Arthur Lehman Goodhart (1 March 1891 in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...

– 10 November 1978 in

Oxford Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...

) was an American-born academic jurist and lawyer; he was Professor of Jurisprudence at the

University of Oxford , mottoeng = The Lord is my light , established = , endowment = £6.1 billion (including colleges) (2019) , budget = £2.145 billion (2019–20) , chancellor ...

, 1931–51, when he was also a Fellow of

University College, Oxford University College (in full The College of the Great Hall of the University of Oxford, colloquially referred to as "Univ") is a constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. It has a claim to being the oldest college of the unive ...

. He was the first American to be the

Master Master or masters may refer to: Ranks or titles * Ascended master, a term used in the Theosophical religious tradition to refer to spiritually enlightened beings who in past incarnations were ordinary humans *Grandmaster (chess), National Master ...

of an Oxford college, and was a significant benefactor to the college.

Early life and education

Arthur Goodhart was born to a

Jewish Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...

family in New York City, the youngest of three children born to Harriet "Hattie" (née Lehman) and Philip Julius Goodhart. His siblings were Howard Lehman Goodhart and Helen Goodhart Altschul (married to

Frank Altschul Frank Altschul (April 21, 1887 – May 29, 1981) was an American financier at General American Investors Company,Krebs, Albin (May 30, 1981)New York Times: "Frank Altschul, A Banker and Noted Philanthropist."''New York Times''. and founder of the ...

). His maternal grandfather was

Mayer Lehman Mayer Lehman (January 9, 1830 – June 21, 1897) was a German-born American businessman, banker, and philanthropist. He was one of the three founding brothers of the investment bank Lehman Brothers. Early life Mayer Lehman was born in 1830 to ...

, one of three brothers who co-founded the investment banking firm

Lehman Brothers Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. ( ) was an American global financial services firm founded in 1847. Before filing for bankruptcy in 2008, Lehman was the fourth-largest investment bank in the United States (behind Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, a ...

. Goodhart was educated at the Hotchkiss School,

Yale University Yale University is a Private university, private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the List of Colonial Colleges, third-oldest institution of higher education in the United Sta ...

and

Trinity College, Cambridge Trinity College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. Founded in 1546 by King Henry VIII, Trinity is one of the largest Cambridge colleges, with the largest financial endowment of any college at either Cambridge or Oxford. ...

. At Yale, he was an editor of campus humor magazine ''

The Yale Record ''The Yale Record'' is the campus humor magazine of Yale University. Founded in 1872, it became the oldest humor magazine in the world when ''Punch'' folded in 2002."History", The Yale Record, March 10, 2010. http://www.yalerecord.com/about/histo ...

''. After returning to the United States, he practised law until

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

. Following the war, he started to pursue an academic career in law, initially at

Cambridge University The University of Cambridge is a Public university, public collegiate university, collegiate research university in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1209 and granted a royal charter by Henry III of England, Henry III in 1231, Cambridge is the world' ...

and later at

Oxford University Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to th ...

where he became Professor of Jurisprudence and subsequently the Master of University College. He was editor of the ''

Law Quarterly Review The ''Law Quarterly Review'' is a peer-reviewed academic journal covering common law throughout the world. It was established in 1885 and is published by Sweet & Maxwell. It is one of the leading law journals in the United Kingdom. History The ...

'' for fifty years.

Career

Rejected for service with British forces in

, in 1914, Goodhart became a member of the U.S. forces when the U.S. joined the war in 1917; he became counsel to the U.S. mission to

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populou ...

, in 1919. Goodhart was called to the bar by 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 associations for barristers and judges. To be called to the Bar and practise as a barrister in England and ...

1919, and became a fellow of Corpus Christi College, Cambridge, and university lecturer in jurisprudence; he edited the '' Cambridge Law Journal'', 1921–5, and the ''

'', 1926. In 1931 he moved to Oxford to become professor of jurisprudence. He gave up that chair when he became Master of

, 1951–63. Subsequently, he was an Honorary Fellow of the college until his death in 1978. In 1952 he delivered the

Hamlyn Lectures The Hamlyn Lectures are a series of public lectures in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland given annually on a legal topic. The lectures have been given every year since 1949. History The Hamlyn Trust was established in 1948 by the wil ...

. As a member of the Law Revision Committee, Goodhart helped to promote improvements in various branches of the law.

Personal life

Arthur Goodhart was married to Cecily Goodhart (née Carter), a devout Anglican. They had three children: Sir Philip Goodhart; William Goodhart, Lord Goodhart of Youlbury; and

Charles Goodhart Charles Albert Eric Goodhart, (born 23 October 1936) is a British economist. His career can be divided into two sections: his term with the Bank of England and its associated public policy; and his academic work with the London School of Econom ...

The Palgrave Dictionary of Anglo-Jewish History: "Arthur Lehman Goodhart" edited by William D. Rubinstein
p. 354 (after whom Goodhart's law is named).

Legacy

Students during Goodhart's Mastership of University College included Bob Hawke,

matriculate Matriculation is the formal process of entering a university, or of becoming eligible to enter by fulfilling certain academic requirements such as a matriculation examination. Australia In Australia, the term "matriculation" is seldom used now. ...

d 1953, who was later Prime Minister of Australia. The Goodhart Quad and the Goodhart Building (to the east, overlooking the quad and used for student accommodation) at University College, Oxford, off

Logic Lane __NOTOC__ Logic Lane is a small historic cobbled lane that runs through University College in Oxford, England, so called because it was the location of a school of logicians. It links the High Street at the front of the college with Merton Str ...

, are named in his memory. The largest lecture theatre in the Sir David Williams Building, which houses the Faculty of Law at the University of Cambridge, is also named "The Arthur Goodhart Lecture Theatre" after him. Cecily's Court, a small open area containing a fountain, located between the Goodhart Building and 83–85

High Street High Street is a common street name for the primary business street of a city, town, or village, especially in the United Kingdom and Commonwealth. It implies that it is the focal point for business, especially shopping. It is also a metonym fo ...

, is named in memory of Goodhart's wife.

Honours and titles

* 1938 Honorary bencher, Lincoln's Inn * 1943, King's Counsel * 1948, Honorary Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire (KBE). As a US citizen, an honorary knighthood, and name not prefixed "Sir" * 1952, Fellow of 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 spa ...

* He received honorary degrees from twenty universities * Honorary Fellow,

* Honorary Fellow,

References

Sources

* ''Concise Dictionary of National Biography''. * ''

Who was Who ''Who's Who'' is a reference work. It is a book, and also a CD-ROM and a website, giving information on influential people from around the world. Published annually as a book since 1849, it lists people who influence British life, according to i ...

''. *

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Goodhart, Arthur Lehman 1891 births 1978 deaths American legal scholars English legal scholars Members of Lincoln's Inn 20th-century American lawyers American people of German-Jewish descent English Jews English people of German-Jewish descent English philanthropists Jewish American attorneys Hotchkiss School alumni Yale University alumni Alumni of Trinity College, Cambridge Fellows of Corpus Christi College, Cambridge Fellows of Trinity College, Cambridge Fellows of University College, Oxford Masters of University College, Oxford Academic journal editors Honorary Knights Commander of the Order of the British Empire Lawyers awarded knighthoods Members of the Inner Temple Professors of Jurisprudence (University of Oxford) American emigrants to the United Kingdom Lehman family Fellows of the British Academy British King's Counsel