Sir Harry Bevir Vaisey (22 June 1877 – 24 November 1965) was a British judge, who sat in the

Chancery Division 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 and the Crown Court, are the Senior Courts of England and Wales. Its name is abbreviated as EWHC (England ...

of the High Court between 1944 and 1960. An authority on

ecclesiastical law Canon law (from grc, κανών, , a 'straight measuring rod, ruler') is a set of ordinances and regulations made by ecclesiastical authority (church leadership) for the government of a Christian organization or church and its members. It is th ...

, he is remembered for some of his more colourful turns of phrase.

Biography

Vaisey was educated at

Shrewsbury School Shrewsbury School is a public school (English independent boarding school for pupils aged 13 –18) in Shrewsbury. Founded in 1552 by Edward VI by Royal Charter, it was originally a boarding school for boys; girls have been admitted into the ...

and

Hertford College, Oxford Hertford College ( ), previously known as Magdalen Hall, is a colleges of the University of Oxford, constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. It is located on Catte Street in the centre of Oxford, directly opposite the main ga ...

, where he took Firsts in

Classical Moderations Honour Moderations (or ''Mods'') are a set of examinations at the University of Oxford at the end of the first part of some degree courses (e.g., Greats or '' Literae Humaniores''). Honour Moderations candidates have a class awarded (hence the ' ...

in 1898 and '' Literae Humaniores'' in 1900. 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 ...

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 1901 and devilled for a time for Mark Romer. He acquired a large general practice at the Chancery bar,

took silk 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 1925, and was elected

Bencher A bencher or Master of the Bench is a senior member of an Inn of Court in England and Wales or the Inns of Court in Northern Ireland, or the Honorable Society of King's Inns in Ireland. Benchers hold office for life once elected. A bencher can ...

of Lincoln's Inn in 1929. A high churchman, he often appeared in front of ecclesiastical courts. He served as

Chancellor Chancellor ( la, cancellarius) is a title of various official positions in the governments of many nations. The original chancellors were the of Roman courts of justice—ushers, who sat at the or lattice work screens of a basilica or law cou ...

of the dioceses of Derby and Wakefield from 1928 to 1944, Chancellor of the diocese of Carlisle from 1930 to 1944, Vicar-General of the Province of York from 1934 to 1944, and Commissary General for the Diocese of Canterbury from 1942 to 1944. Vaisey was appointed to the High Court and assigned to the

in 1944, receiving the customary

knighthood A knight is a person granted an honorary title of knighthood by a head of state (including the Pope) or representative for service to the monarch, the church or the country, especially in a military capacity. Knighthood finds origins in the Gr ...

. The appointment was unexpected, as Vaisey was 66 at the time and had been passed over for preferment several times. He retired in 1960. Vaisey has a certain level of notoriety for some of his more colourful turns of phrase, for example he is noted as saying:

It is a fearful thing to contemplate that when you are driving along the road, a heavy horse may at any moment drop from the sky on top of you.

and:

A gentleman's agreement is an agreement which is not an agreement, made between two people neither of whom are gentlemen, whereby each expects the other to be strictly bound without himself being bound at all.

Vaisey also ruled that the law of England and Wales does not allow a person to change their

given name A given name (also known as a forename or first name) is the part of a personal name quoted in that identifies a person, potentially with a middle name as well, and differentiates that person from the other members of a group (typically a fa ...

. In ''Re'' Parrott, Cox ''v'' Parrott

946 Year 946 (Roman numerals, CMXLVI) was a common year starting on Thursday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. Events By place Europe * Summer – King Otto I, Holy Roman Emperor, Otto I invades the West Fr ...

/nowiki> Ch 183, Vaisey stated that he knew of no way short of an

Act of Parliament Acts of Parliament, sometimes referred to as primary legislation, are texts of law passed by the Legislature, legislative body of a jurisdiction (often a parliament or council). In most countries with a parliamentary system of government, acts of ...

that a person's first name could be altered. The case hinged on a will that stipulated that the inheritor would only inherit if he changed his first name. Vaisey stated that he did not believe one could change one's first name by way of a

deed of change of name A deed of change of name is a legal document used in the United Kingdom, Ireland and some other countries with legal systems based on English common law, to record an intended change of name by a person or family. It is one use of a deed poll. ...

(deed poll). This precedent is widely ignored, but to register a deed of change of name in the High Court of England and Wales, a caveat must be endorsed on the deed along the lines of "Notwithstanding the decision of Mr Justice Vaisey in ''Re: Parrott, Cox v Parrott'', the applicant desires the enrolment to proceed".

References

* Stephen Cretney. ''Family Law in the Twentieth Century: A History''.

Oxford University Press Oxford University Press (OUP) is the university press of the University of Oxford. It is the largest university press in the world, and its printing history dates back to the 1480s. Having been officially granted the legal right to print books ...

, 2003. * Sir Robert Megarry. ''A Second Miscellany at law''. Stephens, 1973. *"Further Tring Personalities", Wendy Austin
Law Reform Commission New South Wales
Registration and Certification of Births and Deaths

Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Vaisey, Harry 1877 births 1965 deaths Chancery Division judges Knights Bachelor Members of Lincoln's Inn English King's Counsel People educated at Shrewsbury School Alumni of Hertford College, Oxford