Alexander Mackenzie Stuart, Baron Mackenzie-Stuart

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Alexander John "Jack" Mackenzie Stuart, Baron Mackenzie-Stuart QC (born November 18, 1924 in Aberdeen , † April 1, 2000 in Edinburgh ) was a Scottish lawyer . He was the first judge from the United Kingdom to become a member of the European Court of Justice , later also its President.

Early years

Jack Mackenzie's father, as he was commonly known, was a Crown Attorney and Professor of Scottish Law at the University of Aberdeen . Jack Mackenzie first attended Fettes College in Edinburgh and then the University of Cambridge .

In 1942 Mackenzie Stuart was drafted into the British Army , joined the Royal Engineers and was trained in an engineering course at Sidney Sussex College , Cambridge . In his subsequent service he mainly built bridges in Northern Europe. In his farewell speech as President of the European Court of Justice in 1988, he reported on the indelible impression that the destroyed Ruhr area had made on him at a young age. After a staff post in Burma and a minesweeping squad on the Northumbrian coast , he returned to Cambridge, where he continued his law studies and graduated with honors from the University of Edinburgh .

Professional background

Jack Mackenzie Stuart was admitted to the bar in 1951, quickly gained extensive practice, and was promoted to Crown Attorney in 1963. There was no attorney specialization at the time, and Mackenzie was skilled in corporate law (which his father had written a standard work on), tax, and real estate law, as well as issues related to coal-mining accidents . As a result, he was appointed Sheriff of Aberdeen and a little later Senator of the College of Justice , with the judicial title Lord Mackenzie Stuart .

In 1973 Mackenzie Stuart was appointed judge at the European Court of Justice. The Prime Minister and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs had agreed that one of the posts in Luxembourg - judge or advocate general - should be filled by a Scottish lawyer. For Mackenzie Stuart, the appointment came as a surprise. The family moved to a small municipality in Luxembourg, where they quickly settled in. Mackenzie Stuart's wife, Anne, a lawyer herself, tried to build up a British community in Luxembourg and was involved in building the European School there .

Together with the French Advocate General Jean-Pierre Warner , Jack Mackenzie Stuart did his best to synchronize the various legal systems of the European countries, which were potentially incompatible, and to counter the mistrust of the countries among each other, a process that continues to this day. In practice, the European Court of Justice deals little with the historical circumstances of the legislation, but with the modern requirements on issues such as free border traffic, market regulation and fair competition.

From 1984 to 1988 Mackenzie Start was the seventh President of the European Court of Justice. He took over the presidency at a difficult time as the European Union had expanded to include three more countries - Greece, Spain and Portugal - and the premises in Luxembourg soon proved to be too small. During Mackenzie Stuart's presidency, a new building was planned and new procedural structures were introduced, including a court of first instance .

In recognition of his work for the European Court of Justice and the European Community, Jack Mackenzie Stuart was promoted to Baron Mackenzie-Stuart , of Dean in the District of the City of Edinburgh , on October 18, 1988 , making him a life peer member of the House of Lords . (On this occasion the hyphen was added to the name.)

In memory of Baron Mackenzie Stuart, the University of Cambridge holds an annual public lecture, Mackenzie Stuart Lectures .

family

Jack Mackenzie Stuart's wife, Anne Mackenzie-Stuart, was known for her legendary parties in Edinburgh and Luxembourg. She was very committed to European issues and was chair of the European Movement in Scotland . The couple had four daughters.

Publications

  • The European Communities and the Rule of Law . 1977
  • French King at Holyrood . 1995

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ David Edward: Lord Mackenzie - Stuart of Dean on royalsoced.org.uk (PDF; 26 kB)
  2. ↑ Mackenzie Stuart Lectures on cels.law.cam.ac.uk ( Memento from May 30, 2015 in the Internet Archive )
  3. ↑ Lady Mackenzie-Stuart. Passionate advocate of European Union on scotsman.com v. November 17, 2008

Web links

personal data
SURNAME Mackenzie Stuart, Alexander, Baron Mackenzie-Stuart
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Mackenzie Stuart, Jack; Mackenzie, Jack; Mackenzie Stuart, Alexander John, Baron Mackenzie-Stuart
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Scottish lawyer and judge at the European Court of Justice
DATE OF BIRTH November 18, 1924
PLACE OF BIRTH Aberdeen
DATE OF DEATH April 1, 2000
Place of death Edinburgh