Sir Alexander Wood Renton GCMG KC (24 June 1861 –17 June 1933) was a Scottish lawyer and British colonial judge. He served as the 21st Chief Justice of Ceylon from 1914 to 1918.
Renton was born in Fife,the son of Rev. John Renton and Janet Morrison (née Wemyss),a cousin of Sir James Wemyss Mackenzie,5th Baronet. He was educated at the Glasgow Academy and the University of Edinburgh,where he took first class honours in the Legum Baccalaureus examination. He was called to the bar at Gray's Inn in 1885. [1]
As a barrister in England,he did not acquire a large practice,but secured his reputation through his legal writings,including his 1896 book,Law and Practice of Lunacy. He was an editor of the 13-volume Encyclopaedia of English Law (1897),English Reports,and the Law Journal,and contributed many legal articles to the Encyclopædia Britannica . [1]
In 1901,Renton was sent to Mauritius as Procureur and Advocate-General,and served as a judge on the island. In 1905,he was appointed to the Supreme Court of Ceylon. He was promoted to Chief Justice of Ceylon on 22 August 1914 succeeding Alfred Lascelles and was Chief Justice until 1918. He was succeeded by Anton Bertram. [2] [3] [4] [5]
In 1918,Renton returned to England with the intention of retiring;however,the Colonial Office sent him on a special mission to Nigeria and the Gold Coast Colony. [1]
In 1919,the Foreign Office sent him to Egypt,where he was vice-president of the Egyptian Riots Indemnities Commission. He was subsequently appointed chairman of the Ceylon Salaries Commission (1921),the Irish Compensation Commission (1923),the Irish Grants Committee (1926). [1]
He was made a member of the Privy Council in 1923. [1]
Renton was knighted in the 1915 Birthday Honours. He was appointed a Knight Commander of the Order of St Michael and St George in the 1925 Birthday Honours and promoted a Knight Grand Cross of the same order in 1930. [1]
In 1889,he married Elizabeth (née Jackson),with whom he had two daughters. He died in London,aged 71. In his obituary,The Times described him as a popular man:"Personally,he was much liked,and his Scottish humour was enhanced by the agreeable accent with which it was conveyed." [1]
Sir Denys Tudor Emil Roberts was a British colonial official and judge. Joining the colonial civil service as a Crown Counsel in Nyasaland in 1953,he became Attorney General of Gibraltar in 1960. In 1962,he was posted to Hong Kong as Solicitor-General,and was successively promoted to Attorney-General in 1966,Colonial Secretary/Chief Secretary in 1973 and Chief Justice in 1979. He was the first and only Attorney-General to become both Colonial Secretary in Hong Kong. Never having been a judge before,he was appointed as Chief Justice of the Supreme Court in 1979 and was the first and only Colonial Secretary of Hong Kong to receive such appointment.
Sir Hector Horace Hearne was an English barrister and judge.
Sir Tikiri Bandara Panabokke II,First Adigar,JP,UM was a Ceylonese,prominent colonial era legislator,lawyer and diplomat. He was the first Minister of Health in the State Council and second representative of the Government of Ceylon to India. He was the last person appointed by the British Government of Ceylon to the post of Adigar.
Sir Alexander Johnston,PC,FRS,was a British colonial official who served as third Chief Justice of Ceylon and second Advocate Fiscal of Ceylon. He introduced a range of administrative reforms in Sri Lanka,introducing numerous liberal ideas and supporting the rights of natives. He was also an orientalist and along with Henry Thomas Colebrooke and others he was a founding member of the Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland.
Sir Henry Cowper Gollan CBE KC was a British lawyer and judge. He served as attorney general and chief justice of a number of British colonies in the early 20th century. His last position before retirement was as Chief Justice of Hong Kong.
Sir Thomas Forrest Garvin II,KC was a Ceylonese judge and lawyer. He was a judge of the Supreme Court of Ceylon and Solicitor General of Ceylon.
Sir Jacobus Petrus de Wet was the 15th Chief Justice of Ceylon. He was appointed on 31 May 1882 succeeding Richard Cayley and was Chief Justice until 29 May 1883. He was succeeded by Bruce Burnside.
Sir Alfred George Lascelles KC was the 20th Chief Justice of Ceylon. He was appointed on 1 May 1911 succeeding Joseph Turner Hutchinson and was Chief Justice until 1914. He was succeeded by Alexander Wood Renton.
Sir Thomas Anton Bertram KC was an English Barrister and the 22nd Chief Justice of Ceylon. He was appointed on 26 July 1918 succeeding Alexander Wood Renton and was Chief Justice until 1925. He was succeeded by Charles Ernest St. John Branch.
Sir Charles Ernest St John Branch KC,known as St John Branch,was a British colonial administrator,who served as Chief Justice of Jamaica 1923-25 and the 23rd Chief Justice of Ceylon 1925-26.
Sir Stanley Fisher was a British colonial judge who was the 24th Chief Justice of Ceylon.
Sir Edward St John Jackson,was a British colonial judge and administrator.
Sir Walter Sidney Shaw was an English barrister and judge. He served as a judge in a number of British colonies,his last judicial appointment being as Chief Justice of the Straits Settlements. He was also the chairman of the Shaw Commission which investigated the 1929 Palestine riots.
Sir Darnley Arthur Alexander,QC,CBE,GCON,SAN was a Nigerian jurist and Chief Justice of Nigeria from 1975 to 1979.
The Chief Justice of the High Commissioner's Court, more commonly known as the Chief Judicial Commissioner for the Western Pacific,was the chief judicial officer throughout the British Western Pacific Territories from 1877 through 1976. This was a supra-colonial entity established by the Western Pacific Orders-in-Council 1877,and by the Pacific Order-in-Council 1893. Headed by a High Commissioner for the Western Pacific,who was also ex officio the Governor of Fiji,until the end of 1952,it included numerous islands,mostly small,throughout Oceania. Composition varied over time,but Fiji (1877–1952) and the Solomon Islands (1893–1976) were its most durable members.
The 1889 Birthday Honours were appointments by Queen Victoria to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by citizens of the British Empire. The appointments were made to celebrate the official birthday of The Queen,and were published in the London Gazette on 24 May 1889 and in The Times on 25 May 1889.
The 1890 Birthday Honours were appointments by Queen Victoria to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by citizens of the British Empire. The appointments were made to celebrate the official birthday of The Queen,and were published in the London Gazette on 20 May 1890 and in The Times on 21 May 1890.
The 1891 Birthday Honours were appointments by Queen Victoria to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by citizens of the British Empire. The appointments were made to celebrate the official birthday of The Queen,and were published in the London Gazette on 29 May 1891 and in The Times on 30 May 1891.
Sir Robert Harry Drayton,was a lawyer and a senior colonial civil servant who worked in Palestine,Tanganyika,Ceylon,Jamaica and Pakistan. He served as the Chief Secretary of Ceylon from 1942 to 1947 and as the Legal Secretary of Ceylon.
Sir Kenneth Elliston Poyser was a British barrister,British Army officer,and colonial administrator.