Sir Humphrey Francis O'Leary (12 February 1886 – 16 October 1953) was the seventh Chief Justice of New Zealand, from 1946 to 1953.

Early life and family

Born in Redwoodtown in the

Wairau Valley Wairau Valley is the valley of the Wairau River in Marlborough Region, Marlborough, New Zealand and also the name of the main settlement in the upper valley. New Zealand State Highway 63, State Highway 63 runs through the valley. The valley open ...

Marlborough Marlborough may refer to: Places United Kingdom * Marlborough, Wiltshire, England ** Marlborough College, public school * Marlborough School, Woodstock in Oxfordshire, England * The Marlborough Science Academy in Hertfordshire, England Austral ...

, in 1886, his father, an Irish immigrant, was a blacksmith who had migrated to

Masterton Masterton ( mi, Whakaoriori), a large town in the Greater Wellington Region of New Zealand, operates as the seat of the Masterton District (a territorial authority or local-government district). It is the largest town in the Wairarapa, a r ...

. When his father heard that one of his sons was not doing well at the local Catholic school, he sent his son to Masterton Public. From that time, although he remained faithful to the

Catholic religion The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a p ...

, Humphrey O'Leary attended state schools. He gained a Wellington Education Board scholarship and Queen's Scholarship in 1899, which enabled him to attend

Wellington College Wellington College may refer to: *Wellington College, Berkshire, an independent school in Crowthorne, Berkshire, England ** Wellington College International Shanghai ** Wellington College International Tianjin *Wellington College, Wellington, New Z ...

. There his academic ability, outgoing personality and sporting prowess made him a popular student. The Queen's Scholarship also paid for three years at university and he enrolled in 1902 to study law at Victoria College. In 1912, O'Leary married Lillian Gallagher, and the couple went on to have one son.

Legal career

O'Leary was awarded an

LLB Bachelor of Laws ( la, Legum Baccalaureus; LL.B.) is an undergraduate law degree in the United Kingdom and most common law jurisdictions. Bachelor of Laws is also the name of the law degree awarded by universities in the China, People's Republic ...

degree in 1908, and from 1908 to 1909 he was a New Zealand University rugby representative. He first worked for Wilford and Levi, a law firm, then went into partnership with a university friend Frank Kelly as O'Leary and Kelly. In 1919 he was invited to join the Wellington legal firm that would become known as Bell Gully. 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 ...

on 30 May 1935. O'Leary was president of the Wellington Law Society from 1921 to 1922, and the New Zealand Law Society between 1935 and 1946. He also served on the Victoria University College Council and the University of New Zealand Senate. He was the

Chief Justice of New Zealand The chief justice of New Zealand ( mi, Te Kaiwhakawā Tumuaki o Aotearoa) is the head of the New Zealand judiciary, and presides over the Supreme Court of New Zealand. The chief justice of New Zealand is also the chief justice of Tokelau. Befo ...

from 1946 until his death in Auckland in 1953, aged 67.

Honours

O'Leary was made a

in 1935, a

Knight Commander of the Order of St Michael and St George The Most Distinguished Order of Saint Michael and Saint George is a British order of chivalry founded on 28 April 1818 by George IV, Prince of Wales, while he was acting as prince regent for his father, King George III. It is named in honour ...

in the

1947 New Year Honours The 1947 New Year Honours were appointments by many of the Commonwealth Realms of King George VI to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by citizens of those countries. They were published on 31 December 1946.Operational M ...

, and Honourable Master of the Bench of 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 Wal ...

, London in 1948.

Notes

References

* ''The Story of Bell Gully Buddle Weir'' by Julia Millen (1990, Bell Gully) {{DEFAULTSORT:Oleary, Humphrey 1886 births 1953 deaths Chief justices of New Zealand New Zealand Roman Catholics People educated at Wellington College (New Zealand) High Court of New Zealand judges Members of the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council 20th-century New Zealand judges New Zealand people of Irish descent People from Auckland People from Blenheim, New Zealand Victoria University of Wellington alumni New Zealand King's Counsel New Zealand Knights Commander of the Order of St Michael and St George New Zealand members of the Privy Council of the United Kingdom

Early life and family

Legal career

Honours

See also

Notes

References