John White ( – January 4, 1800) was a lawyer and politician in

Upper Canada The Province of Upper Canada (french: link=no, province du Haut-Canada) was a part of British Canada established in 1791 by the Kingdom of Great Britain, to govern the central third of the lands in British North America, formerly part of the ...

. He was the first

Attorney General In most common law jurisdictions, the attorney general or attorney-general (sometimes abbreviated AG or Atty.-Gen) is the main legal advisor to the government. The plural is attorneys general. In some jurisdictions, attorneys general also have exec ...

for

. He wrote and was responsible for the legislation of the new Province, which stemmed from the partition of Quebec in the

Constitutional Act of 1791 The Clergy Endowments (Canada) Act 1791, commonly known as the Constitutional Act 1791 (), was an Act of the Parliament of Great Britain which passed under George III. The current short title has been in use since 1896. History The act refor ...

. His Act to limit slavery, which relied on Christian argument, was the first such enactment ever in the world.

Early life and journey to Upper Canada

He was born at

Hicks Hall Hicks Hall, or Hickes' Hall, was a courthouse at the southern end of St John Street, Clerkenwell, London. It opened in 1612, and was closed and demolished in 1782. It was the first purpose-built sessions house for justices of the peace of the ...

Middlesex Middlesex (; abbreviation: Middx) is a Historic counties of England, historic county in South East England, southeast England. Its area is almost entirely within the wider urbanised area of London and mostly within the Ceremonial counties of ...

, England the son of John White. He studied at 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 London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

and was called to the bar in 1785. He was recommended to

William Osgoode William Osgoode (March 1754 – January 17, 1824) was the first Chief Justice of Upper Canada (now known as Ontario, Canada). Life and career He was born William Osgood in London, England, in 1754 to William Osgood (died 1767). His family wa ...

by his friend and brother-in-law

Samuel Shepherd Sir Samuel Shepherd KS PC FRSE (6 April 1760 – 3 November 1840) was a British barrister, judge and politician who served as Attorney General for England and Wales and Lord Chief Baron of the Scottish Court of Exchequer. Early life and ...

as a possible attorney general for Upper Canada and was appointed in 1791. Samuel Shepherd had married his sister, Elizabeth White in 1783. He arrived in 1792 at Kingston, where he was elected to the 1st Parliament of Upper Canada as the member for

Leeds Leeds () is a city and the administrative centre of the City of Leeds district in West Yorkshire, England. It is built around the River Aire and is in the eastern foothills of the Pennines. It is also the third-largest settlement (by populati ...

& Frontenac. He moved to Newark (

Niagara-on-the-Lake Niagara-on-the-Lake is a town in Ontario, Canada. It is located on the Niagara Peninsula at the point where the Niagara River meets Lake Ontario, across the river from New York, United States. Niagara-on-the-Lake is in the Niagara Region of On ...

), where the government was located in September of the same year.

Later life and death

As attorney general for the province, he wrote the bill in 1793 which barred the introduction of additional

slave Slavery and enslavement are both the state and the condition of being a slave—someone forbidden to quit one's service for an enslaver, and who is treated by the enslaver as property. Slavery typically involves slaves being made to perf ...

s, and the legislation which established

trial by jury A jury trial, or trial by jury, is a legal proceeding in which a jury makes a decision or findings of fact. It is distinguished from a bench trial in which a judge or panel of judges makes all decisions. Jury trials are used in a significant ...

, district courts and Court of the King's Bench. White played an important role in founding the

Law Society of Upper Canada The Law Society of Ontario (LSO; french: Barreau de l'Ontario) is the law society responsible for the self-regulation of lawyers and paralegals in the Canadian province of Ontario. Founded in 1797 as the Law Society of Upper Canada (LSUC; frenc ...

in 1797 and was its first treasurer.The Law Society of Upper Canada, List of Law Society Treasurers
/ref> Legislation passed during the first four years of his tenure includes: * "An Act to establish Trials by Jury" (1792, c.2) * "An Act to establish Winchester Measure etc." (1792, c.3) * "An Act to establish... mall ClaimsCourts..." (1792, c.4) * "An Act for the more early and speedy recovery of small debts" (1792, c.6) * "An act to regulate the Toll taken in Mills" (1792, c.7) * "An Act for building a Gaol and Court House in every district throughout this Province" (1792, c.8) * "An Act for the better regulation of the Militia in this Province" (1793, c.1) * "An Act ... for the Nomination ... of Town Officers..." (1793, c.2) * "An Act ... to collect Rates, ... and for the Payment of Wages to the Members of the House of Assembly" (1793, c.3) * "An Act to regulate... the Public Highways and Roads..." (1793, c.4) * "An act... for the Solemnisation of Marriages..." (1793, c.5) * "An act to fix the times... of holding the Courts of Quarter Sessions..." (1793, c.6) * "An act to prevent the further introduction of Slaves, and to limit the Terms of contracts for Servitude within this Province" (1793, c.7) * "An act to encourage the destroying of Wolves and Bears in different parts of the Province" (1793, c.9) * "An act to provide for the Appointment of Returning Officers..." (1793, c.10) * "An act for the regulation of Juries" (1794, c.1) * "An act to establish the Superior Court of Civil and Criminal Justice..." (1794, c.2) * "An act to authorise the Governor... to licence Practitioners in the Law" (1794, c.4) * "An act for the further Regulation of the Militia..." (1794, c.7) * "An act to restrain... Horned Cattle, Horses, Sheep and Swine to run at large" (1794, c.8) * "An act to lay and collect a Duty upon Stills" (1794, c.11) * "An act for ... licencing of Public Houses..." (1794, c.12) * "An act to regulate the Practice of Physic and Surgery" (1795, c.1) * "An act to ascertain the Eligibility ... orthe House of Assembly" (1795, c.2) * "An act for the public registering of Deeds, Conveyances, Wills and other..." (1795, c.5) The introduction and passage of the 1793

act against slavery The ''Act Against Slavery'' was an anti-slavery law passed on July 9, 1793, in the second legislative session of Upper Canada, the colonial division of British North America that would eventually become Ontario. It banned the importation of sla ...

was not without opposition. Four of the original sixteen members of the Legislative Assembly were slave owners: John McDonell,

Hazelton Spencer Hazelton Spencer (August 29, 1757 – February 3, 1813) was a soldier, political figure and judge in Upper Canada. He was born in East Greenwich, Rhode Island in 1757. He moved with his family to Vermont in 1775. In 1777, he joined the Briti ...

, Peter Van Alstine and David William Smith, and a significant number of landowners. Nine members of the Legislative Council, some of whom were also Executive Councillors, were slave owners or members of slave-owning families. White wrote that there was "much opposition but little argument" to his bill. As a result of an affair with the wife of John Small, the clerk of the

Executive Council of Upper Canada The Executive Council of Upper Canada had a similar function to the Cabinet in England but was not responsible to the Legislative Assembly. Members of the Executive Council were not necessarily members of the Legislative Assembly but were usually ...

, White was challenged by Small to a

duel A duel is an arranged engagement in combat between two people, with matched weapons, in accordance with agreed-upon Code duello, rules. During the 17th and 18th centuries (and earlier), duels were mostly single combats fought with swords (the r ...

York York is a cathedral city with Roman origins, sited at the confluence of the rivers Ouse and Foss in North Yorkshire, England. It is the historic county town of Yorkshire. The city has many historic buildings and other structures, such as a ...

on January 2, 1800. He was shot and died 2 days later. He lived beyond his means and was often in debt, and his estate went unsettled for 37 years.Biography at the ''Dictionary of Canadian Biography Online''
/ref>

References

External links

Biography at the ''Dictionary of Canadian Biography Online''

Law Society's First Treasurer Killed in Duel - Jan. 1800
Web article produced by the

Law Society of Upper Canada Archives The Law Society of Ontario Archives collects and preserves records and other material that documents the history of the legal profession in Ontario. The Archives acquires and preserves records of permanent value to the Law Society of Ontario (fo ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:White, John 1760s births 1800 deaths Year of birth uncertain Members of the Legislative Assembly of Upper Canada People from Clerkenwell English barristers Duelling fatalities English emigrants to pre-Confederation Ontario Treasurers of the Law Society of Upper Canada Deaths by firearm in Ontario People murdered in Ontario Attorneys-General of Upper Canada Immigrants to Upper Canada Canadian duellists