Johan Steyn, Baron Steyn
Encyclopedia
Johan van Zyl Steyn, Baron Steyn PC
(born August 15, 1932) is a South Africa
n/English
jurist
, and until September 2005 a Law Lord.
Born in Cape Town
in 1932 he studied law at the University of Stellenbosch before reading English as a Rhodes Scholar at University College, Oxford
. He was called to the Bar in South Africa in 1958 and appointed senior counsel of the supreme court of South Africa in 1970.
As a result of his opposition to apartheid in his native South Africa, he settled in the UK in 1973 joining the English Bar and building a distinguished international commercial law
practice. He married Susan Leonore in 1977, having two sons and two daughters from a previous marriage. He took silk in 1979 and was appointed a High Court Judge
in 1985, a surprise appointment by the then Conservative
Lord Chancellor
Lord Hailsham. He was served as presiding judge of the Northern Circuit
from 1989–1991 and was appointed Lord Justice of Appeal
in 1992.
In 1995 he was elevated to a Lord of Appeal in Ordinary
and was created a life peer
as Baron Steyn, of Swafield in the County of Norfolk
. As a Law Lord he achieved prominence for his liberal
views and espousal of human rights
. He was a fierce critic of Augusto Pinochet
's claim to stand immune from prosecution. His record of open criticism of Camp X-ray
at Guantanamo Bay
led to pressure from the UK government
that he make himself unavailable for the hearing on the indefinite detention of suspects under the Anti-terrorism, Crime and Security Act 2001
that began on October 4, 2004. The decision in the latter case caused the government to review its policy of indefinite detention of terror suspects and led to the equally controversial Terrorism Bill 2005. His judicial work in the House of Lords has been instrumental in weaving the Human Rights Act 1998 into the fabric of English law. He also drew upon his background as a commercial lawyer and his contribution to this area of law cannot be overlooked.
He was one of the few senior jurists to support calls for modernisation of the English legal system and abolition of the role of Lord Chancellor
. Whilst a Lord of Appeal he refrained from speaking in the House, instead expressing his views on democracy and human rights through judgments and lectures.
He retired as a Lord of Appeal in Ordinary on September 30, 2005. Lord Mance was elevated from Lord Justice of Appeal on October 1, 2005 to replace him. Since his retirement he has assumed the role of chairman of the human rights organisation JUSTICE
and has been vocal in his criticism of Tony Blair
's government and its approach to human rights
. He has expressed grave misgivings over the proposed powers to allow detention without trial and about the use of existing anti-terror powers.
Jackson v Attorney General [2005] UKHL 56
- controversial comments on Parliamentary Supremecy and its common law foundations (and the possibility for the courts to invalidate unconstitutional statutes)
Arklow vs. MacLean and Others UKPC 51, 1999 Privy Council London
Privy Council of the United Kingdom
Her Majesty's Most Honourable Privy Council, usually known simply as the Privy Council, is a formal body of advisers to the Sovereign in the United Kingdom...
(born August 15, 1932) is a South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
n/English
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
jurist
Jurist
A jurist or jurisconsult is a professional who studies, develops, applies, or otherwise deals with the law. The term is widely used in American English, but in the United Kingdom and many Commonwealth countries it has only historical and specialist usage...
, and until September 2005 a Law Lord.
Born in Cape Town
Cape Town
Cape Town is the second-most populous city in South Africa, and the provincial capital and primate city of the Western Cape. As the seat of the National Parliament, it is also the legislative capital of the country. It forms part of the City of Cape Town metropolitan municipality...
in 1932 he studied law at the University of Stellenbosch before reading English as a Rhodes Scholar at University College, Oxford
University College, Oxford
.University College , is a constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. As of 2009 the college had an estimated financial endowment of £110m...
. He was called to the Bar in South Africa in 1958 and appointed senior counsel of the supreme court of South Africa in 1970.
As a result of his opposition to apartheid in his native South Africa, he settled in the UK in 1973 joining the English Bar and building a distinguished international commercial law
International commercial law
International commercial law is the body of law that governs international sale transactions. A transaction will qualify to be international if elements of more than one country are involved....
practice. He married Susan Leonore in 1977, having two sons and two daughters from a previous marriage. He took silk in 1979 and was appointed a High Court Judge
High Court judge
A High Court judge is a judge of the High Court of Justice, and represents the third highest level of judge in the courts of England and Wales. High Court judges are referred to as puisne judges...
in 1985, a surprise appointment by the then Conservative
Conservative Party (UK)
The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House...
Lord Chancellor
Lord Chancellor
The Lord High Chancellor of Great Britain, or Lord Chancellor, is a senior and important functionary in the government of the United Kingdom. He is the second highest ranking of the Great Officers of State, ranking only after the Lord High Steward. The Lord Chancellor is appointed by the Sovereign...
Lord Hailsham. He was served as presiding judge of the Northern Circuit
Northern Circuit
The Northern Circuit dates from 1176 when Henry II sent his judges on circuit to do justice in his name. The Circuit encompassed the whole of the North of England but in 1876 it was divided. That part to the west of the Pennines retained the old name. The land to the east became the territory of...
from 1989–1991 and was appointed Lord Justice of Appeal
Lord Justice of Appeal
A Lord Justice of Appeal is an ordinary judge of the Court of Appeal of England and Wales, the court that hears appeals from the High Court of Justice, and represents the second highest level of judge in the courts of England and Wales-Appointment:...
in 1992.
In 1995 he was elevated to a Lord of Appeal in Ordinary
Lord of Appeal in Ordinary
Lords of Appeal in Ordinary, commonly known as Law Lords, were appointed under the Appellate Jurisdiction Act 1876 to the House of Lords of the United Kingdom in order to exercise its judicial functions, which included acting as the highest court of appeal for most domestic matters...
and was created a life peer
Life peer
In the United Kingdom, life peers are appointed members of the Peerage whose titles cannot be inherited. Nowadays life peerages, always of baronial rank, are created under the Life Peerages Act 1958 and entitle the holders to seats in the House of Lords, presuming they meet qualifications such as...
as Baron Steyn, of Swafield in the County of Norfolk
Norfolk
Norfolk is a low-lying county in the East of England. It has borders with Lincolnshire to the west, Cambridgeshire to the west and southwest and Suffolk to the south. Its northern and eastern boundaries are the North Sea coast and to the north-west the county is bordered by The Wash. The county...
. As a Law Lord he achieved prominence for his liberal
Liberalism
Liberalism is the belief in the importance of liberty and equal rights. Liberals espouse a wide array of views depending on their understanding of these principles, but generally, liberals support ideas such as constitutionalism, liberal democracy, free and fair elections, human rights,...
views and espousal of human rights
Human rights
Human rights are "commonly understood as inalienable fundamental rights to which a person is inherently entitled simply because she or he is a human being." Human rights are thus conceived as universal and egalitarian . These rights may exist as natural rights or as legal rights, in both national...
. He was a fierce critic of Augusto Pinochet
Augusto Pinochet
Augusto José Ramón Pinochet Ugarte, more commonly known as Augusto Pinochet , was a Chilean army general and dictator who assumed power in a coup d'état on 11 September 1973...
's claim to stand immune from prosecution. His record of open criticism of Camp X-ray
Camp X-Ray
Camp X-Ray was a temporary detention facility at the Guantanamo Bay detention camp of Joint Task Force Guantanamo on the U.S. Naval Base in Guantánamo Bay, Cuba.The first twenty detainees arrived at Guantanamo on January 11, 2002....
at Guantanamo Bay
Guantanamo Bay detainment camp
The Guantanamo Bay detention camp is a detainment and interrogation facility of the United States located within Guantanamo Bay Naval Base, Cuba. The facility was established in 2002 by the Bush Administration to hold detainees from the war in Afghanistan and later Iraq...
led to pressure from the UK government
Politics of the United Kingdom
The politics of the United Kingdom takes place within the framework of a constitutional monarchy, in which the Monarch is the head of state and the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom is the head of government...
that he make himself unavailable for the hearing on the indefinite detention of suspects under the Anti-terrorism, Crime and Security Act 2001
Anti-terrorism, Crime and Security Act 2001
The Anti-Terrorism, Crime and Security Act 2001 was formally introduced into the Parliament of the United Kingdom on 19 November 2001, two months after the terrorist attacks on New York on 11 September. It received royal assent and came into force on 14 December 2001...
that began on October 4, 2004. The decision in the latter case caused the government to review its policy of indefinite detention of terror suspects and led to the equally controversial Terrorism Bill 2005. His judicial work in the House of Lords has been instrumental in weaving the Human Rights Act 1998 into the fabric of English law. He also drew upon his background as a commercial lawyer and his contribution to this area of law cannot be overlooked.
He was one of the few senior jurists to support calls for modernisation of the English legal system and abolition of the role of Lord Chancellor
Lord Chancellor
The Lord High Chancellor of Great Britain, or Lord Chancellor, is a senior and important functionary in the government of the United Kingdom. He is the second highest ranking of the Great Officers of State, ranking only after the Lord High Steward. The Lord Chancellor is appointed by the Sovereign...
. Whilst a Lord of Appeal he refrained from speaking in the House, instead expressing his views on democracy and human rights through judgments and lectures.
He retired as a Lord of Appeal in Ordinary on September 30, 2005. Lord Mance was elevated from Lord Justice of Appeal on October 1, 2005 to replace him. Since his retirement he has assumed the role of chairman of the human rights organisation JUSTICE
JUSTICE
JUSTICE is a human rights and law reform organisation based in the United Kingdom. It is the British section of the International Commission of Jurists, the international human rights organisation of lawyers devoted to the legal protection of human rights worldwide...
and has been vocal in his criticism of Tony Blair
Tony Blair
Anthony Charles Lynton Blair is a former British Labour Party politician who served as the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 2 May 1997 to 27 June 2007. He was the Member of Parliament for Sedgefield from 1983 to 2007 and Leader of the Labour Party from 1994 to 2007...
's government and its approach to human rights
Human rights
Human rights are "commonly understood as inalienable fundamental rights to which a person is inherently entitled simply because she or he is a human being." Human rights are thus conceived as universal and egalitarian . These rights may exist as natural rights or as legal rights, in both national...
. He has expressed grave misgivings over the proposed powers to allow detention without trial and about the use of existing anti-terror powers.
Famous judgments
- R v Bournewood Community and Mental Health NHS Trust Ex p. LR v Bournewood Community and Mental Health NHS TrustIn R v Bournewood Community and Mental Health NHS Trust the House of Lords ruled that a man who had been informally admitted to a psychiatric hospital without capable consent had not been unlawfully detained under the common law...
[1999] 1 AC 458
Jackson v Attorney General [2005] UKHL 56
Jackson v Attorney General
Jackson v Attorney General [2005] UKHL 56 was a House of Lords case concerning the legality of the use of the Parliament Acts 1911 and 1949 to pass the Hunting Act to ban fox hunting...
- controversial comments on Parliamentary Supremecy and its common law foundations (and the possibility for the courts to invalidate unconstitutional statutes)
Arklow vs. MacLean and Others UKPC 51, 1999 Privy Council London