Charles Swinfen Eady, 1st Baron Swinfen, (31 July 185115 November 1919) was a British lawyer and judge.

Biography

Eady was the son of George John Eady of

Chertsey Chertsey is a town in the Borough of Runnymede, Surrey, England, southwest of central London. It grew up around Chertsey Abbey, founded in AD 666 by Earconwald, St Erkenwald, and gained a municipal charter, market charter from Henry I of Engla ...

Surrey Surrey () is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Greater London to the northeast, Kent to the east, East Sussex, East and West Sussex to the south, and Hampshire and Berkshire to the wes ...

, and his wife Laura Maria Smith, daughter of Richard Smith. He was educated privately and at the

University of London The University of London (UoL; abbreviated as Lond or more rarely Londin in Post-nominal letters, post-nominals) is a collegiate university, federal Public university, public research university located in London, England, United Kingdom. The ...

, and was admitted a solicitor in 1874. In 1879 Eady was called to the Bar,

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 association for barristers and judges. To be called to the Bar and practice as a barrister in England and Wa ...

. He built a successful legal practice and became a

Queen's Counsel A King's Counsel (Post-nominal letters, post-nominal initials KC) is a senior lawyer appointed by the monarch (or their Viceroy, viceregal representative) of some Commonwealth realms as a "Counsel learned in the law". When the reigning monarc ...

in 1893. He was appointed a Judge of the

High Court of Justice 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 (England and Wales), Court of Appeal and the Crown Court, are the Courts of England and Wales, Senior Cour ...

(Chancery Division) in November 1901, and

knighted A knight is a person granted an honorary title of a 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. The concept of a knighthood ...

the following month. He held this office until 1913, when he was appointed a

Lord Justice of Appeal A Lord Justice of Appeal or Lady Justice of Appeal is a judge of the Court of Appeal of England and Wales, the court that hears appeals from the High Court of Justice, the Crown Court and other courts and tribunals. A Lord (or Lady) Just ...

, serving until 1918. The latter year he succeeded Lord Cozens-Hardy as

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 Court of Appeal (England and Wales)#Civil Division, Civil Division of the Court of Appeal of England and Wales ...

. However, Eady's health soon began to decline and he resigned in the autumn of 1919. He had been admitted to the Privy Council in 1913 and on 1 November 1919 was raised to the peerage as Baron Swinfen, of

in the

County of Surrey Surrey () is a ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Greater London to the northeast, Kent to the east, East and West Sussex to the south, and Hampshire and Berkshire to the west. The largest settlement is Woking. The cou ...

. Mr Justice Swinfen Eady gave a key judgment in 1903 which protected Kodak's trademarks from infringement from competitors,''Kodak v London Stereoscopic'' (1903) 20 RPC 337 which the ''British Journal of Photography'' described as the most important for photography to have been heard since ''Talbot v. Laroche'' in 1854. He also gave the judgment in '' Percival v Wright''

902 __NOTOC__ Year 902 (Roman numerals, CMII) was a common year starting on Friday of the Julian calendar. Events By place Europe * Spring – Adalbert II, Margrave of Tuscany, Adalbert II, margrave of March of Tuscany, Tuscany, revol ...

2 Ch 401, a key decision on directors' duties. Lord Swinfen married, in 1894, Blanche Maude Lee, daughter of Sydney Williams Lee. They had one son and two daughters. He died, aged sixty-eight, at 33 Hyde Park Gardens, London, on 15 November 1919, only two weeks after his elevation to the peerage. He was cremated at

Golders Green Crematorium Golders Green Crematorium and Mausoleum was the first crematorium to be opened in London, and is one of the oldest crematoria in Britain. The land for the crematorium was purchased in 1900, costing £6,000 (the equivalent of £136,000 in 2021), ...

. He was succeeded in the barony by his only son Charles, 2nd Baron Swinfen.

Arms

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Swinfen, Charles Swinfen Eady, 1st Baron 1851 births 1919 deaths 1 Alumni of the University of London Masters of the Rolls Members of the Inner Temple English King's Counsel Chancery Division judges Knights Bachelor Members of the Privy Council of the United Kingdom British solicitors 19th-century English lawyers Barons created by George V