Richard Edmund Meredith
Encyclopedia
The Rt. Hon. Richard Edmund Meredith PC
, QC
(18 November 1855 - 1916), was the Master of the Rolls in Ireland
, a Privy Councillor, Judge of the Supreme Court of Ireland and Judicial Commissioner
of the Irish Land Commission
.
, Meredith was the son of Isabella Agnes Standish, of Kinsale
, County Cork
, and William Rice Meredith (1814-1888), a prominent Dublin solicitor and sometime President of the Law Society of Ireland
, who took his middle name from his ancestors, the Rices of Aghare. Richard Meredith was a brother of Frederick Walsingham Meredith (1859-1924), also President of the Law Society of Ireland
, and a nephew of John Walsingham Cooke Meredith
, the father of his notable cousins in Canada
. His Irish cousins included the brothers Judge James Creed Meredith
and the Ven. Ralph Creed Meredith
. He was an uncle of the poet Monk Gibbon
, the mathematician Carew Arthur Meredith and the Chief Justice of the Patna High Court
, Sir Herbert Ribton Meredith.
Educated at Galway College, Queen's University of Ireland
and Trinity College, Dublin
. Meredith entered Middle Temple
in 1876 and was called to the Irish bar in 1879. He rapidly acquired an extensive practice, becoming a Queen's Counsel
(Q.C.) in 1892, only thirteen years later, when the average time before taking silk was twenty years. He enjoyed an immense practice as a barrister, and was considered as an equity lawyer of the first rank. In 1894, he was admitted as a Bencher
of King's Inns
, Dublin, where he was for a long time the youngest member of that body by a considerable number of years. In 1896, he was elected a Judge of the Supreme Court of Ireland and a member of the Privy Council of Ireland
. In 1898, he was appointed Judicial Commissioner of the Irish Land Commission, in which capacity he made his fame. In 1906, he was appointed Master of the Rolls in Ireland
, a popular choice as he had never associated himself with party politics. He retired due to ill health in 1912 and died in the North of England, January 26, 1916 On Meredith's death The Irish Times reported that,
His youthful appearance on the Bench attracted the notice of strangers, but no person could have been present at any case without being struck by the easy mastery he possessed of every question raised by the contending counsel on each side... In private life Judge Meredith was extremely popular. After the toil of court there was no person who more thoroughly appreciated the pleasure of a social gathering, and he was frequently to be found at those concerts where a good song formed part of the entertainment.
, Co. Waterford/Co. Cork, whose father (John Stoute Purdon-Stoute) had taken the name of Stoute on inheriting Newtown. The Pollocks were associated with Springmount, Co. Waterford and Brooklodge, Co. Cork. The Merediths were the parents of five children and lived at 31 Fitzwilliam Square
, Dublin. Their eldest son, Lt.-Colonel William Rice Meredith (1882-1964) C.B.E.
, D.S.O.
, was a Gold Staff Officer at the coronation of George VI.
Privy Council of Ireland
The Privy Council of Ireland was an institution of the Kingdom of Ireland until 31 December 1800 and of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland 1801-1922...
, QC
Queen's Counsel
Queen's Counsel , known as King's Counsel during the reign of a male sovereign, are lawyers appointed by letters patent to be one of Her [or His] Majesty's Counsel learned in the law...
(18 November 1855 - 1916), was the Master of the Rolls in Ireland
Master of the Rolls in Ireland
The office of Master of the Rolls in Ireland originated in the office of the keeper of the Rolls in the Irish Chancery and became an office granted by letters patent in 1333. It was abolished in 1924....
, a Privy Councillor, Judge of the Supreme Court of Ireland and Judicial Commissioner
Judicial Commissioner
A Judicial Commissioner in Singapore is appointed to the Supreme Court by the President of Singapore on the advice of the Prime Minister, and has the powers of a Judge. A person may be appointed a Judicial Commissioner if he/she has been a "qualified person" within the meaning of section 2 of the...
of the Irish Land Commission
Irish Land Commission
The Irish Land Commission was created in 1881 as a rent fixing commission by the Land Law Act 1881, also known as the second Irish Land Act...
.
Career
Born at Summerhill, County DublinCounty Dublin
County Dublin is a county in Ireland. It is part of the Dublin Region and is also located in the province of Leinster. It is named after the city of Dublin which is the capital of Ireland. County Dublin was one of the first of the parts of Ireland to be shired by King John of England following the...
, Meredith was the son of Isabella Agnes Standish, of Kinsale
Kinsale
Kinsale is a town in County Cork, Ireland. Located some 25 km south of Cork City on the coast near the Old Head of Kinsale, it sits at the mouth of the River Bandon and has a population of 2,257 which increases substantially during the summer months when the tourist season is at its peak and...
, County Cork
County Cork
County Cork is a county in Ireland. It is located in the South-West Region and is also part of the province of Munster. It is named after the city of Cork . Cork County Council is the local authority for the county...
, and William Rice Meredith (1814-1888), a prominent Dublin solicitor and sometime President of the Law Society of Ireland
Law Society of Ireland
The Law Society of Ireland is the educational, representative and regulatory body of the solicitors' profession in the Republic of Ireland...
, who took his middle name from his ancestors, the Rices of Aghare. Richard Meredith was a brother of Frederick Walsingham Meredith (1859-1924), also President of the Law Society of Ireland
Law Society of Ireland
The Law Society of Ireland is the educational, representative and regulatory body of the solicitors' profession in the Republic of Ireland...
, and a nephew of John Walsingham Cooke Meredith
John Walsingham Cooke Meredith
John Walsingham Cooke Meredith J.P., an Anglo-Irish-Canadian office holder and businessman, best remembered as the father of the Eight London Merediths.-Background:...
, the father of his notable cousins in Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
. His Irish cousins included the brothers Judge James Creed Meredith
James Creed Meredith
James Creed Meredith K.C., LL.D. was an Irish nationalist of the early 20th century, who upheld Brehon Law. He was President of the Supreme Court of the Irish Republic, Chief Judicial Commissioner of Ireland and a Judge of the High Court and the Supreme Court of Ireland...
and the Ven. Ralph Creed Meredith
Ralph Creed Meredith
The Ven. Ralph Creed Meredith, M.A., was an Anglican Cleric who succeeded Edward Keble Talbot as Chaplain to His Majesty, King George VI and afterwards Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II...
. He was an uncle of the poet Monk Gibbon
Monk Gibbon
William Monk Gibbon was an Irish poet and prolific author, known as "The Grand Old Man of Irish Letters". His collection of over twenty volumes of poetry, autobiography, travel and criticism are kept at Queen's University Belfast. He also wrote many published novels, and has been characterised as...
, the mathematician Carew Arthur Meredith and the Chief Justice of the Patna High Court
Patna High Court
Patna High Court is the High Court of the state of Bihar. It was established on 3 February 1916 and later affiliated under the Government of India Act, 1915. The court is headquartered in Patna, the administrative capital of the state.-History of Court:...
, Sir Herbert Ribton Meredith.
Educated at Galway College, Queen's University of Ireland
Queen's University of Ireland
The Queen's University of Ireland was established formally by Royal Charter on 3 September 1850, as the degree-awarding university of the Queen's Colleges of Belfast, Cork, and Galway that were established in 1845 "to afford a university education to members of all religious denominations" in...
and Trinity College, Dublin
Trinity College, Dublin
Trinity College, Dublin , formally known as the College of the Holy and Undivided Trinity of Queen Elizabeth near Dublin, was founded in 1592 by letters patent from Queen Elizabeth I as the "mother of a university", Extracts from Letters Patent of Elizabeth I, 1592: "...we...found and...
. Meredith entered Middle Temple
Middle Temple
The Honourable Society of the Middle Temple, commonly known as Middle Temple, is one of the four Inns of Court exclusively entitled to call their members to the English Bar as barristers; the others being the Inner Temple, Gray's Inn and Lincoln's Inn...
in 1876 and was called to the Irish bar in 1879. He rapidly acquired an extensive practice, becoming a Queen's Counsel
Queen's Counsel
Queen's Counsel , known as King's Counsel during the reign of a male sovereign, are lawyers appointed by letters patent to be one of Her [or His] Majesty's Counsel learned in the law...
(Q.C.) in 1892, only thirteen years later, when the average time before taking silk was twenty years. He enjoyed an immense practice as a barrister, and was considered as an equity lawyer of the first rank. In 1894, he was admitted as a Bencher
Bencher
A bencher or Master of the Bench is a senior member of an Inn of Court in England and Wales. Benchers hold office for life once elected. A bencher can be elected while still a barrister , in recognition of the contribution that the barrister has made to the life of the Inn or to the law...
of King's Inns
King's Inns
The Honorable Society of King's Inns , is the institution which controls the entry of barristers-at-law into the justice system of Ireland...
, Dublin, where he was for a long time the youngest member of that body by a considerable number of years. In 1896, he was elected a Judge of the Supreme Court of Ireland and a member of the Privy Council of Ireland
Privy Council of Ireland
The Privy Council of Ireland was an institution of the Kingdom of Ireland until 31 December 1800 and of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland 1801-1922...
. In 1898, he was appointed Judicial Commissioner of the Irish Land Commission, in which capacity he made his fame. In 1906, he was appointed Master of the Rolls in Ireland
Master of the Rolls in Ireland
The office of Master of the Rolls in Ireland originated in the office of the keeper of the Rolls in the Irish Chancery and became an office granted by letters patent in 1333. It was abolished in 1924....
, a popular choice as he had never associated himself with party politics. He retired due to ill health in 1912 and died in the North of England, January 26, 1916 On Meredith's death The Irish Times reported that,
His youthful appearance on the Bench attracted the notice of strangers, but no person could have been present at any case without being struck by the easy mastery he possessed of every question raised by the contending counsel on each side... In private life Judge Meredith was extremely popular. After the toil of court there was no person who more thoroughly appreciated the pleasure of a social gathering, and he was frequently to be found at those concerts where a good song formed part of the entertainment.
Family
At Dublin in 1880, he married Anne, daughter of John Pollock of Harcourt Street, Dublin, by his wife and cousin Elizabeth, the eldest daughter of Nicholas Purdon-Stoute of Newtown, near YoughalYoughal
Youghal is a town in County Cork, Ireland. Sitting on the estuary of the River Blackwater, in the past it was militarily and economically important. Being built on the edge of a steep riverbank, the town has a distinctive long and narrow layout...
, Co. Waterford/Co. Cork, whose father (John Stoute Purdon-Stoute) had taken the name of Stoute on inheriting Newtown. The Pollocks were associated with Springmount, Co. Waterford and Brooklodge, Co. Cork. The Merediths were the parents of five children and lived at 31 Fitzwilliam Square
Fitzwilliam Square
Fitzwilliam Square is a small but historic Georgian square in the south of central Dublin, Ireland. It was the last of the five Georgian squares in Dublin to be built....
, Dublin. Their eldest son, Lt.-Colonel William Rice Meredith (1882-1964) C.B.E.
Order of the British Empire
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is an order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by George V of the United Kingdom. The Order comprises five classes in civil and military divisions...
, D.S.O.
Distinguished Service Order
The Distinguished Service Order is a military decoration of the United Kingdom, and formerly of other parts of the British Commonwealth and Empire, awarded for meritorious or distinguished service by officers of the armed forces during wartime, typically in actual combat.Instituted on 6 September...
, was a Gold Staff Officer at the coronation of George VI.