the amount of money a husband could claim from his wealthy heiress wife. Although she recognised that the pre-nuptial agreement would have been fully enforceable in Germany (where it was signed) or France, she held that pre-nups had never been legally binding in the United Kingdom. This approach was overruled by the Supreme Court in 2010, which ruled that pre-nups could be taken into consideration in divorce proceedings.[8]

Death

Baron died on 9 December 2013, aged 61, from cancer.[2]

References
  1. Cayford, Philip (1 January 2017). "Baron, Dame Florence Jacqueline". Oxford Dictionary of National Biography. doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/107686.
  2. "Dame Florence Baron, QC". The Times. 13 February 2014. Retrieved 7 November 2016.
  3. Oxford Presentation, ox.ac.uk; accessed 24 March 2016.
  4. "Silks who smooth the way". The Lawyer. 16 September 1997. Retrieved 15 December 2013.
  5. "Dame Florence Baron, QC". The Times. 13 February 2014.
  6. Clare Dyer (15 May 2001). "Controversial changes to asset division". The Guardian. Retrieved 15 December 2013.
  7. Judicial Office (13 November 2013). "Judges, Tribunals and Magistrates | List of members of the judiciary | Senior judiciary". Judiciary.gov.uk. Archived from the original on 28 July 2012. Retrieved 15 December 2013.
  8. "Pre-nuptial agreements are now enforceable". Osbornes. 20 October 2010. Archived from the original on 15 December 2013. Retrieved 15 December 2013.
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