Edwin Jowitt
Sir Edwin Frank Jowitt (1 October 1929 – 22 June 2026) was a British High Court judge.[1] Notable cases overseen by Jowitt include the trial of the murderers of Ross Parker.[2]
Life and career
[edit]Edwin Frank Jowitt was born in Ripley, Derbyshire on 1 October 1929. He educated at Swanwick Hall School and London School of Economics, where he earned his LL.B. He was called to the bar as a member of Middle Temple in 1951. Jowitt became a Queen's Counsel in 1969 and was recorder of the Crown Court from 1972 to 1980. He was a circuit judge from 1980 to 1987 and Senior Circuit Judge and honorary Recorder of Birmingham from 1987 to 1988. He was a judge of the High Court, Queen's Bench Division, from 1988 to 2000. He was knighted in 1988. He was presiding judge of the Midland & Oxford Circuit from 1996 to 1999, was Lent reader in 1997, and became a senior bencher in January 2000.[3]
Following the recommendation of Canadian judge Peter Cory that inquiries into murders in Northern Ireland be undertaken, Jowitt was appointed to chair the Robert Hamill Inquiry.[4][5][6]
Jowitt died on 22 June 2026, aged 96, and was survived by his five children.[7][1]
References
[edit]- 1 2 Sir Edwin Frank Jowitt, ADR Chambers International.
- ↑ "Three guilty of teenager's murder". BBC News. 19 December 2002.
- ↑ Masters of the Bench: Sir Edwin Jowitt, Middle Temple.
- ↑ Judges to head NI collusion inquiries named, Irish Times (November 16, 2004).
- ↑ Interim Report by the Robert Hamill Inquiry to the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland (January 2010).
- ↑ Hamill murder inquiry adjourned, BBC News (May 24, 2005).
- ↑ "Sir Edwin Jowitt obituary: Meticulous and independent judge". The Times. 26 July 2026. Retrieved 26 July 2026.