John Anthony Dyson, Lord Dyson, (born 31 July 1943) is a former British judge and

barrister A barrister is a type of lawyer in common law jurisdiction (area), jurisdictions. Barristers mostly specialise in courtroom advocacy and litigation. Their tasks include arguing cases in courts and tribunals, drafting legal pleadings, jurisprud ...

. He was Master of the Rolls and Head of Civil Justice, the second most senior judge in England and Wales, from 2012 to 2016, and a

Justice of the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom Justices of the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom are the judges of the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom other than President of the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom, the president and Deputy President of the Supreme Court of the United ...

from 2010 to 2012. He was the first justice to be appointed who was not a peer.

Early life

Dyson has an East European Jewish heritage. His mother was Bulgarian and his paternal grandparents Lithuanian. He was born in Yorkshire and educated at

Leeds Grammar School Leeds Grammar School was an independent school founded 1552 in Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. Originally a male-only school, in August 2005 it merged with Leeds Girls' High School to form The Grammar School at Leeds. The two schools physica ...

. He studied the piano with Dame Fanny Waterman. He then studied

classics Classics, also classical studies or Ancient Greek and Roman studies, is the study of classical antiquity. In the Western world, ''classics'' traditionally refers to the study of Ancient Greek literature, Ancient Greek and Roman literature and ...

Wadham College, Oxford Wadham College ( ) is a Colleges of the University of Oxford, constituent college of the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom. It is located in the centre of Oxford, at the intersection of Broad Street, Oxford, Broad Street and Parks Road ...

. 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 ...

at the

Middle Temple The Honourable Society of the Middle Temple, commonly known simply as Middle Temple, is one of the four Inns of Court entitled to Call to the bar, call their members to the English Bar as barristers, the others being the Inner Temple (with whi ...

in 1968.

Legal career

Dyson

took silk A King's Counsel ( post-nominal initials KC) is a senior lawyer appointed by the monarch (or their viceregal representative) of some Commonwealth realms as a "Counsel learned in the law". When the reigning monarch is a woman, the title is Qu ...

in 1982 and was appointed a Recorder in 1986. He became a

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 c ...

of Middle Temple Inn in 1990. He was the head of 39 Essex Chambers from 1986 to 1993. He was appointed to the Bench of the High Court on 30 March 1993, sitting in the

Queen's Bench Division The King's Bench Division (or Queen's Bench Division when the monarch is female) of the High Court of Justice deals with a wide range of common law cases and has supervisory responsibility over certain lower courts. It hears appeals on point ...

, and received a

knighthood 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 ...

. In 1994, he was appointed chairman of the Equal Treatment Advisory Committee of the

Judicial College The Judicial College, formerly the Judicial Studies Board (JSB), established in 1979, is the organisation responsible for training judges in county, the Crown, and higher courts in England and Wales and tribunal judges in England and Wales, Scotla ...

. In 1998, he became presiding judge of the Technology and Construction Court, a specialist part of the Queen's Bench Division. On 11 January 2001, Dyson 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 ...

, a judge 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 ...

, in succession to Lord Justice Nourse, and was appointed to the Privy Council. In 2003, he was promoted to Deputy Head of Civil Justice. Dyson was appointed a

with effect from 12 April 2010, and was sworn in on 19 April. His appointment brought the Supreme Court up to full strength by filling a vacancy that had existed since the court began work in October 2009. On appointment, he became the fourth Jewish judge of the 12 Supreme Court justices, alongside Lord Brown, Lord Collins and Lord Phillips. It was announced in December 2010 that, by Royal Warrant, all members of the Supreme Court, even if they did not hold a

peerage A peerage is a legal system historically comprising various hereditary titles (and sometimes Life peer, non-hereditary titles) in a number of countries, and composed of assorted Imperial, royal and noble ranks, noble ranks. Peerages include: A ...

, were entitled to the

judicial courtesy title A courtesy title is a form of address and/or reference in the British system of nobility used for children, former wives and other close relatives of a peer, as well as certain officials such as some judges and members of the Scottish gentry. Thes ...

of "Lord" for life. Dyson was the first Supreme Court Justice to whom this applied, and he gained the courtesy title Lord Dyson. According to '' Standpoint'', he was said to have come a "close second" to Lord Neuberger of Abbotsbury to succeed Lord Clarke of Stone-cum-Ebony 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 ...

in 2009. In the event, Dyson was appointed Master of the Rolls with effect from 1 October 2012 as was widely expected following the announcement of Neuberger's appointment (also with effect from 1 October) as

President of the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television *'' Præsident ...

in July 2012. From 2012 to 2016, he was Chairman of the Magna Carta Trust and of the Advisory Council to the

Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport The secretary of state for culture, media and sport, also referred to as the culture secretary, is a Secretary of State (United Kingdom), secretary of state in the Government of the United Kingdom, with overall responsibility for strategy and po ...

on National Records and Archives. He was chairman of the British Friends of the

Hebrew University The Hebrew University of Jerusalem (HUJI; ) is an Israeli public research university based in Jerusalem. Co-founded by Albert Einstein and Chaim Weizmann in July 1918, the public university officially opened on 1 April 1925. It is the second-ol ...

's legal group. Dyson retired and was replaced by Sir Terence Etherton as Master of the Rolls on 3 October 2016. He was Treasurer of

for 2017. In September 2019 Lord Dyson published his autobiography, ''A Judge's Journey''. In a study published in 2024, he is recorded as openly critical of

Lord Hope of Craighead James Arthur David Hope, Baron Hope of Craighead (born 27 June 1938) is a retired Scotland, Scottish judge who served as the Lord President of the Court of Session and Lord Justice General, Scotland's most senior judge, and later as first Deput ...

in publishing ''Diaries'' revealing Lord Hope's account of judicial panel deliberations and confidential conversations between judges. He has returned to 39 Essex Chambers to practise as an arbitrator and mediator.

Affiliations

In 2013, Dyson was awarded honorary degrees of LLD by

Essex University The University of Essex is a public research university in Essex, England. Established by royal charter in 1965, it is one of the original plate glass universities. The university comprises three campuses in the county, in Southend-on-Sea and ...

and

University College, London University College London (Trade name, branded as UCL) is a Public university, public research university in London, England. It is a Member institutions of the University of London, member institution of the Federal university, federal Uni ...

. In 2014, he was awarded an honorary degree of LLD by

Leeds University The University of Leeds is a public research university in Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. It was established in 1874 as the Yorkshire College of Science. In 1884, it merged with the Leeds School of Medicine (established 1831) and was renamed ...

. He is a visiting professor of law at Queen Mary, London and University College, London. He is an honorary fellow of

and the Hebrew University, Jerusalem.

Personal life

He has been married to Jacqueline Levy since 1970. They have a daughter and a son. He has said that being Jewish is a core part of his identity.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Dyson, John 1943 births Living people People educated at Leeds Grammar School Alumni of Wadham College, Oxford Judges of the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom Knights Bachelor Masters of the Rolls Members of the Privy Council of the United Kingdom