Sir Martin Charles Nourse (3 April 1932 – 28 November 2017) was a Lord Justice of Appeal of

England and Wales England and Wales () is one of the three legal jurisdictions of the United Kingdom. It covers the constituent countries England and Wales and was formed by the Laws in Wales Acts 1535 and 1542. The substantive law of the jurisdiction is Eng ...

, who served as

Vice-President of the Civil Division The Vice-President of the Civil Division is a Court of Appeal Judge who assists the Master of the Rolls in leading the Civil Division of the Court of Appeal of England and Wales. The power to appoint a vice-president was created by the Senior Co ...

of the

Court of Appeal of England and Wales The Court of Appeal (formally "His Majesty's Court of Appeal in England", commonly cited as "CA", "EWCA" or "CoA") is the highest court within the Senior Courts of England and Wales, and second in the legal system of England and Wales only to ...

from 2003 until his retirement from the bench in 2006. One of his most notable cases related to multi millionaire Sir Charles Clore. He ruled in favour of the Inland Revenue, that Clore was domiciled in England for tax purposes, despite being resident in Monaco. Clore died on his last visit to England in 1979. Nourse's wife, Lady Lavinia Nourse (née Malim), was acquitted of 17 counts of historic child sex abuse in May 2021 and has subsequently called for law reforms to allow the accused, media anonymity unless or until they are charged.

Education and military service

Nourse attended

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 ...

(1945–1950) and Corpus Christi College, Cambridge. He served as a second lieutenant in the Rifle Brigade from 1951 to 1952, and subsequently in the Territorial Army in the London Rifle Brigade Rangers.

Legal career

In 1956, Nourse was called to the bar ( Lincoln's Inn), was made a bencher in 1978, and served as treasurer in 2001. He was a member of the General Council of the Bar from 1964 to 1968. Nourse served as a junior counsel to the Board of Trade in chancery matters from 1967 until 1970, the same year he became 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 ...

. He was appointed

Attorney-General of the Duchy of Lancaster {{Use dmy dates, date=April 2022 The Attorney-General of the Duchy of Lancaster is the law officer of the Crown for matters arising in the Duchy of Lancaster. Attorneys-General *1478–1483: Richard Empson *1519–1522: John Hales *1522–1526: Ed ...

in 1976 and a judge of the Jersey and Guernsey Courts of Appeal in 1977. He served in both posts until he became a High Court judge on 14 April 1980, 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 was assigned to the

Chancery 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 ...

. Nourse was made a Lord Justice of Appeal on 3 June 1985. From 1992 to 1995, he served as President of the Council of the Inns of Court. When Lord Phillips of Worth Matravers was appointed

Master of the Rolls The Keeper or Master of the Rolls and Records of the Chancery of England, known as the Master of the Rolls, is the President of the Civil Division of the Court of Appeal of England and Wales and Head of Civil Justice. As a judge, the Master of ...

in 2000, Nourse was appointed the first

to enable him to serve as Acting Master of the Rolls from June to October 2000 while Lord Phillips completed work on the

Bovine spongiform encephalopathy Bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE), commonly known as mad cow disease, is an incurable and invariably fatal neurodegenerative disease of cattle. Symptoms include abnormal behavior, trouble walking, and weight loss. Later in the course of t ...

outbreak inquiry. He continued as Vice-President until he retired from the bench the following year.

Arms

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Nourse, Martin 1932 births 2017 deaths Fellows of Corpus Christi College, Cambridge Members of the Privy Council of the United Kingdom Chancery Division judges Members of Lincoln's Inn People educated at Winchester College Lords Justices of Appeal Knights Bachelor