Sir Gerard Howe KC (3 June 1899 – 25 May 1955) was a British lawyer and judge. He was Chief Justice of Hong Kong in the early 1950s.

Early life

Howe was born on 3 June 1899. He was the son of Gerard Augustus Howe of Dublin and Nina, daughter of Henry Beasley,

Monkstown, Dublin Monkstown (), historically known as ''Carrickbrennan'' ( gle, Carraig Bhraonáin), is a suburb in south Dublin, located in Dún Laoghaire–Rathdown, Ireland. It is on the coast, between Blackrock and Dún Laoghaire. The lands of the Carrickbr ...

. He was educated at The Royal School, Armagh and

Trinity College, Dublin , name_Latin = Collegium Sanctae et Individuae Trinitatis Reginae Elizabethae juxta Dublin , motto = ''Perpetuis futuris temporibus duraturam'' (Latin) , motto_lang = la , motto_English = It will last i ...

. He served in the military during World War I and was mentioned in despatches. He qualified as a barrister at law at

King's Inns The Honorable Society of King's Inns ( ir, Cumann Onórach Óstaí an Rí) is the "Inn of Court" for the Bar of Ireland. Established in 1541, King's Inns is Ireland's oldest school of law and one of Ireland's significant historical environment ...

in 1923. He married Margaret, daughter of Francis Maguire JP in 1927.

Legal appointments

Howe joined the

Colonial Legal Service The Colonial Service, also known as His/Her Majesty's Colonial Service and replaced in 1954 by Her Majesty's Overseas Civil Service (HMOCS), was the British government service that administered most of Britain's overseas possessions, under the aut ...

and was appointed resident magistrate in Kenya in 1930. He then served as Crown counsel in the Gold Coast (1934–1937) and

Straits Settlements The Straits Settlements were a group of British territories located in Southeast Asia. Headquartered in Singapore for more than a century, it was originally established in 1826 as part of the territories controlled by the British East India Comp ...

(1937–1941). He was appointed Solicitor General in Nigeria in 1941 and then promoted to

Attorney General In most common law jurisdictions, the attorney general or attorney-general (sometimes abbreviated AG or Atty.-Gen) is the main legal advisor to the government. The plural is attorneys general. In some jurisdictions, attorneys general also have exec ...

in 1946. He was appointed a

King's Counsel In the United Kingdom and in some Commonwealth countries, a King's Counsel ( post-nominal initials KC) during the reign of a king, or Queen's Counsel (post-nominal initials QC) during the reign of a queen, is a lawyer (usually a barrister or ...

in 1946. He was knighted in 1949 whilst attorney general of Nigeria. In 1950, he was appointed Chief Justice of Hong Kong replacing Sir

Leslie Bertram Gibson Sir Leslie Bertram Gibson Queen's Counsel, QC (14 May 189621 September 1952) was a British lawyer and judge. He was Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Hong Kong, Chief Justice of Hong Kong in the late 1940s. Early life Gibson was the son of ...

Death

Howe fell ill in the summer of 1953 and in April 1954 returned to his home in Bullough Castle, Dublin. Howe died while still in office on 25 May 1955 in London. On his death, the full court convened on 28 May 1955 to pay tribute to him. A two-minute silence was also observed by Chief Magistrate

Lo Hin Shing Lo Hin Shing (; 1889 – 2 January 1989) was a barrister and magistrate of Hong Kong. Educated in China, Hong Kong and Cambridge, he was called to the English and Hong Kong bar in the 1920s. During the Japanese occupation of Hong Kong, he was ob ...

.''China Mail'', 27 May 1955, p. 1

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Howe, Gerard Lewis 1899 births 1955 deaths British Hong Kong judges British King's Counsel Chief Justices of the Supreme Court of Hong Kong Knights Bachelor Attorneys General of Nigeria People educated at The Royal School, Armagh 20th-century King's Counsel British Kenya judges Gold Coast (British colony) people People from the Straits Settlements Attorneys General of colonial Nigeria Alumni of King's Inns Colonial Legal Service officers