William Ridgeway (1765–1817) was an Irish barrister and law reporter.

Life

Ridgeway graduated 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 ...

, as B.A. in 1787, LL.B. in 1790, and LL.D. in 1795. He was

called to the bar The call to the bar is a legal term of art in most common law jurisdictions where persons must be qualified to be allowed to argue in court on behalf of another party and are then said to have been "called to the bar" or to have received "call to ...

, and acted as one of the crown counsel in state trials, notably in that of

Robert Emmet Robert Emmet (4 March 177820 September 1803) was an Irish Republican, orator and rebel leader. Following the suppression of the United Irish uprising in 1798, he sought to organise a renewed attempt to overthrow the British Crown and Protes ...

in 1803, of Edward Sheridan and Thomas Kirwan in 1811–12, and of

Roger O'Connor Roger O'Connor (1762-1834) was an Irish nationalist and writer, known for the controversies surrounding his life and writings, notably his fanciful history of the Irish people, the '' Chronicles of Eri''. He was the brother of the United Irishma ...

and Martin McKeon in 1817. Ridgeway died at Dublin of

typhus fever Typhus, also known as typhus fever, is a group of infectious diseases that include epidemic typhus, scrub typhus, and murine typhus. Common symptoms include fever, headache, and a rash. Typically these begin one to two weeks after exposure. ...

, caught while on circuit at

Trim, County Meath Trim () is a town in County Meath, Ireland. It is situated on the River Boyne and has a population of 9,194. The town is noted for Trim Castle – the largest Norman castle in Ireland. One of the two cathedrals of the United Dioceses of Meat ...

, on 1 December 1817.

Works

In 1774 Ridgeway was entrusted by

Philip Tisdall Philip Tisdall SL (1 March 1703 – 11 September 1777) was an Irish lawyer and politician, who held the office of Attorney-General for Ireland. He was for many years a leading figure in the Irish Government. Background He was born in County Lo ...

Attorney-General for Ireland The Attorney-General for Ireland was an Irish and then (from the Act of Union 1800) United Kingdom government office-holder. He was senior in rank to the Solicitor-General for Ireland: both advised the Crown on Irish legal matters. With the ...

, with the publication of ''Reports of Cases argued and determined in the King's Bench and Chancery during the time of Lord Hardwicke's Presidency (1733–7)''. Marginal notes contain the substance of the decisions given, with a collation of authorities and references. Ridgeway prepared the official reports of the proceedings against William Jackson in 1795 and the

Sheares brothers The Sheares Brothers, Henry (1753–98), and John (1766–1798) were Irish lawyers and republicans. After witnessing revolutionary events in Paris, in 1793 they joined the Society of United Irishmen for whom they organised in Cork and in Dubl ...

in 1798; they appeared in the ''

State Trials In English law, the term ''state trials'' primarily denotes trials relating to offences against the state. In practice it is a term often used of cases illustrative of the law relating to state officers or of international or constitutional law. ...

''. Other works published by Ridgeway were: * ''Reports of Cases upon Appeal and Writs of Error in the High Court of Parliament in Ireland since the Restoration of the Appellate Jurisdiction'', 3 vols. 1795–8. * ''Term Reports of Cases in the King's Court in Dublin, 34–35 George III'' (with William Lapp and John Schoales), 1796. * ''Reports of State Trials in Ireland, 1798–1803'', 3 vols. 1803. * ''Reports of Proceedings in Cases of High Treason at a Court of Oyer and Terminer held under Special Commission, August and September 1803'', 1803. * ''Report of Proceedings under Special Commission of Oyer and Terminer and Gaol Delivery for Sligo, Mayo, Leitrim, Longford, and Cavan in December 1806'', 1807. * ''Proceedings in Case of T. Kirwan and E. Sheridan'', 1811. * ''Proceedings against H. Fitzpatrick for Libel on the Duke of Richmond'', 1813. * ''Report of Trial of Roger O'Connor and Martin M'Keon'', 1817 (finished by R. W. Greene).

Family

Ridgeway married a daughter of Edward Ledwich, and left seven children.

Notes

Attribution {{DEFAULTSORT:Ridgeway, William 1765 births 1817 deaths Irish barristers Irish legal writers Alumni of Trinity College Dublin 19th-century Irish lawyers 18th-century Irish lawyers 18th-century Irish writers 19th-century Irish writers