David Stephen Pearl is 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...

 lawyer

Lawyer

A lawyer, according to Black's Law Dictionary, is "a person learned in the law; as an attorney, counsel or solicitor; a person who is practicing law." Law is the system of rules of conduct established by the sovereign government of a society to correct wrongs, maintain the stability of political...

 and member of the Judicial Appointments Commission

Judicial Appointments Commission

The Judicial Appointments Commission is responsible for selecting judges in England and Wales. It is a non-departmental public body which was created on 3 April 2006 as part of the reforms following the Constitutional Reform Act 2005...

. He is the son of Rabbi Chaim Pearl.

Pearl was educated at the University of Birmingham

University of Birmingham

The University of Birmingham is a British Redbrick university located in the city of Birmingham, England. It received its royal charter in 1900 as a successor to Birmingham Medical School and Mason Science College . Birmingham was the first Redbrick university to gain a charter and thus...

 (LLB) and at the Queens' College, Cambridge

Queens' College, Cambridge

Queens' College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge, England.The college was founded in 1448 by Margaret of Anjou , and refounded in 1465 by Elizabeth Woodville...

 (LLM, MA, PhD) prior to being called to the Bar at Gray's Inn

Gray's Inn

The Honourable Society of Gray's Inn, commonly known as Gray's Inn, is one of the four Inns of Court in London. To be called to the Bar and practise as a barrister in England and Wales, an individual must belong to one of these Inns...

 in 1968. He then lectured in Law at the University of Cambridge

University of Cambridge

The University of Cambridge is a public research university located in Cambridge, United Kingdom. It is the second-oldest university in both the United Kingdom and the English-speaking world , and the seventh-oldest globally...

, where he was a fellow of Fitzwilliam College

Fitzwilliam College, Cambridge

Fitzwilliam College is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Cambridge in England.The college traces its origins back to 1869 and the foundation of the Non-Collegiate Students Board, a venture intended to offer students from less financially privileged backgrounds a chance to study...

 and later served as Dean of Law at the University of East Anglia

University of East Anglia

The University of East Anglia is a public research university based in Norwich, United Kingdom. It was established in 1963, and is a founder-member of the 1994 Group of research-intensive universities.-History:...

. He became the Chief Adjudicator of Immigration

Immigration

Immigration is the act of foreigners passing or coming into a country for the purpose of permanent residence...

 Appeals in 1994, and then President of the Immigration Appeal Tribunal

Tribunal

A tribunal in the general sense is any person or institution with the authority to judge, adjudicate on, or determine claims or disputes—whether or not it is called a tribunal in its title....

in 1997. He was Director of Studies at the Judicial Studies Board (1999–2002) and has been President of the Care Standards Tribunal since 2002. Pearl was appointed as a member of the Judicial Appointments Commission since January 2006, representing tribunals.