Robert Wright, Baron Wright
Encyclopedia
Robert Alderson Wright, Baron Wright, GCMG
, PC
(15 October 1869 – 27 June 1964) was a British
judge.
On 11 April 1932, he was appointed Lord of Appeal in Ordinary
and was created additionally a life peer
with the title Baron Wright, of Durley in the County of Wiltshire, however resgined as Lord of Appeal already in 1935. Wright became instead Master of the Rolls
, a post he held until 1937, when he was made Lord of Appeal in Ordinary again. He retired in 1947.
Order of St Michael and St George
The Most Distinguished Order of Saint Michael and Saint George is an order of chivalry founded on 28 April 1818 by George, Prince Regent, later George IV of the United Kingdom, while he was acting as Prince Regent for his father, George III....
, PC
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...
(15 October 1869 – 27 June 1964) was a British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
judge.
On 11 April 1932, he was appointed 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 additionally 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...
with the title Baron Wright, of Durley in the County of Wiltshire, however resgined as Lord of Appeal already in 1935. Wright became instead Master of the Rolls
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 second most senior judge in England and Wales, after the Lord Chief Justice. The Master of the Rolls is the presiding officer of the Civil Division of the Court of Appeal...
, a post he held until 1937, when he was made Lord of Appeal in Ordinary again. He retired in 1947.
Cases
- Rex v WallaceRex v WallaceR v Wallace [1931] 23 Cr App R 32 is a leading English criminal case, famous as being the first occasion that a conviction for murder was overturned on the grounds that the verdict was "unreasonable, or cannot be supported, having regard to the evidence", as provided for by Section 4 of the...
[1931] 23 Cr App R 32, A famous murder case, the verdict being overturned on appeal. - Hillas & Co v Arcos [1932] UKHL 2
- The Liesbosch v The Edison (1933) ‘The law cannot take account of everything that follows a wrongful act’
- Lindsey County Council v Marshall (1936)
- Wilsons and Clyde Coal Company v English (1937) give due regard to the actual conditions under which men work in a factory or mine, at the long hours and the fatigue, to the slackening of attention which naturally comes from constant repetition of the same operation, to the noise and confusion in which the man works, to his preoccupation in what he is actually doing at the cost perhaps of some inattention to his own safety.
- Grant v Australian Knitting Mills [1936] AC 85
- With v O’FlanaganWith v O’FlanaganWith v O’Flanagan [1936] Ch 575 is an English contract law case, concerning misrepresentation. It holds that there is a duty to disclose material changes in circumstances that were represented to be true in negotiations.-Facts:...
[1936] Ch 575 - Attorney-General for Canada v Attorney-General for Ontario (1937), where a panel chaired by Lord Atkin struck down the Canadian New Deal, including the federal social security system and the minimum wage, as he later admitted, Wright dissented. (At that time dissents could not be recorded publicly.) Canada then abandoned appeals to London.
- Spense v Crawford (1939)
- Lowry v Consolidated African Selection Trust Ltd [1940] AC 648, directors' duty to get best price for shares
- Southern Foundries (1926) Ltd v ShirlawSouthern Foundries (1926) Ltd v ShirlawSouthern Foundries Ltd v Shirlaw [1940] AC 701 is an important English contract law and company law case. In the field of contracts it is well known for MacKinnon LJ's decision in the Court of Appeal, where he put forth the "officious bystander" formulation for determining what terms should be...
[1940] AC 701 - Luxor (Eastborne) Ltd v Cooper (1940) ‘the duty of the court is to construe such documents fairly and broadly, without being too astute or subtle in finding defects’
- Liversidge v Anderson (1941), while Atkin dissented over the suspension of habeas corpus. Wright's explanation, however, was that the Birkett committee (advising the home secretary on cases of detention under the emergency powers) provided a more effective protection than the courts, and he was perhaps right. Certainly his broad approach to statutory interpretation made him a better constitutional lawyer than his peers.
- Joseph Constantine SS Line Ltd v Imperial Smelting Corp (1941)
- Crofter Hand Woven Harris Tweed Co v Veitch [1942] AC 435, a famous statement that workers have the right to strike in support of their interests and to enagage in collective bargainingCollective bargainingCollective bargaining is a process of negotiations between employers and the representatives of a unit of employees aimed at reaching agreements that regulate working conditions...
. - Fibrosa Spolka Akcyjna v Fairbairn Lawson Combe Barbour Ltd [1943] AC 32, 61, recognising the basis of unjust enrichmentUnjust enrichmentUnjust enrichment is a legal term denoting a particular type of causative event in which one party is unjustly enriched at the expense of another, and an obligation to make restitution arises, regardless of liability for wrongdoing.Definition:...
. "It is clear that any civilised system of law is bound to provide remedies for cases of what has been called unjust enrichment or unjust benefit, that is to prevent a man from retaining the money of or some benefit derived from another which it is against conscience that he should keep."