Richard (Dick) Ferguson QC, SC (22 August 1935 – 26 July 2009)Northern Ireland-born QC who defended Rose West and Brighton bomber dies aged 73
, ''

Belfast Telegraph The ''Belfast Telegraph'' is a daily newspaper published in Belfast, Northern Ireland, by Independent News & Media. Its editor is Eoin Brannigan. Reflecting its unionist tradition, the paper has historically been "favoured by the Protestant po ...

'', 29 July 2009 was a

barrister 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 ...

and

politician A politician is a person active in party politics, or a person holding or seeking an elected office in government. Politicians propose, support, reject and create laws that govern the land and by an extension of its people. Broadly speaking, a ...

from

Northern Ireland Northern Ireland ( ga, Tuaisceart Éireann ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Norlin Airlann) is a part of the United Kingdom, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, that is variously described as a country, province or region. Nort ...

Background

Born in

Derrygonnelly Derrygonnelly () is a small village and townland in County Fermanagh, Northern Ireland. Near Lower Lough Erne, the village was home to 680 people at the 2011 Census This article contains quotations from this source, which is available under th ...

County Fermanagh County Fermanagh ( ; ) is one of the thirty-two counties of Ireland, one of the nine counties of Ulster and one of the six counties of Northern Ireland. The county covers an area of 1,691 km2 (653 sq mi) and has a population of 61,805 a ...

, the son of a sergeant in the

Royal Ulster Constabulary The Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC) was the police force in Northern Ireland from 1922 to 2001. It was founded on 1 June 1922 as a successor to the Royal Irish Constabulary (RIC)Richard Doherty, ''The Thin Green Line – The History of the Royal ...

, Ferguson attended

Rainey Endowed School Rainey Endowed School, known colloquially as "The Rainey", is a voluntary grammar school in Magherafelt, County Londonderry, Northern Ireland. The school was founded in 1713 and has an enrolment of around 700 pupils. Each year group has a tota ...

and Methodist College. He later studied law at

Trinity College Dublin , name_Latin = Collegium Sanctae et Individuae Trinitatis Reginae Elizabethae juxta Dublin , motto = ''Perpetuis futuris temporibus duraturam'' (Latin) , motto_lang = la , motto_English = It will last i ...

and

Queen's University, Belfast , mottoeng = For so much, what shall we give back? , top_free_label = , top_free = , top_free_label1 = , top_free1 = , top_free_label2 = , top_free2 = , established = , closed = , type = Public research university , parent = ...

. He was called to the Bar in Northern Ireland in 1956 and later still in the Republic of Ireland, and from 1972, in England.

Political career

Although he rapidly established a reputation as one of the jurisdiction's ablest young advocates, in 1968 Ferguson was elected to the

Parliament of Northern Ireland The Parliament of Northern Ireland was the home rule legislature of Northern Ireland, created under the Government of Ireland Act 1920, which sat from 7 June 1921 to 30 March 1972, when it was suspended because of its inability to restore ord ...

for the

Ulster Unionist Party The Ulster Unionist Party (UUP) is a unionist political party in Northern Ireland. The party was founded in 1905, emerging from the Irish Unionist Alliance in Ulster. Under Edward Carson, it led unionist opposition to the Irish Home Rule movem ...

, representing South Antrim. He was considered a

liberal Liberal or liberalism may refer to: Politics * a supporter of liberalism ** Liberalism by country * an adherent of a Liberal Party * Liberalism (international relations) * Sexually liberal feminism * Social liberalism Arts, entertainment and m ...

Unionist and was a supporter of the

Prime Minister A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister is not ...

Terence O'Neill Terence Marne O'Neill, Baron O'Neill of the Maine, PC (NI) (10 September 1914 – 12 June 1990), was the fourth prime minister of Northern Ireland and leader (1963–1969) of the Ulster Unionist Party (UUP). A moderate unionist, who sought to ...

. Before his election, he had called for local government reform including a

one man, one vote "One man, one vote", or "one person, one vote", expresses the principle that individuals should have equal representation in voting. This slogan is used by advocates of political equality to refer to such electoral reforms as universal suffrage, ...

system.14–19 October 1968
, Historical Documents Project, The

Queen's University of Belfast , mottoeng = For so much, what shall we give back? , top_free_label = , top_free = , top_free_label1 = , top_free1 = , top_free_label2 = , top_free2 = , established = , closed = , type = Public research university , parent = ...

O'Neill in his autobiography praised Ferguson as 'the most liberal supporter I had'. Ferguson held his seat at the 1969 general election. In August, he resigned from the

Orange Order The Loyal Orange Institution, commonly known as the Orange Order, is an international Protestant fraternal order based in Northern Ireland and primarily associated with Ulster Protestants, particularly those of Ulster Scots heritage. It also ...

, and was subsequently subject to

intimidation Intimidation is to "make timid or make fearful"; or to induce fear. This includes intentional behaviors of forcing another person to experience general discomfort such as humiliation, embarrassment, inferiority, limited freedom, etc and the victi ...

.Tony Geraghty, ''The Irish War: The Hidden Conflict Between the IRA and British Intelligence'' He stood down from Parliament in 1970 alongside O'Neill, citing ill health. In April, his house in Lisburn was firebombed in an attack blamed on

loyalist Loyalism, in the United Kingdom, its overseas territories and its former colonies, refers to the allegiance to the British crown or the United Kingdom. In North America, the most common usage of the term refers to loyalty to the British Cro ...

Legal career

In 1971, Ferguson joined the

Alliance Party of Northern Ireland The Alliance Party of Northern Ireland (APNI), or simply Alliance, is a liberal and centrist political party in Northern Ireland. As of the 2022 Northern Ireland Assembly election, it is the third-largest party in the Northern Ireland Assembly, ...

but did not continue in an active political role. Instead, he focused on law, becoming a

Queen's Counsel In the United Kingdom and in some Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth countries, a King's Counsel (Post-nominal letters, post-nominal initials KC) during the reign of a king, or Queen's Counsel (post-nominal initials QC) during the reign of ...

(QC) in Northern Ireland in 1973 and chairing the Northern Ireland Mental Health Review Tribunal from 1973 until 1984. He departed Northern Ireland in 1983 and became a

Senior Counsel The title of Senior Counsel or State Counsel (post-nominal letters: SC) is given to a senior lawyer in some countries that were formerly part of the British Empire. "Senior Counsel" is used in current or former Commonwealth countries or jurisdicti ...

, before moving to

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 ...

in 1986 where he became a QC in England. From 1993 until 1995, he served as the Chair of the Criminal Bar Association. He was defence counsel in many high-profile cases, such as those of mass-murderers

Rosemary West Rosemary Pauline West (née Letts; born 29 November 1953) is an English serial killer who collaborated with her husband, Fred West, in the torture and murder of at least nine young women between 1973 and 1987;

and Patrick Magee, and successfully defended two British soldiers accused of war crimes in

Iraq Iraq,; ku, عێراق, translit=Êraq officially the Republic of Iraq, '; ku, کۆماری عێراق, translit=Komarî Êraq is a country in Western Asia. It is bordered by Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq ...

. By 2003, he was the top-earning criminal defence barrister, with more than £800,000 in that year. Grave of Richard Ferguson in Highgate Cemetery

In an obituary it was noted that he represented "property tycoon Nicholas Van Hoogstraten, Richard Branson of Virgin, Afghan airplane hijackers, the Birmingham Six, Guinness boss Ernest Saunders and boxer Terry Marsh....he regretted, he once said, not having the chance to defend Michael Jackson."

Death notification

Ferguson died after heart surgery on 26 July 2009, aged 73, and was buried on the eastern side of

Highgate Cemetery Highgate Cemetery is a place of burial in north London, England. There are approximately 170,000 people buried in around 53,000 graves across the West and East Cemeteries. Highgate Cemetery is notable both for some of the people buried there as ...

. He is survived by his second wife, Roma (née Whelan), a barrister, and their son; and by his first wife, Janet (née Magowan), and their four children.

References

External links
Ferguson obituary in ''The Times Online''

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ferguson, Richard (Politician) 1935 births 2009 deaths Burials at Highgate Cemetery Alliance Party of Northern Ireland politicians Alumni of Queen's University Belfast Alumni of Trinity College Dublin Members of the House of Commons of Northern Ireland 1965–1969 Members of the House of Commons of Northern Ireland 1969–1973 Politicians from County Fermanagh 20th-century King's Counsel 21st-century King's Counsel Ulster Unionist Party members of the House of Commons of Northern Ireland Place of death missing People educated at Rainey Endowed School People educated at Methodist College Belfast Members of the House of Commons of Northern Ireland for County Antrim constituencies Irish Senior Counsel