George Wegner Paus (14 October 1882 – 22 December 1923), often known as ''George Paus'', was a Norwegian lawyer, mountaineer, skiing pioneer and business executive. He was Director at the

Norwegian Employers' Confederation The Norwegian Employers' Confederation ( no, Norsk Arbeidsgiverforening, NAF) was an employers' organisation in Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comp ...

. As such, he played an important role in labour issues in Norway and in the development of Norwegian labour law from the early 20th century. He participated in the establishment of the International Labour Organization in 1919 as a representative of the Norwegian government and was a member of several governmental committees. He was one of Norway's most active mountaineers in the early 1900s with several first ascents in Jotunheimen; his regular mountaineering partners included his close friend Kristian Tandberg, pioneering female mountaineer

Therese Bertheau Therese Bertheau (23 November 1861 – March 1936) was a pioneering female Norwegian mountaineer. She was among the first in modern times to introduce trousers as an everyday item of clothing for women. Bertheau was born in Skjeberg in Østfold, ...

whom he knew since childhood, and some of the most famous British mountaineers of the era including

Harold Raeburn Harold Andrew Raeburn (21 July 1865 – 21 December 1926) was a Scottish mountaineer. He was one of the most prominent British mountaineers of his era with several first ascents. He was mountaineering leader on the initial 1921 British Mount Ever ...

. He was also an avid sailor and rower, and was the founder and chairman of the ski club Starkad from 1897, described in the book ''Vinterlivets rene glæder'' (The Joy of Winter Life). He also wrote poetry.

Career

He graduated with the

cand.jur. Candidate of Law (Latin: ''candidatus/candidata juris/iuris'') is both a graduate law degree awarded to law students in the Nordic region as well as an academic status designation for advanced Law School students in German-speaking countries. ...

degree at The Royal Frederick's in 1904. After briefly working as a barrister with his own practice in Oslo, he was consular secretary at the newly established Norwegian consulate in Chicago from 1905 to 1907. In 1907, he was employed as Secretary, effectively general counsel, at the newly founded Norwegian Employers' Confederation, becoming its second management-level employee and its first lawyer. In 1918 he became Director. He was part of the Norwegian delegation at the conference that established the International Labour Organization in 1919, together with

Johan Castberg Johan Castberg (21 September 1862 – 24 December 1926) was a Norwegian jurist and politician best known for representing the Radical People's Party (Labour Democrats). He was a government minister from 1908 to 1910 and 1913 to 1914, and also se ...

and others.Erling Petersen, ''Norsk arbeidsgiverforening : 1900–1950'', Grøndahl, 1950 Paus was one of the most active mountaineers in Norway around 1900 with several first ascents. He also wrote poetry.
Studentene fra 1900 : biografiske oplysninger samlet til 25-aars-jubilæet 1925
', p. 271–272, Grøndahl & Søn, 1925

Background

He was a son of the theologian

Bernhard Pauss Bernhard Cathrinus Pauss (born 6 April 1839 at Tangen, Drammen, died 9 November 1907 in Christiania) was a Norwegian theologian, educator, author and humanitarian and missionary leader, who was a major figure in girls' education in Norway in his ...

and Anna Henriette Wegner. He was a brother of the surgeon and humanitarian

Nikolai Nissen Paus Nikolai Nissen Paus (4 June 1877, in Christiania – 23 December 1956, in Tønsberg) was a Norwegian surgeon, hospital director and humanitarian. He served as President of the Norwegian Red Cross 1945–1947, and as Vice President 1930–1945 an ...

and of the industrial leader

Augustin Paus Augustin Thoresen Paus (22 July 1881, in Oslo, Christiania – 20 September 1945) was a Norwegian engineer and industrial leader in the hydropower industry. From 1918 he led the construction of the Hydroelectricity, hydroelectric power plant at R ...

, and a grandson of the industrialist Benjamin Wegner. He was named for his uncle, the supreme court advocate George Mygind Wegner (1847–1881), who in turn was named for the former British consul in Oslo and family friend, George Mygind (died 1844).

References

1882 births 1923 deaths University of Oslo alumni 20th-century Norwegian lawyers {{Norway-business-bio-stub