Crown Attorney

Kronanwalt ( Queen’s or King’s Counsel , abbreviation QC or KC ) is a term for particularly experienced lawyers in England , Wales and some other countries of the Commonwealth .

In the Kingdom of Hanover in the 19th century there was also the designation Kronanwalt as an official title for the public prosecutor and senior public prosecutor (Kronoberanwalt).

meaning

If a queen reigns , then crown attorneys are called Queen's Counsel , and if a king rules, the name is King's Counsel .

The title of crown attorney is only awarded to particularly experienced and successful attorneys, who thereby receive official recognition from the state (represented by the crown and the courts). Up to 1996 only barristers could be appointed, meanwhile this is also possible for solicitors in special cases . In 2002 England and Wales had 1,145 barristers with the title QC (out of about 10,500 total barristers) and seven solicitors (out of just under 90,000 total).

Crown attorneys are usually particularly successful lawyers who often specialize in appearing in court and sometimes earn extremely high sums of money. The most famous QC at the moment is likely to be Cherie Blair , the wife of former British Prime Minister Tony Blair . However, she prefers to practice under her maiden name Cherie Booth.

Appointment procedure and reform discussion

The appointment has been made annually by the Crown at the suggestion of the Lord Chancellor , to whom anyone who met the formal criteria could apply. In special cases, the title was also awarded to non-practicing lawyers, for example to particularly deserving legal scholars. Not least because of the “political appointment process” for the QC or KC, only about a quarter of the applicants are actually appointed. However, a reform of the opaque appointment system is currently being discussed or the abolition of the title altogether is under discussion.

Famous Crown Attorneys (selection)

Warington Baden-Powell (1847–1921), founder of the sea scouts , eldest brother of Robert Baden-Powell , founder of the scout movement

Judah Philip Benjamin (1811–1884), Confederate Minister in the American Civil War and later lawyer and author of a classic textbook on sales law in England

Godfrey Lukongwa Binaisa (1920–2010), President of Uganda from 1979 to 1980

Cherie Blair (* 1954), wife of former British Prime Minister Tony Blair

Leon Brittan, Baron Brittan of Spennithorne (1939-2015), PC , is a barrister, British Conservative politician, former Member of the British Parliament , the British Government and the European Commission

Sir Walter Menzies Campbell (* 1941), CBE , Scottish MP in the British House of Commons and Leader of the Liberal Democrats 2006–2007

William John Ellis Cox (* 1936), Australian lawyer and judge, 2004–2008 Governor of Tasmania

Sir Richard Stafford Cripps (1889–1952), British lawyer and politician ( Labor Party )

Alfred Thompson Denning, Baron Denning (1899–1999), OM , probably the most influential English judge of the 20th century and Master of the Rolls

Sir William Robert Grove (1811–1896), lawyer and scientist , is considered to be the father of the fuel cell alongside Christian Friedrich Schönbein

Greville Janner, Baron Janner of Braunstone (1928–2015), member of the Lower and Upper Houses, multifunctional Jewish organizations

Sir Wilfrid Laurier , GCMG , PC , (1841-1919), seventh Prime Minister of Canada , co-founder of the Liberal Party

Sir Hartley William Shawcross, Baron Shawcross , GBE , PC (1902–2003), British chief prosecutor at the Nuremberg Trial of the Major War Criminals

Sir Geoffrey Lawrence, 3rd Baron Trevethin and 1st Baron Oaksey , DSO (1880–1971), Presiding Judge at the International Military Tribunal at the Nuremberg Trial of Major War Criminals

Sir John Alexander Macdonald (1815–1891), GCB , first Prime Minister of Canada

John Widgery, Baron Widgery (1911-1981), British judge, 1972-1980 Lord Chief Justice of England and Wales , chairman of the Widgery tribunal to investigate the Bloody Sunday (Bloody Sunday)

Web links

Department for Constitutional Affairs - Official website of the British Government on the question of the reform of the Crown Attorney with extensive background information on the legal situation and history.