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Sir John Eldon Bankes, (17 April 1854 – 31 December 1946) was a Welsh judge of the
King's Bench Division The King's Bench Division (or Queen's Bench Division when the monarch is female) of the High Court of Justice deals with a wide range of common law cases and has supervisory responsibility over certain lower courts. It hears appeals on point ...
of the
High Court of Justice The High Court of Justice in London, known properly as His Majesty's High Court of Justice in England, together with the Court of Appeal (England and Wales), Court of Appeal and the Crown Court, are the Courts of England and Wales, Senior Cour ...
, and later a
Lord Justice of Appeal A Lord Justice of Appeal or Lady Justice of Appeal is a judge of the Court of Appeal of England and Wales, the court that hears appeals from the High Court of Justice, the Crown Court and other courts and tribunals. A Lord (or Lady) Just ...
.


Biography

Born in Northop,
Flintshire Flintshire () is a county in the north-east of Wales. It borders the Irish Sea to the north, the Dee Estuary to the north-east, the English county of Cheshire to the east, Wrexham County Borough to the south, and Denbighshire to the west. ...
on 17 April 1854, he was the eldest son of John Scott Bankes (1826-1896) and his first wife, Annie (1829-1876), daughter of Sir John Jervis, himself a chief justice. He was educated at
Eton College Eton College ( ) is a Public school (United Kingdom), public school providing boarding school, boarding education for boys aged 13–18, in the small town of Eton, Berkshire, Eton, in Berkshire, in the United Kingdom. It has educated Prime Mini ...
and
Christ Church, Oxford Christ Church (, the temple or house, ''wikt:aedes, ædes'', of Christ, and thus sometimes known as "The House") is a Colleges of the University of Oxford, constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. Founded in 1546 by Henry V ...
, where he rowed for
Oxford University Boat Club Oxford University Boat Club (OUBC) is the Rowing (sport), rowing club for the University of Oxford, England, located on the River Thames at Oxford. The club was founded in 1829. The prime constitutional aim of OUBC is to beat Cambridge Univers ...
.
Called to the Bar The call to the bar is a legal term of art in most common law jurisdictions where persons must be qualified to be allowed to argue in court on behalf of another party and are then said to have been "called to the bar" or to have received "call to ...
at the
Inner Temple The Honourable Society of the Inner Temple, commonly known as the Inner Temple, is one of the four Inns of Court and is a professional association for barristers and judges. To be called to the Bar and practice as a barrister in England and Wa ...
in 1878, he took silk in 1901. Whilst on the bench, he was often referred to as J. Eldon Bankes. In 1910 he became a judge of the High Court, and in 1915 a Lord Justice of Appeal and a Privy Councillor. He retired from the bench in 1927. Bankes was chairman of Quarter Sessions in Flintshire for 33 years, and as a
Conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy and ideology that seeks to promote and preserve traditional institutions, customs, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civiliza ...
an active member of
Flintshire County Council Flintshire County Council is the unitary local authority for the county of Flintshire, one of the principal areas of Wales. It is based at Tŷ Dewi Sant, Ewloe since 2025. It was previously based at County Hall in Mold. Elections take place ...
, of which he was chairman in 1933. He unsuccessfully contested the Flint District constituency in 1906. Bankes was on numerous commissions or committees of inquiry, including: Chairman of the Departmental Committee on Education in Rural Wales, 1928; and as a prominent
Anglican Anglicanism, also known as Episcopalianism in some countries, is a Western Christianity, Western Christian tradition which developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the ...
, with Lord Sankey he drafted the new constitution of the
Church in Wales The Church in Wales () is an Anglican church in Wales, composed of six dioceses. The Archbishop of Wales does not have a fixed archiepiscopal see, but serves concurrently as one of the six diocesan bishops. The position is currently held b ...
. On the death of his father, he inherited the family home of Soughton Hall,
Flintshire Flintshire () is a county in the north-east of Wales. It borders the Irish Sea to the north, the Dee Estuary to the north-east, the English county of Cheshire to the east, Wrexham County Borough to the south, and Denbighshire to the west. ...
. He married Edith Ethelston in 1882 (d. 1931), and the couple had two sons and two daughters. In 1921, Bankes was made an honorary LL.D. of the
University of Wales The University of Wales () is a confederal university based in Cardiff, Wales. Founded by royal charter in 1893 as a federal university with three constituent colleges – Aberystwyth, Bangor and Cardiff – the university was the first universit ...
. The Northop Village Hall was endowed as the Edith Bankes Memorial Institute in her memory. Bankes died at his home in North Wales on 31 December 1946, aged 92. After his death, the Soughton estate passed to their second son, Robert Wynne Bankes, who served as Private Secretary to successive
Lord Chancellor The Lord Chancellor, formally titled Lord High Chancellor of Great Britain, is a senior minister of the Crown within the Government of the United Kingdom. The lord chancellor is the minister of justice for England and Wales and the highest-ra ...
s. After the death of his mother, his son, John Wynne Bankes, sold the hall into private hands, and in 1987 it was converted into a country house hotel.


Notable judicial decisions

Bankes handed down a number of notable decisions during his judicial career, predominantly in the field of banking law. Key decisions included: * '' Tournier v National Provincial and Union Bank of England''
924 __NOTOC__ Year 924 (Roman numerals, CMXXIV) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Julian calendar. Events January—March * January 5 – The monastery of San Martín de Albelda is founded in the Kingdom of Navarre in what is now ...
1 KB 461, the leading authority on a banker's duty of confidentiality * '' Russian Commercial and Industrial Bank v Comptoir d'Estcompte de Mulhouse''
925 Year 925 ( CMXXV) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Julian calendar. Events By date January – June * January 5 – Gabellus becomes the first abbot of the monsastery of San Martín de Albelda in the Spanish kingdom ...
AC 112, on the authority of the bank's officers * '' National Provincial Bank v Charnley''
924 __NOTOC__ Year 924 (Roman numerals, CMXXIV) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Julian calendar. Events January—March * January 5 – The monastery of San Martín de Albelda is founded in the Kingdom of Navarre in what is now ...
1 KB 431, priority between competing
security interest In finance, a security interest is a legal right granted by a debtor to a creditor over the debtor's property (usually referred to as the '' collateral'') which enables the creditor to have recourse to the property if the debtor defaults in m ...
s * '' Banque Belge pour L'Etranger v Hambrouck'' 9211 KB 321, on knowing receipt and tracing * '' Joachimson v Swiss Bank Corporation'' 9213 KB 110, on the banker-customer relationship He chaired the Royal Commission on the Private Manufacture of and Trading in Arms in 1935–1936.Royal Commission on the Private Manufacture of and Trading in Arms (Bankes Commission): Reports and Submissions
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References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bankes, John Eldon People from Northop People educated at Eton College Alumni of Christ Church, Oxford Members of the Inner Temple Welsh King's Counsel Queen's Bench Division judges Lord justices of appeal Members of the Privy Council of the United Kingdom 1854 births 1946 deaths
John John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Second E ...
Knights Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath Knights Bachelor Conservative Party (UK) councillors Members of Flintshire County Council Deputy lieutenants of Flintshire