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David John Feldman () is a British legal academic, author and former judge. He is
Emeritus ''Emeritus'' (; female: ''emerita'') is an adjective used to designate a retired chair, professor, pastor, bishop, pope, director, president, prime minister, rabbi, emperor, or other person who has been "permitted to retain as an honorary title ...
Rouse Ball Professor of English Law The Rouse Ball Professorship of English Law is a senior professorship in English law at the University of Cambridge, established in 1927 by a bequest from the mathematician W. W. Rouse Ball. In establishing the office, Rouse Ball expresse ...
at the
University of Cambridge , mottoeng = Literal: From here, light and sacred draughts. Non literal: From this place, we gain enlightenment and precious knowledge. , established = , other_name = The Chancellor, Masters and Schola ...
, and served as an international judge of the
Constitutional Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina The Constitutional Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, Ustavni sud Bosne i Hercegovine, Уставни суд Босне и Херцеговине) is the interpreter and guardian of the Constitution of Bosnia and Herzegovina, It ...
under the
Dayton Agreement The General Framework Agreement for Peace in Bosnia and Herzegovina, also known as the Dayton Agreement or the Dayton Accords ( Croatian: ''Daytonski sporazum'', Serbian and Bosnian: ''Dejtonski mirovni sporazum'' / Дејтонски мир ...
from 2002 to 2010. He is known for having shaped the development of civil liberties and human rights law in the United Kingdom. Feldman is an
Emeritus ''Emeritus'' (; female: ''emerita'') is an adjective used to designate a retired chair, professor, pastor, bishop, pope, director, president, prime minister, rabbi, emperor, or other person who has been "permitted to retain as an honorary title ...
Fellow A fellow is a concept whose exact meaning depends on context. In learned or professional societies, it refers to a privileged member who is specially elected in recognition of their work and achievements. Within the context of higher education ...
of
Downing College, Cambridge Downing College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge and currently has around 650 students. Founded in 1800, it was the only college to be added to Cambridge University between 1596 and 1869, and is often described as the olde ...
, an Honorary Bencher at
Lincoln's Inn The Honourable Society of Lincoln's Inn is one of the four Inns of Court in London to which barristers of England and Wales belong and where they are called to the Bar. (The other three are Middle Temple, Inner Temple and Gray's Inn.) Lincoln ...
and an Academic Associate at
39 Essex Chambers 39 Essex Chambers is a long established barristers' chambers based in London with over 150 barristers, including 58 King's Counsel. The chambers offers expertise in commercial, common, construction, costs, environmental and planning, public and r ...
. He has served as
Chairman The chairperson, also chairman, chairwoman or chair, is the presiding officer of an organized group such as a board, committee, or deliberative assembly. The person holding the office, who is typically elected or appointed by members of the grou ...
of the
Faculty of Law, University of Cambridge The Faculty of Law, Cambridge is the law school of the University of Cambridge. The study of law at the University of Cambridge began in the thirteenth century. The faculty sits the oldest law professorship in the English-speaking world, the ...
and the
Faculty of Human, Social, and Political Science The Faculty of Human, Social, and Political Science at the University of Cambridge was created in 2011 out of a merger of the Faculty of Archaeology and Anthropology and the Faculty of Politics, Psychology, Sociology and International Studies. ...
, and as President of the
Society of Legal Scholars The Society of Legal Scholars (SLS) is the learned society for those who teach law in a university or similar institution or who are otherwise engaged in legal scholarship. As of the beginning of 2016 the Society had over 3,000 members consisting ...
.


Early life and education

Feldman was born in
Brighton Brighton () is a seaside resort and one of the two main areas of the City of Brighton and Hove in the county of East Sussex, England. It is located south of London. Archaeological evidence of settlement in the area dates back to the Bronze A ...
, the grandson of immigrants from Eastern Europe, and received his early education at
Brighton Hove & Sussex Sixth Form College Brighton, Hove & Sussex Sixth Form College, usually abbreviated to BHASVIC (pronounced "Baz-vic"), is a sixth form college in Brighton and Hove, England for 16- to 19-year-old students. The college is in the Prestonville area of the city. It is ...
. Upon graduating, he applied unsuccessfully to read Law and History at the
University of Bristol , mottoeng = earningpromotes one's innate power (from Horace, ''Ode 4.4'') , established = 1595 – Merchant Venturers School1876 – University College, Bristol1909 – received royal charter , type ...
. Having been advised that confining his application to one subject would improve his chances, he applied the following year to read Law. His choice of law over history was influenced by his childhood admiration of Marshall Hall and
Perry Mason Perry Mason is a fictional character, an American criminal defense lawyer who is the main character in works of detective fiction written by Erle Stanley Gardner. Perry Mason features in 82 novels and 4 short stories, all of which involve a c ...
. He was accepted to
Exeter College, Oxford Exeter College (in full: The Rector and Scholars of Exeter College in the University of Oxford) is one of the Colleges of the University of Oxford, constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England and the fourth-oldest college of the un ...
to read law and graduated in 1976 with a
first-class honours The British undergraduate degree classification system is a grading structure for undergraduate degrees or bachelor's degrees and integrated master's degrees in the United Kingdom. The system has been applied (sometimes with significant variati ...
B.A. Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four yea ...
in
Jurisprudence Jurisprudence, or legal theory, is the theoretical study of the propriety of law. Scholars of jurisprudence seek to explain the nature of law in its most general form and they also seek to achieve a deeper understanding of legal reasoning a ...
. He subsequently also received his first-class honours B.C.L. and D.C.L. from
Exeter College, Oxford Exeter College (in full: The Rector and Scholars of Exeter College in the University of Oxford) is one of the Colleges of the University of Oxford, constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England and the fourth-oldest college of the un ...
. During his time at Oxford, he studied under Stephen Cretney, a future Dean of the Faculty of Law of the
University of Bristol , mottoeng = earningpromotes one's innate power (from Horace, ''Ode 4.4'') , established = 1595 – Merchant Venturers School1876 – University College, Bristol1909 – received royal charter , type ...
.


Career


Academic career

In 1976, Cretney advised Feldman of an available lectureship in law at the University of Bristol. Feldman chose to accept the lectureship over completing the
Bar Bar or BAR may refer to: Food and drink * Bar (establishment), selling alcoholic beverages * Candy bar * Chocolate bar Science and technology * Bar (river morphology), a deposit of sediment * Bar (tropical cyclone), a layer of cloud * Bar (u ...
course, and worked as Lecturer in Law at the
University of Bristol , mottoeng = earningpromotes one's innate power (from Horace, ''Ode 4.4'') , established = 1595 – Merchant Venturers School1876 – University College, Bristol1909 – received royal charter , type ...
until 1989, when he was appointed
Reader A reader is a person who reads. It may also refer to: Computing and technology * Adobe Reader (now Adobe Acrobat), a PDF reader * Bible Reader for Palm, a discontinued PDA application * A card reader, for extracting data from various forms of ...
in Law. That year, he was also Visiting Fellow at the
Australian National University The Australian National University (ANU) is a public research university located in Canberra, the capital of Australia. Its main campus in Acton encompasses seven teaching and research colleges, in addition to several national academies and ...
. In 1992, he was appointed Barber Professor of Jurisprudence at the
University of Birmingham , mottoeng = Through efforts to heights , established = 1825 – Birmingham School of Medicine and Surgery1836 – Birmingham Royal School of Medicine and Surgery1843 – Queen's College1875 – Mason Science College1898 – Mason Univers ...
, and he served concurrently as
Dean Dean may refer to: People * Dean (given name) * Dean (surname), a surname of Anglo-Saxon English origin * Dean (South Korean singer), a stage name for singer Kwon Hyuk * Dean Delannoit, a Belgian singer most known by the mononym Dean Titles * ...
of the Faculty of Law from 1997 to 2000. In 2000, he was appointed Professor of Law, which he performed alongside his responsibilities as Legal Adviser to Parliamentary Joint Select Committee on Human Rights until 2004. He also took up his judicial appointment at the
Constitutional Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina The Constitutional Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, Ustavni sud Bosne i Hercegovine, Уставни суд Босне и Херцеговине) is the interpreter and guardian of the Constitution of Bosnia and Herzegovina, It ...
in this period. In 2004, he was appointed
Rouse Ball Professor of English Law The Rouse Ball Professorship of English Law is a senior professorship in English law at the University of Cambridge, established in 1927 by a bequest from the mathematician W. W. Rouse Ball. In establishing the office, Rouse Ball expresse ...
at the
University of Cambridge , mottoeng = Literal: From here, light and sacred draughts. Non literal: From this place, we gain enlightenment and precious knowledge. , established = , other_name = The Chancellor, Masters and Schola ...
, and a
Fellow A fellow is a concept whose exact meaning depends on context. In learned or professional societies, it refers to a privileged member who is specially elected in recognition of their work and achievements. Within the context of higher education ...
of
Downing College, Cambridge Downing College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge and currently has around 650 students. Founded in 1800, it was the only college to be added to Cambridge University between 1596 and 1869, and is often described as the olde ...
. From 2006 to 2009, he was Chairman of the Faculty Board of Law. Thereon, he took on a number of senior honorary visiting fellowships, including the Miegunyah Distinguished Visiting Fellowship at the
University of Melbourne The University of Melbourne is a public research university located in Melbourne, Australia. Founded in 1853, it is Australia's second oldest university and the oldest in Victoria. Its main campus is located in Parkville, an inner suburb nor ...
and the Sir John C. Smith Senior Visiting Scholarship at the
University of Nottingham The University of Nottingham is a public university, public research university in Nottingham, United Kingdom. It was founded as University College Nottingham in 1881, and was granted a royal charter in 1948. The University of Nottingham belongs t ...
. From 2013 to 2016, he was Chairman of the
Faculty of Human, Social, and Political Science, University of Cambridge The Faculty of Human, Social, and Political Science at the University of Cambridge was created in 2011 out of a merger of the Faculty of Archaeology and Anthropology and the Faculty of Politics, Psychology, Sociology and International Studies. ...
. He was President of the
Society of Legal Scholars The Society of Legal Scholars (SLS) is the learned society for those who teach law in a university or similar institution or who are otherwise engaged in legal scholarship. As of the beginning of 2016 the Society had over 3,000 members consisting ...
from 2010 to 2011, and the outgoing Director of the Centre for Public Law at the
University of Cambridge , mottoeng = Literal: From here, light and sacred draughts. Non literal: From this place, we gain enlightenment and precious knowledge. , established = , other_name = The Chancellor, Masters and Schola ...
. Feldman retired as
Rouse Ball Professor of English Law The Rouse Ball Professorship of English Law is a senior professorship in English law at the University of Cambridge, established in 1927 by a bequest from the mathematician W. W. Rouse Ball. In establishing the office, Rouse Ball expresse ...
on 30 September 2018, and was succeeded by
Louise Gullifer Louise Gullifer is a British legal academic and barrister who is Rouse Ball Professor of English Law at the University of Cambridge. She is the first woman to hold this professorship and was formerly Professor of Commercial Law at the Universit ...
.


Parliamentary career

From 2000 to 2004, he was Legal Adviser to the Parliamentary Joint Select Committee on Human Rights of the
Westminster Parliament The Parliament of the United Kingdom is the Parliamentary sovereignty in the United Kingdom, supreme Legislature, legislative body of the United Kingdom, the Crown Dependencies and the British Overseas Territories. It meets at the Palace of We ...
. He was Specialist Adviser to the Joint Select Committee on the Detention of Terrorist Suspects (Temporary Extension) Bills in 2011.


Judicial career

In 2002, the President of the
European Court of Human Rights The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR or ECtHR), also known as the Strasbourg Court, is an international court of the Council of Europe which interprets the European Convention on Human Rights. The court hears applications alleging that a ...
appointed Feldman a judge on the
Constitutional Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina The Constitutional Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, Ustavni sud Bosne i Hercegovine, Уставни суд Босне и Херцеговине) is the interpreter and guardian of the Constitution of Bosnia and Herzegovina, It ...
, the second-highest judicial authority in
Bosnia and Herzegovina Bosnia and Herzegovina ( sh, / , ), abbreviated BiH () or B&H, sometimes called Bosnia–Herzegovina and often known informally as Bosnia, is a country at the crossroads of south and southeast Europe, located in the Balkans. Bosnia and H ...
. In a speech, David Clarke noted that "Professor David Feldman...has the distinction of achieving high judicial office without ever having to venture into the practice of the law beforehand. Although the post was expected to last five years, he served as judge until 2010. He was Vice-President of the court from 2006 to 2009. His work as a judge influenced his perspectives on constitutions, the rule of law, and the role and authority of courts.


Academic interests

Feldman's academic and teaching interests cover administrative law, civil liberties, constitutional law (particularly in an international and comparative perspective) and human rights. He is credited with writing or editing textbooks on public law, law in politics, civil liberties and human rights, corporate and commercial law, and criminal investigation.


Awards and recognitions

Feldman was made an Honorary Bencher at
Lincoln's Inn The Honourable Society of Lincoln's Inn is one of the four Inns of Court in London to which barristers of England and Wales belong and where they are called to the Bar. (The other three are Middle Temple, Inner Temple and Gray's Inn.) Lincoln ...
in 2003, and elected to the
British Academy The British Academy is the United Kingdom's national academy for the humanities and the social sciences. It was established in 1902 and received its royal charter in the same year. It is now a fellowship of more than 1,000 leading scholars span ...
in 2006. He was appointed
Queen's Counsel In the United Kingdom and in some Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth countries, a King's Counsel (Post-nominal letters, post-nominal initials KC) during the reign of a king, or Queen's Counsel (post-nominal initials QC) during the reign of ...
''
honoris causa An honorary degree is an academic degree for which a university (or other degree-awarding institution) has waived all of the usual requirements. It is also known by the Latin phrases ''honoris causa'' ("for the sake of the honour") or ''ad hono ...
'' in 2008, "for his work in public law fields, particularly civil liberties and human rights". He was also awarded the
Doctor of Laws A Doctor of Law is a degree in law. The application of the term varies from country to country and includes degrees such as the Doctor of Juridical Science (J.S.D. or S.J.D), Juris Doctor (J.D.), Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.), and Legum Doctor (LL. ...
''honoris causa'' by the
University of Bristol , mottoeng = earningpromotes one's innate power (from Horace, ''Ode 4.4'') , established = 1595 – Merchant Venturers School1876 – University College, Bristol1909 – received royal charter , type ...
in 2013.


Bibliography

* ''English Public Law'' (ed.) (Oxford University Press, 2004) * ''Civil Liberties and Human Rights in England and Wales 2nd ed'' (Oxford University Press, 2002) * ''Criminal Confiscation Orders — The New Law'' (Butterworths, 1988) * ''The Law Relating to Entry, Search and Seizure'' (Butterworths, 1986)


References


External links


Cambridge Faculty of Law biography

39 Essex Chambers biography
{{DEFAULTSORT:Feldman, David Academics of the University of Birmingham Alumni of Exeter College, Oxford British judges on the courts of Bosnia and Herzegovina English legal scholars Legal scholars of the University of Cambridge Fellows of Downing College, Cambridge Judges of the Constitutional Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina Living people People educated at Brighton, Hove and Sussex Grammar School Rouse Ball Professors of English Law Year of birth missing (living people) Fellows of the British Academy