Sir John William Fisher Beaumont, QC, PC (4 September 1877 - 8 February 1974) was the Chief Justice of the Bombay High Court.

Early life

Beaumont was born in

St Pancras, London St Pancras () is a district in north London. It was originally a medieval ancient parish and subsequently became a metropolitan borough. The metropolitan borough then merged with neighbouring boroughs and the area it covered now forms around ...

in 1877. His father Edward Beaumont was also

Bar-at-law A barrister is a type of lawyer in common law jurisdictions. Barristers mostly specialise in courtroom advocacy and litigation. Their tasks include taking cases in superior courts and tribunals, drafting legal pleadings, researching law and givin ...

. He was educated at Winchester College and

Pembroke College, Cambridge Pembroke College (officially "The Master, Fellows and Scholars of the College or Hall of Valence-Mary") is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge, England. The college is the third-oldest college of the university and has over 700 ...

. Beaumont passed B.A. with First Class in 1899 and received a scholarship. In 1901, he was called to the Bar by the

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 ...

Career

After Sir Amberson Barrington Marten, Beaumont became the Chief Justice of the

Bombay High Court The High Court of Bombay is the high court of the states of Maharashtra and Goa in India, and the union territory of Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu. It is seated primarily at Mumbai (formerly known as Bombay), and is one of the ol ...

in 1930 and was in office till 1943, thus held that office for the longest period in the history of the High Court. He was

knighted 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 Christian denomination, church or the country, especially in a military capacity. Knighthood ...

in 1931 and was several times called upon to act temporarily as a judge of the Federal Court of India. Beaumont worked there from 1942 to 1943. He was also appointed a member of the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council. He died in 1974 and was buried on the west side of Highgate Cemetery.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Beaumont, John William Fisher 1877 births 1974 deaths Burials at Highgate Cemetery Knights Bachelor British India judges 20th-century English judges Chief Justices of the Bombay High Court Alumni of Pembroke College, Cambridge Members of Lincoln's Inn 20th-century Indian judges English barristers King's Counsel People educated at Winchester College British people in colonial India