Henry Vivian Brandon, Baron Brandon of Oakbrook, MC, PC (3 June 1920 – 24 March 1999) was a British judge.

Early life and career

Brandon was born in

Worthing Worthing () is a seaside town in West Sussex, England, at the foot of the South Downs, west of Brighton, and east of Chichester. With a population of 111,400 and an area of , the borough is the second largest component of the Brighton and Ho ...

, Sussex, the younger son of Captain Vivian Ronald Brandon RN and of Joan Elizabeth Maud Simpson. He was educated at Durston House,

Winchester College Winchester College is a public school (fee-charging independent day and boarding school) in Winchester, Hampshire, England. It was founded by William of Wykeham in 1382 and has existed in its present location ever since. It is the oldest of ...

, and

King's College, Cambridge King's College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. Formally The King's College of Our Lady and Saint Nicholas in Cambridge, the college lies beside the River Cam and faces out onto King's Parade in the centre of the cit ...

, where he initially read Classics. His studies were interrupted by World War II. He was commissioned into the

Royal Artillery The Royal Regiment of Artillery, commonly referred to as the Royal Artillery (RA) and colloquially known as "The Gunners", is one of two regiments that make up the artillery arm of the British Army. The Royal Regiment of Artillery comprises t ...

and won the

Military Cross The Military Cross (MC) is the third-level (second-level pre-1993) military decoration awarded to officers and (since 1993) other ranks of the British Armed Forces, and formerly awarded to officers of other Commonwealth countries. The MC ...

for directing artillery fire behind

Vichy Vichy (, ; ; oc, Vichèi, link=no, ) is a city in the Allier department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region of central France, in the historic province of Bourbonnais. It is a spa and resort town and in World War II was the capital of ...

lines in

Madagascar Madagascar (; mg, Madagasikara, ), officially the Republic of Madagascar ( mg, Repoblikan'i Madagasikara, links=no, ; french: République de Madagascar), is an island country in the Indian Ocean, approximately off the coast of East Africa ...

. After the war he returned to Cambridge, graduating with a First in Law in 1946. The same year he 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 ...

in 1946. He practiced in the

Probate, Divorce and Admiralty 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, becoming the only man at the bar to build up a practice in all three areas. He was appointed a

Queen'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 o ...

in 1961.

Judicial career

Brandon was appointed to the High Court in 1966, at the age of forty-six, and was assigned to the

, where he was the sole

Admiralty Admiralty most often refers to: *Admiralty, Hong Kong *Admiralty (United Kingdom), military department in command of the Royal Navy from 1707 to 1964 *The rank of admiral *Admiralty law Admiralty can also refer to: Buildings * Admiralty, Traf ...

judge. He received 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 ...

the same year. In 1971, the Division was reformed into the

Family 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 ...

under the

Administration of Justice Act 1970 The Administration of Justice Act 1970 (c. 31) is a UK Act of Parliament. Section 11 reforms the Debtors Act 1869 by further restricting the circumstances in which debtors may be sent to prison. Section 40 includes a number of provisions forbiddi ...

, and its Admiralty jurisdiction was transferred to the

Queen's Bench Division The King's Bench Division (or Queen's Bench Division when the monarch is female) of the High Court of Justice deals with a wide range of common law cases and has supervisory responsibility over certain lower courts. It hears appeals on point ...

. Brandon remained with the new Family Division, although he sat as an 'additional judge of the Queen's Bench Division' on secondment from the Family Division. Brandon was appointed a Lord Justice of Appeal in 1978 and sworn of the Privy Council. On 24 September 1981, he was appointed a Lord of Appeal in Ordinary and was created a life peer with the title Baron Brandon of Oakbrook, ''of Hammersmith in Greater London''. In 1991, he retired from judicial service.

Family

Brandon married Jeanette Janvrin, a private secretary, on 28 December 1955; they had three sons and a daughter. Lady Brandon died in 2018.Brandon of Oakbrook
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References

1920 births 1999 deaths Brandon of Oakbrook 20th-century English judges Members of the Privy Council of the United Kingdom Members of the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council People educated at Winchester College Recipients of the Military Cross Knights Bachelor Royal Artillery officers Alumni of King's College, Cambridge Probate, Divorce and Admiralty Division judges Family Division judges Members of the Inner Temple Lords Justices of Appeal British Army personnel of World War II People from Worthing {{Life-peer-stub