Sir Edward James Holman (born 21 August 1947) is a retired British judge of the

High Court of England and Wales 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 ...

, assigned to the Family Division. He has been the Commodore of the

Royal Yacht Squadron The Royal Yacht Squadron (RYS) is a British yacht club. Its clubhouse is Cowes Castle on the Isle of Wight in the United Kingdom. Member yachts are given the suffix RYS to their names, and are permitted (with the appropriate warrant) to w ...

since 2021.

Legal career

Holman was called to the bar (

Middle Temple The Honourable Society of the Middle Temple, commonly known simply as Middle Temple, is one of the four Inns of Court exclusively entitled to call their members to the English Bar as barristers, the others being the Inner Temple, Gray's Inn ...

) in 1971 and was elected a bencher in 1995. He acted for the Queen's Proctor from 1980–91 and legal assessor for the Central Council for Nursing, Midwifery and Health Visiting (now the

Nursing and Midwifery Council The Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) is the regulator for nursing and midwifery professions in the UK. The NMC maintains a register of all nurses, midwives and specialist community public health nurses and nursing associates eligible to pra ...

) from 1983-95. Holman has served as an officer of the Family Law Bar Association, as secretary 1988–92 and chairman 1992–95. In 1991, 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 ...

and a Crown Court

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in 1993. He was a member of the Family Proceedings Rules Committee from 1991 and of the Supreme Court (now the Senior Courts) Procedure Committee from 1992, leaving both committees in 1995. On 18 March 1995, he was appointed a High Court judge, 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 ...

, and assigned to 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 ...

. He was Family Division Liaison Judge for the Western Circuit from 1995 to 2002. He retired from the High Court on 27 June 2022.

Other work

Sir James Holman has been the Commodore of the

since 2021.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Holman, James 1947 births Living people People educated at Dauntsey's School Alumni of Exeter College, Oxford Family Division judges Knights Bachelor Members of the Middle Temple 20th-century King's Counsel