Sir John Charles Fenton (5 May 1880 – 3 January 1951) was a Scottish lawyer.

Biography

Fenton was born 5 May 1880, the son of Elizabeth Jack and James Fenton of

Edinburgh Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian on the southern shore of t ...

. He was educated at

George Watson's College George Watson's College is a co-educational independent day school in Scotland, situated on Colinton Road, in the Merchiston area of Edinburgh. It was first established as a hospital school in 1741, became a day school in 1871, and was merg ...

, at the

University of Edinburgh The University of Edinburgh ( sco, University o Edinburgh, gd, Oilthigh Dhùn Èideann; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in post-nominals) is a public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Granted a royal charter by King James VI in 15 ...

and at the

Sorbonne Sorbonne may refer to: * Sorbonne (building), historic building in Paris, which housed the University of Paris and is now shared among multiple universities. *the University of Paris (c. 1150 – 1970) *one of its components or linked institution, ...

, in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), ma ...

. He was admitted as a member of the

Faculty of Advocates The Faculty of Advocates is an independent body of lawyers who have been admitted to practise as advocates before the courts of Scotland, especially the Court of Session and the High Court of Justiciary. The Faculty of Advocates is a constit ...

in 1904. After service in

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 ...

, he was appointed a King's Counsel in 1923 and from February to November 1924 he was

Solicitor General for Scotland , body = , insignia = Crest of the Kingdom of Scotland.svg , insigniasize = 110px , image = File:Official Portrait of Ruth Charteris QC.png , incumbent = Ruth Charteris KC , incumbentsince = 22 June 2021 , department = Crown Office and ...

in the first Labour Government in the UK. He was later

Sheriff of Fife and Kinross The Sheriff of Fife was historically the office responsible for enforcing law and order in Fife, Scotland and bringing criminals to justice. Prior to 1748 most sheriffdoms were held on a hereditary basis. From that date, following the Jacobite ...

from 1926 to 1937, of Stirling, Dumbarton, and Clackmannan from 1937 to 1942, and the Lothians and Peebles. and Sheriff of Chancery in Scotland from 1942. He was knighted in 1945.

References

1880 births 1951 deaths Knights Bachelor Solicitors General for Scotland People educated at George Watson's College Alumni of the University of Edinburgh University of Paris alumni Members of the Faculty of Advocates Scottish sheriffs Scottish King's Counsel 20th-century King's Counsel Scottish expatriates in France {{Scotland-law-bio-stub