Uploaded July 2023 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
BOOK REVIEW
LORD DENNING
Life, Law, and Legacy
By James Wilson
Foreword by Lord Neuberger
ISBN 978 0 85490 294 1
Wildy, Simmonds, and Hill Publishing
wildy.com
A FORMIDABLE BIOGRAPHY FOR A FORMIDABLE MAN
An appreciation by Elizabeth Robson Taylor MA of Richmond Green Chambers and Phillip Taylor MBE, Head of Chambers, Reviews Editor, “The Barrister”, and Mediator
Tom Denning, as he was known to many (rather than “my lord”) was, in the biographer, James Wilson’s view the most famous English judge of the twentieth century, and we agree. Arguably, “he was the most famous of any century” – yes, although we don’t know which judges are to follow!
Wilson, in “Lord Denning: Life, Law and Legacy” published by Wildy writes that his “judgments were legendary for both their style and substance”. Very true, and his style was “instantly recognisable, with his short sentences and unique method of storytelling”, especially when opening his judgments. Wilson says that “the substance was always less about law and more about justice, as Denning looked for the fairest outcome to every case before him”. A most concise summary of many Denning judgments.
Lord Denning’s views on justice and his manipulation of precedent “became increasingly controversial” says Wilson during Denning’s tenure as Master of the Rolls. Society was changing around him whilst he “adhered rigidly to the Edwardian morality of his childhood” and experienced the horror of the Great War.
Denning’s fame lies with the report on the Profumo Affair. It was a sensational political scandal of post-war Britain, with Denning’s report considered by some to be an ‘establishment whitewash’.
Then there were his decisions in a variety of trade union disputes which “earned him many critics”. And, unfortunately, his dismissal of the appeal of the ‘Birmingham Six’ Defendants falsely convicted of a terrorist atrocity gave Denning an unnecessary notoriety as the gross miscarriage of justice was later uncovered. This particular case did not help how he was viewed by the public although “enough goodwill remained for him to be called after his death ‘the best-known and best-loved judge in the whole of our history’ by the Lord Chief Justice, Lord Bingham” which is spot on.
Notwithstanding these controversies, there’s no question that Denning led “an extraordinary life”. He was born into a family of modest means in the small Hampshire town of Whitchurch in 1899. He gained two firsts from Oxford and was commissioned in the First World War. He was a remarkably successful barrister although his fame rests on his service, for almost 40 years, as a senior judge.
There is no doubt that this is a superb biography of a remarkable life story which assessing Denning’s legacy years after his passing, showing how he continues to influence, inspire, and occasionally infuriate (mainly academics) to which we say, “well done” as we actually knew Lord Denning with that little twinkle he often had in his eye, not mischievous but, I would say, compassionate for the most part. It is a biography which all students should read because it contains extracts of his leading cases.
The new edition was published by Wildy, Simmonds, and Hill Publishing on 27th March 2023.
BOOK REVIEW
LORD DENNING
Life, Law, and Legacy
By James Wilson
Foreword by Lord Neuberger
ISBN 978 0 85490 294 1
Wildy, Simmonds, and Hill Publishing
wildy.com
A FORMIDABLE BIOGRAPHY FOR A FORMIDABLE MAN
An appreciation by Elizabeth Robson Taylor MA of Richmond Green Chambers and Phillip Taylor MBE, Head of Chambers, Reviews Editor, “The Barrister”, and Mediator
Tom Denning, as he was known to many (rather than “my lord”) was, in the biographer, James Wilson’s view the most famous English judge of the twentieth century, and we agree. Arguably, “he was the most famous of any century” – yes, although we don’t know which judges are to follow!
Wilson, in “Lord Denning: Life, Law and Legacy” published by Wildy writes that his “judgments were legendary for both their style and substance”. Very true, and his style was “instantly recognisable, with his short sentences and unique method of storytelling”, especially when opening his judgments. Wilson says that “the substance was always less about law and more about justice, as Denning looked for the fairest outcome to every case before him”. A most concise summary of many Denning judgments.
Lord Denning’s views on justice and his manipulation of precedent “became increasingly controversial” says Wilson during Denning’s tenure as Master of the Rolls. Society was changing around him whilst he “adhered rigidly to the Edwardian morality of his childhood” and experienced the horror of the Great War.
Denning’s fame lies with the report on the Profumo Affair. It was a sensational political scandal of post-war Britain, with Denning’s report considered by some to be an ‘establishment whitewash’.
Then there were his decisions in a variety of trade union disputes which “earned him many critics”. And, unfortunately, his dismissal of the appeal of the ‘Birmingham Six’ Defendants falsely convicted of a terrorist atrocity gave Denning an unnecessary notoriety as the gross miscarriage of justice was later uncovered. This particular case did not help how he was viewed by the public although “enough goodwill remained for him to be called after his death ‘the best-known and best-loved judge in the whole of our history’ by the Lord Chief Justice, Lord Bingham” which is spot on.
Notwithstanding these controversies, there’s no question that Denning led “an extraordinary life”. He was born into a family of modest means in the small Hampshire town of Whitchurch in 1899. He gained two firsts from Oxford and was commissioned in the First World War. He was a remarkably successful barrister although his fame rests on his service, for almost 40 years, as a senior judge.
There is no doubt that this is a superb biography of a remarkable life story which assessing Denning’s legacy years after his passing, showing how he continues to influence, inspire, and occasionally infuriate (mainly academics) to which we say, “well done” as we actually knew Lord Denning with that little twinkle he often had in his eye, not mischievous but, I would say, compassionate for the most part. It is a biography which all students should read because it contains extracts of his leading cases.
The new edition was published by Wildy, Simmonds, and Hill Publishing on 27th March 2023.
