Sir Royston Miles "Roy" Goode (born 6 April 1933) is an academic commercial lawyer in the United Kingdom. He founded the
Centre for Commercial Law Studies
Queen Mary University of London (QMUL, or informally QM, and previously Queen Mary and Westfield College) is a public university, public research university in Mile End, East London, England. It is a member institution of the federal University of ...
at
Queen Mary, University of London
, mottoeng = With united powers
, established = 1785 – The London Hospital Medical College1843 – St Bartholomew's Hospital Medical College1882 – Westfield College1887 – East London College/Queen Mary College
, type = Public researc ...
. He was awarded the
OBE in 1972 followed by the
CBE
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations,
and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...
in 1994 before being
knight
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 Gr ...
ed for services to academic law in 2000.
Education and early life
He was educated at
Highgate School in
North London
North London is the northern part of London, England, north of the River Thames. It extends from Clerkenwell and Finsbury, on the edge of the City of London financial district, to Greater London's boundary with Hertfordshire.
The term ''nort ...
,
[Highgate School Register 7th Edn 1833–1988, Ed. Patrick Hughes & Ian F Davies 1989] and obtained his
law degree
A law degree is an academic degree conferred for studies in law. Such degrees are generally preparation for legal careers. But while their curricula may be reviewed by legal authority, they do not confer a license themselves. A legal license is gra ...
by external study through the
University of London External Programme
The University of London Worldwide (previously called the University of London International Academy) is the central academic body that manages external study programmes within the federal University of London. All courses are branded as simply ...
in 1954.
He completed the
LLD at London in 1976 and the
DCL at the
University of Oxford
, mottoeng = The Lord is my light
, established =
, endowment = £6.1 billion (including colleges) (2019)
, budget = £2.145 billion (2019–20)
, chancellor ...
in 2005.
Career
He was admitted as a solicitor in 1955; he was later called to the
Bar
Bar or BAR may refer to:
Food and drink
* Bar (establishment), selling alcoholic beverages
* Candy bar
* Chocolate bar
Science and technology
* Bar (river morphology), a deposit of sediment
* Bar (tropical cyclone), a layer of cloud
* Bar (u ...
at
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 ...
in 1988.
Goode spent 17 years in private practice as a solicitor before turning to academia. While in practice, he wrote a series of legal textbooks. He began by writing a text on hire purchase as nothing had been written on the subject in the previous 20 years; he knew nothing about this area of law but researched it and produced a text which launched his legal writing career.
He joined
Queen Mary University of London
, mottoeng = With united powers
, established = 1785 – The London Hospital Medical College1843 – St Bartholomew's Hospital Medical College1882 – Westfield College1887 – East London College/Queen Mary College
, type = Public researc ...
in 1971 as Professor of Law. He served from 1976 to 1980 as Head of Department. He served as the Crowther Professor of Credit and Commercial Law from 1973 to 1989. Then he left Queen Mary for the
University of Oxford
, mottoeng = The Lord is my light
, established =
, endowment = £6.1 billion (including colleges) (2019)
, budget = £2.145 billion (2019–20)
, chancellor ...
to become the
Norton Rose
Norton Rose Fulbright is a British-American multinational law firm. It is the second largest law firm in the United States and one of the ten largest in the world, by both lawyers and revenue. In 2017–18, Norton Rose Fulbright had total reven ...
Professor of
English Law
English law is the common law legal system of England and Wales, comprising mainly criminal law and civil law, each branch having its own courts and procedures.
Principal elements of English law
Although the common law has, historically, be ...
in 1990, serving until 1998; now he is an now an
Emeritus Professor
''Emeritus'' (; female: ''emerita'') is an adjective used to designate a retired chair, professor, pastor, bishop, pope, director, president, prime minister, rabbi, emperor, or other person who has been "permitted to retain as an honorary title ...
of Law at the University. Concurrently he served as a fellow of
St John's College, Oxford
St John's College is a constituent college of the University of Oxford. Founded as a men's college in 1555, it has been coeducational since 1979.Communication from Michael Riordan, college archivist Its founder, Sir Thomas White, intended to pro ...
between 1990 and 1998; now an
Emeritus Fellow
''Emeritus'' (; female: ''emerita'') is an adjective used to designate a retired chair, professor, pastor, bishop, pope, director, president, prime minister, rabbi, emperor, or other person who has been "permitted to retain as an honorary title ...
.
Goode was also a member of the Crowther Committee on
Consumer Credit
Credit (from Latin verb ''credit'', meaning "one believes") is the trust which allows one party to provide money or resources to another party wherein the second party does not reimburse the first party immediately (thereby generating a debt ...
, the
Monopolies and Mergers Commission
The Competition Commission was a non-departmental public body responsible for investigating mergers, markets and other enquiries related to regulated industries under UK competition law, competition law in the United Kingdom. It was a competiti ...
and the
DTI Advisory Committee on Arbitration. He chaired the Pension Law Review Committee, which was set up following the Maxwell scandal, and which led to a report on ''
Pension Law Reform'' and the
Pensions Act 1995
The Pensions Act 1995c 26 is a piece of United Kingdom legislation to improve the running of pension schemes.
Background
Following the death of Robert Maxwell, it became clear that he had embezzled a large amount of money from the pension fund ...
. He was previously chairman of the executive committee of
JUSTICE
Justice, in its broadest sense, is the principle that people receive that which they deserve, with the interpretation of what then constitutes "deserving" being impacted upon by numerous fields, with many differing viewpoints and perspective ...
, the all-party human rights and law reform organisation, and a member of the Governing Council of
UNIDROIT
UNIDROIT (formally, the International Institute for the Unification of Private Law; French: ''Institut international pour l'unification du droit privé'') is an intergovernmental organization whose objective is to harmonize international privat ...
. He is also known for his writings on documentary letters of credit and demand guarantees; he has called these financial instruments "abstract payment undertakings".
He was made a
Fellow of the British Academy
Fellowship of the British Academy (FBA) is an award granted by the British Academy to leading academics for their distinction in the humanities and social sciences. The categories are:
# Fellows – scholars resident in the United Kingdom
# C ...
in 1988.
He was made a
QC in 1990.
He was made an
Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts
The Royal Society for the Encouragement of Arts, Manufactures and Commerce (RSA), also known as the Royal Society of Arts, is a London-based organisation committed to finding practical solutions to social challenges. The RSA acronym is used m ...
in the same year. He was made an honorary
Bencher
A bencher or Master of the Bench is a senior member of an Inn of Court in England and Wales or the Inns of Court in Northern Ireland, or the Honorable Society of King's Inns in Ireland. Benchers hold office for life once elected. A bencher can ...
of 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 ...
in 1992.
Personal life
He is married and has one daughter.
Publications
*
*''Consumer Credit Law and Practice'' (General Editor)
*''Consumer Credit Reports'' (General Editor)
*
*
*''Payment Obligations in Commercial and Financial Transactions''
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Goode, Roy
1933 births
Living people
People educated at Highgate School
Academics of Queen Mary University of London
Alumni of University of London Worldwide
Alumni of the University of London
Commanders of the Order of the British Empire
English solicitors
Fellows of the British Academy
Fellows of St John's College, Oxford
Goode, Roy
Knights Bachelor
Lawyers awarded knighthoods
Legal scholars of the University of Oxford