Basil Thomas Wigoder, Baron Wigoder QC (12 February 1921 – 12 August 2004) was a politician and

barrister A barrister is a type of lawyer in common law jurisdictions. Barristers mostly specialise in courtroom advocacy and litigation. Their tasks include taking cases in superior courts and tribunals, drafting legal pleadings, researching law and ...

in the United Kingdom.

Early life

Wigoder, whose father was a dentist, and mother a judge, studied history at

Oriel College, Oxford Oriel College () is a constituent college of the University of Oxford in Oxford, England. Located in Oriel Square, the college has the distinction of being the oldest royal foundation in Oxford (a title formerly claimed by University College, wh ...

, after attending

Manchester Grammar School The Manchester Grammar School (MGS) in Manchester, England, is the largest independent school (UK), independent day school for boys in the United Kingdom. Founded in 1515 as a Grammar school#free tuition, free grammar school next to Manchester C ...

. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, he served between 1942 and 1945 in the

Royal Artillery The Royal Regiment of Artillery, commonly referred to as the Royal Artillery (RA) and colloquially known as "The Gunners", is one of two regiments that make up the artillery arm of the British Army. The Royal Regiment of Artillery comprises t ...

. On 14 August 1942 he was promoted to second Lieutenant. After the war, he began law studies at Oriel College and he was also president of the

Oxford Union The Oxford Union Society, commonly referred to simply as the Oxford Union, is a debating society in the city of Oxford England, whose membership is drawn primarily from the University of Oxford. Founded in 1823, it is one of Britain's oldest ...

, the

debate chamber A debate chamber is a room for people to discuss and debate. Debate chambers are used in governmental and educational bodies, such as a parliament, congress, city council, or a university, either for formal proceedings or for informal discourse, ...

of the university until 1946. After graduation, he was

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 ...

Gray's Inn The Honourable Society of Gray's Inn, commonly known as Gray's Inn, is one of the four Inns of Court (professional associations for barristers and judges) in London. To be called to the bar in order to practise as a barrister in England and Wale ...

in 1946.

Career

Public prosecutor and lawyer

After being called to the Bar, he dealt mainly with

criminal law Criminal law is the body of law that relates to crime. It prescribes conduct perceived as threatening, harmful, or otherwise endangering to the property, health, safety, and moral welfare of people inclusive of one's self. Most criminal law i ...

and was introduced in 1951 by his lawyer A. P. Marshall in the case

Willcock v Muckle Willcock and similar can mean: *Alex Willcock, the founder and CEO of Imagini the owner of VisualDNA technology *Amy Willcock, an American-born British-based cookery book writer, who having specialised in cooking on the AGA cooker *Chris Willcock, ...

, which led to the end of the use of identity cards from the war. In the following years, he became one of the leading specialist lawyers for

Individual rights Group rights, also known as collective rights, are rights held by a group ''wikt:qua, qua'' a group rather than individually by its members; in contrast, individual rights are rights held by Individuality, individual people; even if they are grou ...

. As

prosecutor A prosecutor is a legal representative of the prosecution in states with either the common law adversarial system or the Civil law (legal system), civil law inquisitorial system. The prosecution is the legal party responsible for presenting the ...

, he worked in the case against Anthony Reuter, a leader of the youth

protest movement A protest (also called a demonstration, remonstration or remonstrance) is a public expression of objection, disapproval or dissent towards an idea or action, typically a political one. Protests can be thought of as acts of cooper ...

Teddy Boy The Teddy Boys or Teds were a mainly British youth subculture of the mid 1950s to mid 1960s who were interested in rock and roll and R&B music, wearing clothes partly inspired by the styles worn by dandies in the Edwardian period, which Savil ...

, who was sentenced in 1956 for malicious injury to five years imprisonment, and against a man in 1961 to 50

pound sterling Sterling (abbreviation: stg; Other spelling styles, such as STG and Stg, are also seen. ISO code: GBP) is the currency of the United Kingdom and nine of its associated territories. The pound ( sign: £) is the main unit of sterling, and t ...

after kicking a

greyhound The English Greyhound, or simply the Greyhound, is a breed of dog, a sighthound which has been bred for coursing, greyhound racing and hunting. Since the rise in large-scale adoption of retired racing Greyhounds, the breed has seen a resurge ...

at a greyhound race at Wembley.

Liberal Party career

Like many other barristers, Wigoder also engaged in politics and ran in the

1945 United Kingdom general election The 1945 United Kingdom general election was a national election held on 5 July 1945, but polling in some constituencies was delayed by some days, and the counting of votes was delayed until 26 July to provide time for overseas votes to be bro ...

, and in a by-election on 15 November 1945 for the

Liberal Party The Liberal Party is any of many political parties around the world. The meaning of ''liberal'' varies around the world, ranging from liberal conservatism on the right to social liberalism on the left. __TOC__ Active liberal parties This is a li ...

in the

Bournemouth Bournemouth () is a coastal resort town in the Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole council area of Dorset, England. At the 2011 census, the town had a population of 183,491, making it the largest town in Dorset. It is situated on the Southern ...

constituency. He was unsuccessful in both elections for a parliamentary

mandate Mandate most often refers to: * League of Nations mandates, quasi-colonial territories established under Article 22 of the Covenant of the League of Nations, 28 June 1919 * Mandate (politics), the power granted by an electorate Mandate may also ...

in the

House of Commons The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the bicameral parliaments of the United Kingdom and Canada. In both of these countries, the Commons holds much more legislative power than the nominally upper house of parliament. ...

. Wigoder remained prominent in Liberal politics, standing in Westbury in

1959 Events January * January 1 - Cuba: Fulgencio Batista flees Havana when the forces of Fidel Castro advance. * January 2 - Lunar probe Luna 1 was the first man-made object to attain escape velocity from Earth. It reached the vicinity of E ...

and

1964 Events January * January 1 – The Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland is dissolved. * January 5 - In the first meeting between leaders of the Roman Catholic and Orthodox churches since the fifteenth century, Pope Paul VI and Patriarch ...

, without success. In 1963, he succeeded

Desmond Banks Desmond Anderson Harvie Banks, Baron Banks, CBE (23 October 1918 – 15 June 1997) was a British Liberal Party politician. Banks was born in Ascot, Berkshire. He was educated at prep school in Harrow and University College School in Hampstead. ...

as Executive ''Chairman of the Liberal Party'' and held the position until his replacement by Gruffyd Evans. Subsequently, he was Chairman of the Committee for the Organisation of the Party Lectures of the Liberal Party between 1965 and 1966.

Significant trials as a defence lawyer

On 20 April 1966 Wigoder was appointed for his legal services to the

Crown A crown is a traditional form of head adornment, or hat, worn by monarchs as a symbol of their power and dignity. A crown is often, by extension, a symbol of the monarch's government or items endorsed by it. The word itself is used, partic ...

lawyer (''Queen's Counsel''), and then dealt with many significant cases before the

Old Bailey The Central Criminal Court of England and Wales, commonly referred to as the Old Bailey after the street on which it stands, is a criminal court building in central London, one of several that house the Crown Court of England and Wales. The s ...

, the Central Criminal Court. One of his earliest defences after his appointment as Crown Attorney was a successful case before

Gerald Thesiger Sir Gerald Alfred Thesiger, MBE (25 December 1902 – 16 April 1981) was a judge of the High Court of England and Wales of the Queen's Bench Division between 1958 and 1978. Early life and education Thesiger was born on Christmas Day 1902 in Holy ...

, a Judge of the Civil ''Division'' (''Queen's Bench Division'') of the UK and Wales

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 of England and Wales, Court of Appeal and the Crown Court, are the Courts of England and Wales, Senior Cou ...

. In the case of a man accused of murdering another guest at a celebration in

Notting Hill Notting Hill is a district of West London, England, in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea. Notting Hill is known for being a cosmopolitan and multicultural neighbourhood, hosting the annual Notting Hill Carnival and Portobello Road M ...

, he successfully defended the defendant by defending him against a groundless attack. Afterwards he was a sought after defence lawyer and had over time known clients such as the former

Paymaster General His Majesty's Paymaster General or HM Paymaster General is a ministerial position in the Cabinet Office of the United Kingdom. The incumbent Paymaster General is Jeremy Quin MP. History The post was created in 1836 by the merger of the posit ...

George Wigg George Edward Cecil Wigg, Baron Wigg, PC (28 November 1900 – 11 August 1983) was a British Labour Party politician who only served in relatively junior offices but had a great deal of influence behind the scenes, especially with Harold Wil ...

, who was acquitted in a case of prostitution, or Sheila Buckley, a lover of former Labour Party politician

John Stonehouse John Thomson Stonehouse (28 July 192514 April 1988) was a British Labour and Co-operative Party politician and cabinet minister under Prime Minister Harold Wilson. Stonehouse is remembered for his unsuccessful attempt at faking his own death in ...

, who was sued for simulating suicide in 1974. In other proceedings, he defended the painter

Francis Bacon Francis Bacon, 1st Viscount St Alban (; 22 January 1561 – 9 April 1626), also known as Lord Verulam, was an English philosopher and statesman who served as Attorney General and Lord Chancellor of England. Bacon led the advancement of both ...

for possession of cannabis and Alfred Berman, one of the defendants in the trial of the so-called

Richardson Gang The Richardson Gang was an English crime gang based in South London, England in the 1960s. Also known as the "Torture Gang", they had a reputation as some of London's most sadistic gangsters. Their alleged specialities included pulling teeth ...

in 1966. Unlike most of the co-defendants, Berman was acquitted. Also in 1966, Wigoder appeared in a mysterious case against the native of

Nigeria Nigeria ( ), , ig, Naìjíríyà, yo, Nàìjíríà, pcm, Naijá , ff, Naajeeriya, kcg, Naijeriya officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf o ...

student Orishagbemi, who was charged with the murder of his tenant. As a defence, it was portrayed that this girl was a witch who had cursed Orishagbemi and his wife; Orishagbemi had only tried to ward off this curse. In the face of this hopeless defence, Wigoder lost the case. In 1967, Wigoder was commissioned by the Ministry of Commerce to investigate the events surrounding the financial services institution ''Pinnock Finance.'' His other clients included the

journalist and later

Conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization i ...

Member of Parliament A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members of ...

Jonathan Aitken Jonathan William Patrick Aitken (born 30 August 1942) is a British author, Church of England priest, former prisoner and former Conservative Party politician. Beginning his career in journalism, he was elected to Parliament in 1974 (serving unt ...

, who was charged in 1971 under the Official Secrets Act for passing classified information about the

Biafra war The Nigerian Civil War (6 July 1967 – 15 January 1970), also known as the Nigerian–Biafran War or the Biafran War, was a civil war fought between Nigeria and the Republic of Biafra, a secessionist state which had declared its independence f ...

to the weekly ''

The Sunday Telegraph ''The Sunday Telegraph'' is a British broadsheet newspaper, founded in February 1961 and published by the Telegraph Media Group, a division of Press Holdings. It is the sister paper of ''The Daily Telegraph ''The Daily Telegraph'', kn ...

''. Wigoder successfully argued in his plea in favour of Aitken that it was his duty "to act in the interests of the state". This plea has since become a basis for similar processes. Over the years he has been a constant critic of the provisions of this law, which he considered illiberal and unfair. Most recently, Wigoder appeared as a defence lawyer in a series of lawsuits against the

Irish Republican Army The Irish Republican Army (IRA) is a name used by various paramilitary organisations in Ireland throughout the 20th and 21st centuries. Organisations by this name have been dedicated to irredentism through Irish republicanism, the belief tha ...

(IRA), such as a defendant in the

Aldershot Garrison Aldershot Garrison, also known as Aldershot Military Town, is a major garrison in South East England, between Aldershot and Farnborough in Hampshire. The garrison was established when the War Department bought a large area of land near the villa ...

bombing trial in 1972, and the so-called

Guildford Four Guildford () is a town in west Surrey, around southwest of central London. As of the 2011 census, the town has a population of about 77,000 and is the seat of the wider Borough of Guildford, which had around inhabitants in . The name "Guildfo ...

, who were alleged IRA terrorists. They were convicted of bombings on a pub in Guildford in 1975. It was only in 1989 that a review procedure was initiated which led to the annulment of the judgements.

Engagements in legal organisations

In 1970 he became a member of the ''General Council of the Bar'' and remained a member until 1974. Furthermore, Wigoder worked between 1971 and 1977 as a member of the Rules Committee at the Crown Court and then from 1972 to 1984 as a writer (''Recorder'') of the

Crown Court The Crown Court is the court of first instance of England and Wales responsible for hearing all Indictable offence, indictable offences, some Hybrid offence, either way offences and appeals lied to it by the Magistrates' court, magistrates' court ...

. During this time he was with the Attorney Lewis Hawser, who was co-chair of a Judiciary Committee, which proposed the transfer of criminal proceedings from the police to an independent public prosecution authority. In 1972 he founded the ''Criminal Bar Association'' with Jeremy Hutchinson.

House of Lords

On 16 May 1974, by

Letters patent Letters patent ( la, litterae patentes) ( always in the plural) are a type of legal instrument in the form of a published written order issued by a monarch, president or other head of state, generally granting an office, right, monopoly, titl ...

, Wigoder was created a

Life peer In the United Kingdom, life peers are appointed members of the peerage whose titles cannot be inherited, in contrast to hereditary peers. In modern times, life peerages, always created at the rank of baron, are created under the Life Peerages ...

as Baron Wigoder, ''of

Cheetham Cheetham may refer to: People * Cheetham (surname) Places * Cheetham and Altona Important Bird Area, Melbourne, Australia * Cheetham Close, a megalith and scheduled ancient monument located in Lancashire, very close to the boundary with Greater Ma ...

in the

City of Manchester Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The two ...

'', therefore he had the peerage until his death, and was a member of the

House of Lords The House of Lords, also known as the House of Peers, is the Bicameralism, upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Membership is by Life peer, appointment, Hereditary peer, heredity or Lords Spiritual, official function. Like the ...

. During his senior citizenship, he was the leader of the Liberal Party in the House of Lords, after his appointment by

Frank Byers Charles Frank Byers, Baron Byers, (24 July 1915 – 6 February 1984) was a British Liberal Party politician who later became a life peer and Privy Councillor. Background Byers was born in Wallasey, Cheshire. He was the son of Charles Cecil By ...

, Baron Byers, first Parliamentary Chief Executive of the Liberal Party (''Liberal Chief Whip in the House of Lords)'' ''1977–1984'' and later spokesman for his group for domestic and health policy. In his House speeches, he was extremely critical of government proposals regarding both the limitation of jury trial rights and the curtailment of a right to appeal in so-called "lenient sentencing cases".

Other commitments

Baron Wigoder became chairman of the ''Health Services Board in'' 1977 and, after being dissolved by

Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher Margaret Hilda Thatcher, Baroness Thatcher (; 13 October 19258 April 2013) was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1979 to 1990 and Leader of the Conservative Party from 1975 to 1990. She was the first female British prime ...

in 1980, became its chairman from 1981 to 1992, and subsequently chairman of the healthcare company

Bupa Bupa , legally British United Provident Association Limited, is an international health insurance and healthcare group with over 38 million customers worldwide. Bupa's origins and global headquarters are in the United Kingdom. Its main countrie ...

. He also served from 1984 to 1990 as President of the ''Statute Society''.James Morton,
Obituary: Lord Wigoder
, ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...

'', 3 September 2004

Personal life

Wigoder lived in London for most of his adult life after being brought up in Manchester. He married Yolanda Levinson in 1948 and had four children, including the businessman and

business manager The Oxford English Dictionary defines a business manager as "a person who manages the business affairs of an individual, institution, organization, or company". Compare manager. Business managers drive the work of others (if any) in order to oper ...

Charles Wigoder Charles Wigoder (born 2 March 1960) is an English telecommunications entrepreneur, associated with building both Peoples Phone and Telecom Plus (The Utility Warehouse) into substantial and successful businesses. Biography The son of The Right ...

, who is also executive chairman of the telecommunications company

Telecom Plus Telecom Plus plc is a British multi-utility supplier of gas, electricity, home insurance, and landline, broadband and mobile services to residences and businesses. It is listed on the London Stock Exchange and is a constituent of the FTSE 250 ...

. He died on 12 August 2004 after illness.

Arms

External links

*
Entry
in Cracroft's Peerage ** in Leigh Rayment Peerage *
Entry
in They Work For You *
''Obituary: Lord Wigoder. Liberal peer and lawyer who championed individual rights''
In:

vom 3. September 2004

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Wigoder, Basil 1921 births 2004 deaths Alumni of Oriel College, Oxford Chairs of the Liberal Party (UK) English barristers Liberal Party (UK) life peers People educated at Manchester Grammar School Politicians from Manchester Presidents of the Oxford Union Members of Gray's Inn Royal Artillery officers British Army personnel of World War II Liberal Party (UK) parliamentary candidates 20th-century English lawyers Life peers created by Elizabeth II