The Hamlyn Lectures are a series of public lectures in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland given annually on a legal topic. The lectures have been given every year since 1949 in memory of Emma Hamlyn 's father William Bussell Hamlyn.
History
The Hamlyn Trust was established in 1948 by the 1939 will of Emma Warburton Hamlyn in memory of her father, William Bussell Hamlyn, a solicitor and JP in Torquay. Emma Hamlyn had travelled widely and was intrigued by the relation between each country and their laws. Her mother, Emma Gorsuch Warburton, had died in 1913 and her father died in 1919. After this she spent the last twenty years at her home in Ilsham reading and receiving visitors.[1]
The trust was to further
among the Common People of this Country of the knowledge of the Comparative Jurisprudence and the Ethnology of the Chief European countries including our own and the circumstances of the growth of such Jurisprudence to the intent that the Common People of our Country may realise the privileges which in law and custom they enjoy in comparison with other European Peoples and realising and appreciating such privileges may recognize the responsibilities and obligations attaching to them.[1][2]
Initially there was doubt as to whether the trust was valid, but the High Court approved a scheme for the administration of the trust in 1948, which followed closely the wording of the will.[1][2]
The lectures became popular after Lord Denning delivered the first one and others agreed to follow his example.[1]
The three 2020 lectures were delivered on-line by Eleanor Sharpston QC on the apt subject of The Great Experiment: Constructing a European Union under the Rule of Law from a Group of Diverse Sovereign States."[3]
List of Hamlyn Lectures
| Year | Lecturer | Title |
|---|---|---|
| 1949 | Sir Alfred Denning | Freedom Under the Law |
| 1950 | Richard O'Sullivan | The Inheritance of the Common Law |
| 1951 | F. H. Lawson | The Rational Strength of English Law |
| 1952 | A. L. Goodhart | English Law and the Moral Law |
| 1953 | Sir Carleton Kemp Allen | The Queen's Peace |
| 1954 | C. J. Hamson | Executive Discretion and Judicial Control: An Aspect of the French Conseil d'Etat |
| 1955 | Glanville Williams | The Proof of Guilt: A Study of the English Criminal Trial |
| 1956 | Sir Patrick Devlin | Trial by Jury |
| 1957 | Lord MacDermott | Protection from Power under English Law |
| 1958 | Sir David Hughes Parry | The Sanctity of Contracts in English Law |
| 1959 | C. H. S. Fifoot | Judge and Jurist in the Reign of Victoria |
| 1960 | M. C. Setalvad | The Common Law in India |
| 1961 | T. B. Smith | British Justice: The Scottish Contribution |
| 1962 | R. E. Megarry | Lawyer and Litigant in England |
| 1963 | Baroness Wootton of Abinger | Crime and the Criminal Law: Reflections of a Magistrate and Social Scientist |
| 1964 | Erwin N. Griswold | Law and Lawyers in the United States: The Common Law Under Stress |
| 1965 | Lord Tangley | New Law for a New World? |
| 1966 | Lord Kilbrandon | Other People's Law |
| 1967 | O. D. Schreiner | The Contribution of English Law to South African Law; and the Rule of Law in South Africa |
| 1968 | Harry Street | Justice in the Welfare State |
| 1969 | Bora Laskin | The British Tradition in Canadian Law |
| 1970 | Henry Cecil | The English Judge |
| 1971 | Rupert Cross | Punishment, Prison and the Public: An Assessment of Penal Reform in Twentieth Century England by an Armchair Penologist |
| 1972 | Otto Kahn-Freund | Labour and the Law |
| 1973 | K. C. Wheare | Maladministration and its Remedies |
| 1974 | Sir Leslie Scarman | English Law—The New Dimension |
| 1975 | Sir Desmond Heap | The Land and the Development; or, the Turmoil and the Torment |
| 1976 | Sir Robert Micklethwait | The National Insurance Commissioners |
| 1977 | Lord Mackenzie Stuart | The European Communities and the Rule of Law |
| 1978 | Sir Norman Anderson | Liberty, Law and Justice |
| 1979 | O. R. McGregor | Social History and Law Reform |
| 1980 | H. W. R. Wade | Constitutional Fundamentals |
| 1981 | Hubert Monroe | Intolerable Inquisition? Reflections on the Law of Tax |
| 1982 | Tony Honoré | The Quest for Security: Employees, Tenants, Wives |
| 1983 | Lord Hailsham of St. Marylebone | Hamlyn Revisited: The British Legal System Today |
| 1984 | Sir Gordon Borrie | The Development of Consumer Law and Policy—Bold Spirits and Timorous Souls |
| 1985 | Ralf Dahrendorf | Law and Order |
| 1986 | Sir Jack I. H. Jacob | The Fabric of English Civil Justice |
| 1987 | P. S. Atiyah | Pragmatism and Theory in English Law |
| 1988 | J. C. Smith | Justification and Excuse in the Criminal Law |
| 1989 | Sir Harry Woolf | Protection of the Public—A New Challenge |
| 1990 | Claire Palley | The United Kingdom and Human Rights |
| 1991 | Sir Gordon Slynn | Introducing a European Legal Order |
| 1992 | Richard Abel | Speech and Respect |
| 1993 | Lord Mackay of Clashfern | The Administration of Justice |
| 1994 | William Twining | Blackstone's Tower: The English Law School |
| 1995 | Dame Brenda Hale | From the Tube to the Coffin: Choice and Regulation in Private Life |
| 1996 | Lord Cooke of Thorndon | Turning Points of the Common Law |
| 1997 | Roy Goode | Commercial Law in the Next Millennium |
| 1998 | Sir Stephen Sedley | Freedom, Law and Justice |
| 1999 | Michael Zander | The State of Justice |
| 2000 | Anthony King | Does the United Kingdom Still Have a Constitution? |
| 2001 | Andrew Ashworth | Human Rights, Serious Crime and Criminal Procedure |
| 2002 | Baroness Kennedy of the Shaws | Legal Conundrums in our Brave New World |
| 2003 | Michael Kirby | Judicial Activism: Authority, Principle and Policy in the Judicial Method |
| 2004 | Sir Bob Hepple | Rights at Work: Global, European and British Perspectives |
| 2005 | Conor Gearty | Can Human Rights Survive? |
| 2006 | Sir Francis Jacobs | The Sovereignty of Law: The European Way |
| 2007 | Nicola Lacey | The Prisoners' Dilemma: Political Economy and Punishment in Contemporary Democracies |
| 2008 | Dame Hazel Genn | Judging Civil Justice |
| 2009 | Lord Bingham of Cornhill | Widening Horizons: The Influence of Comparative Law and International Law on Domestic Law |
| 2010 | Alan Paterson | Lawyers and the Public Good: Democracy in Action? |
| 2011 | Jeremy Waldron | The Rule of Law and the Measure of Property |
| 2012 | Jack Straw | Aspects of Law Reform: An Insider's Perspective |
| 2013 | Sir John Laws | The Common Law Constitution |
| 2014 | Paul Craig | UK, EU and Global Administrative Law: Foundations and Challenges |
| 2015 | Michael Freeman | A Magna Carta for Children? Rethinking Children's Rights |
| 2016 | Dame Sian Elias | Golden Threads and Pragmatic Patches: Fairness in Criminal Justice |
| 2017 | Andrew Burrows | Thinking about Statutes: Interpretation, Interaction, Improvement |
| 2018 | Robin Allen QC | Why does Equality seem so difficult? Three problems in comparison. |
| 2019 | Professor Sir John Baker | English Law under two Elizabeths |
| 2020 | Eleanor Sharpston QC | The Great Experiment: Constructing a European Union under the Rule of Law from a Group of Diverse Sovereign States[3] |
| 2021 | Lord Pannick QC | Advocacy |
| 2022 | Professor Catherine O’Regan | Courts and the Body Politic |
| 2023 | Lord Thomas of Cwmgiedd | Laws for a nation and laws for transnational commerce. Where is the line drawn? |
References
- 1 2 3 4 Honoré, Tony. "Hamlyn, Emma Warburton". Oxford Dictionary of National Biography (online ed.). Oxford University Press. doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/64540. (Subscription or UK public library membership required.)
- 1 2 Stebbings, Chantal. "The Hamlyn Legacy" (PDF).
- 1 2 "Faculty of Advocates to kick off online Hamlyn Lectures". Irish Legal News. 2020-10-20. Retrieved 2023-06-26.