# List of University of Oxford people in the law

This is a list of University of Oxford people in the Law. Many were students at one (or more) of the colleges of the University, and others held fellowships at a college.
This list forms part of a series of lists of people associated with the University of Oxford – for other lists, please see the main article List of University of Oxford people.
Oxford has produced a large number of distinguished jurists, judges and lawyers around the world. This list includes twelve Lord Chancellors, ten Lord Chief Justices, nine UK Supreme Court Justices and twenty-two law lords; four associate justices of the US Supreme Court as well as six puisne justices of the Supreme Court of Canada and a chief justice of the now defunct Federal Court of Canada. The current Lord Chief Justice (the most senior judge in England and Wales), Lord Burnett, was educated at Oxford.

## European Court of Human Rights

| Name | College | Years at Oxford | Notes | Ref |
| Nicolas Bratza | Brasenose | | High Court Judge 1998–, Judge of the European Court of Human Rights 1998–, Section President ECHR 1998–, Vice-President ECHR 2007– | |
| Paul Mahoney | | | Judge of the European Court of Human Rights 2012–16, first President of European Union Civil Service Tribunal (2005–2011) | |

## Lord Chancellors and Lord Chief Justices

| Name | College | Years at Oxford | Notes |
| Charles Abbott, 1st Baron Tenterden | Corpus Christi | 1781–1784 | Lord Chief Justice of the King's Bench 1818–32 |
| Henry Bathurst, 2nd Earl Bathurst, 1st Baron Apsley | Balliol | 1730– | Lord Chancellor 1771–78 |
| Ian Burnett, Baron Burnett of Maldon | Pembroke | | Lord Chief Justice 2017– |
| Richard Bethell, 1st Baron Westbury | Wadham | 1814–1819 | Lord Chancellor 1861–65 |
| Thomas Bingham, Baron Bingham of Cornhill | Balliol | 1954– | Master of the Rolls 1992–1996, Lord Chief Justice 1996–2000, Senior Law Lord 2000–2008 |
| Stanley Buckmaster, 1st Viscount Buckmaster | Christ Church | 1879–1882 | Solicitor General 1913–15, Lord Chancellor 1915–16 |
| John Coleridge, 1st Baron Coleridge | Balliol | 1838–1843 | Fellow of Exeter College 1843–1846, Chief Justice of the Common Pleas 1873–80, Lord Chief Justice 1880–94 |
| Gerald Gardiner, Baron Gardiner | Magdalen | –1923 | Lord Chancellor 1964–70 |
| David Gauke | St Edmund Hall | 1990–1993 | Lord Chancellor 2018– |
| Hardinge Giffard, 1st Earl of Halsbury | Merton | 1842–1845 | Lord Chancellor 1885–86, 1886–92, & 1895–1905 |
| Rayner Goddard, Baron Goddard | Trinity | –1898 | Lord Chief Justice 1946–1958 |
| Matthew Hale | Magdalen Hall | 1626–1629 | Lord Chief Baron of the Exchequer 1660–71, Lord Chief Justice 1671–76 |
| Quintin Hogg, Baron Hailsham of St Marylebone | Christ Church | 1927–1931 | Prize Fellow of All Souls 1931, Lord Chancellor 1970–74 and 1979–87 |
| John Holt | Oriel | 1658– | Lord Chief Justice 1689–1710 |
| William Jowitt, 1st Earl Jowitt | New College | 1903–1906 | Solicitor General 1940–42, Lord Chancellor 1945–51 |
| Reginald Manningham-Buller, 1st Viscount Dilhorne | Magdalen | –1926 | Lord Chancellor 1962–1964 |
| Thomas More | Oriel or Canterbury | 1492–1494 | Lord Chancellor 1529–1532 |
| William Murray, 1st Earl of Mansfield | Christ Church | 1723–1727 | Lord Chief Justice of the King's Bench 1756–88 |
| John Popham | Balliol | | Speaker of the House of Commons 1580–83, Lord Chief Justice 1592–1607 |
| Robert Reid, 1st Earl Loreburn | Balliol | –1868 | Lord Chancellor 1907–1912 |
| John Sankey, 1st Viscount Sankey | Jesus | –1891 | Lord Chancellor 1929–1935 |
| William Scroggs | Pembroke | 1639–1649 | Lord Chief Justice 1678–81 |
| Gavin Simonds, 1st Viscount Simonds | New College | 1900–1904 | Lord Chancellor 1951–1954 |
| Thomas Wolsey | Magdalen College | | Lord Chancellor 1515–1529 |

## Justices of the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom

| Name | College | Years at Oxford | Notes |
| David Neuberger, Baron Neuberger of Abbotsbury | Christ Church | 1966–1970, BA (Chemistry) | President of the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom (2012–2017); Master of the Rolls (2009–2012); Lord of Appeal in Ordinary (2007–2009); Lord Justice of Appeal (2004–2007); Justice of the High Court, CD (1996–2004) |
| Jonathan Mance, Baron Mance | University | 1961–1964, BA (Law) | Justice of the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom (2009–); Lord of Appeal in Ordinary (2005–2009); Lord Justice of Appeal (1999–2005); Justice of the High Court, QBD (1993–1999) |
| Nicholas Wilson, Lord Wilson of Culworth | Worcester | | Justice of the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom (2011–); Lord Justice of Appeal (2005–2011); Justice of the High Court, FD (1993–2005) |
| Jonathan Sumption, Lord Sumption | Magdalen | 1967–1970, BA (Medieval History) | Justice of the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom (2012–); Deputy High Court Judge, Judge Jersey & Guernsey Court of Appeal |
| Robert Reed, Baron Reed of Allermuir | Balliol | 1978, DPhil (Law) | Justice of the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom (2012–); Senator of the College of Justice: Inner House (2008–2012), Outer House (1998–2008) |
| Alan Rodger, Baron Rodger of Earlsferry | New and Balliol | 1970–1972, DPhil (Law) | Lord President of the Court of Session 1996–2001; appointed a Law Lord in 2001, Justice of the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom (2009–11) |
| Mark Saville, Baron Saville of Newdigate | Brasenose College | | Justice of the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom (2009–12) |
| Michael Briggs, Lord Briggs of Westbourne | Magdalen | | Justice of the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom (2017–) |
| Simon Brown, Baron Brown of Eaton-under-Heywood | Worcester College | | Appointed a Law Lord in 2004, Justice of the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom (2009–12) |
| Vivien Rose, Lady Rose of Colmworth | Brasenose College, Oxford | | Justice of the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom (2021–); Lady Justice of Appeal (2019–2021); Justice of the High Court, Chancery Division (2013–2019) |
| Andrew Burrows, Lord Burrows | Brasenose College | | Justice of the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom (2020–); Deputy High Court judge (England and Wales) (part-time), Commercial Division (2007–2020); Recorder, Crown Court South-Eastern Circuit (approx. 2000–2017) |

## Lords of Appeal in Ordinary (Law Lords)

* Lord Hoffmann
* Lord Bingham
* Lord Goff
| Name | College | Years at Oxford | Notes |
| Cyril Asquith, Baron Asquith of Bishopstone | Balliol | –1913 | Elected Fellow of Magdalen College in 1913; appointed a Law Lord in 1951 |
| James Atkin, Baron Atkin | Magdalen | 1884– | appointed a Law Lord in 1928 |
| Charles Bowen, Baron Bowen | Balliol | 1853–1857 | Elected Fellow (whilst still an undergraduate) in 1857; appointed a Law Lord in 1893 |
| Nicholas Browne-Wilkinson, Baron Browne-Wilkinson | Magdalen | | Appointed a Law Lord in 1991 |
| Horace Davey, Baron Davey | University | 1852–1856 | Fellow of University College 1856–1864; appointed a Law Lord in 1894 |
| Edmund Davies, Baron Edmund-Davies | Exeter | | Appointed a Law Lord in 1966 |
| Alfred Thompson Denning, Baron Denning | Magdalen | 1916–1920 (Mathematics), 1921–1922 (Law) | Degree interrupted by war service 1917–1919. Appointed a Law Lord in 1957; Master of the Rolls 1962–1982 |
| Kenneth Diplock, Baron Diplock | University | | Appointed a Law Lord in 1968 |
| Robert Goff, Baron Goff of Chieveley | New College | | High Steward of Oxford University |
| Leonard Hoffmann, Baron Hoffmann | The Queen's | | Stowell Fellow, University College |
| Brian Hutton, Baron Hutton | Balliol | | |
| Geoffrey Lawrence, 1st Baron Oaksey | New College | –1903 | Appointed a Law Lord in 1947 |
| Michael Nolan, Baron Nolan | Wadham | | Appointed a Law Lord in 1994 |
| Wilfrid Normand, Baron Normand | Oriel | 1902–1906 | Lord President of the Court of Session 1935–1947; appointed a Law Lord in 1947. |
| Cyril Radcliffe, 1st Viscount Radcliffe | New College and All Souls | 1919–1921 (New), 1922–1937 (Fellow of All Souls) | Appointed a Law Lord (direct from the bar) in 1949 |
| Eustace Roskill, Baron Roskill | Exeter College | 1930–1932 | Appointed a Law Lord in 1980 |
| Leslie Scarman, Baron Scarman | Brasenose | | Appointed a Law Lord in 1977 |
| Donald Somervell, Baron Somervell of Harrow | Magdalen and All Souls | 1907–1911 (Magdalen), 1912– (Fellow of All Souls) | First chemistry graduate to be elected a Fellow of All Souls. Solicitor General 1933–1936, Attorney General 1936–1945, appointed a Law Lord in 1954 |
| Johan Steyn, Baron Steyn | University | | Appointed a Law Lord in 2005 |
| Richard Wilberforce, Baron Wilberforce | New College and All Souls | –1930 (New), 1932–2003 (All Souls) | Appointed a Law Lord in 1964 (direct from High Court). High Steward of Oxford University 1967–1990 |

## Other judges and lawyers: United Kingdom

| Name | College | Years at Oxford | Notes |
| Philip Bell | The Queen's | | MP 1951–60, County Court Judge 1960–75, Circuit Judge 1971–75 |
| Malcolm Bishop | Regent's Park | | Deputy High Court Judge, Chair Isle of Man Legal Services Commission |
| William Blair | Balliol | | Dep High Court Judge 2003–, Chairman of Finsmat 2001–, of Combar 2003–05 |
| Julius Caesar | Magdalen | | Chancellor of the Exchequer 1606–14, Master of the Rolls 1614–36 |
| John Cameron, Lord Abernethy | Pembroke | | Senator of the College of Justice 1992– |
| John Taylor Cameron, Lord Coulsfield | Corpus Christi | | Senator of the College of Justice 1987– |
| Kenneth Cameron, Baron Cameron of Lochbroom | Corpus Christi | | Lord Advocate 1984–89 |
| George Carman | Balliol | | barrister 1953, QC 1971, sometime head of chambers New Court |
| Joseph William Chitty | Balliol and Exeter | | Lord Justice of Appeal 1897–99 |
| Michael Coulson | Merton | | MP 1959–64, Circuit Judge 1983–98 |
| Thomas Coventry, 1st Baron Coventry | Balliol | | Lord Keeper of the Great Seal 1625–40 |
| Charles Isaac Elton | Balliol and The Queen's | | Barrister 1865, QC 1885, MP 1884–85 & 1886–92 |
| Sir Norris Foster, CBE | | | Barrister, Warwickshire County Appeal Tribunal, Parliamentary Recruiting Committee, Birmingham Local War Pensions Committee, and the central Committee of the War Pensions and Citizens Committee d. 1925 |
| Sir Michael Fox | Magdalen | | Lord Justice of Appeal 1981–1992 |
| Arthur Hamilton, Lord Hamilton | Worcester | | Lord Justice General and Lord President of the Court of Session 2005– |
| Giles Henderson | Magdalen and Pembroke | | Senior Partner Slaughter and May 1993–2001 |
| Leoline Jenkins | Jesus | | Royalist, Principal Jesus College, Oxford 1661–73, Secretary of State 1680–84 |
| John Laws | Exeter | | Lord Justice of Appeal 1999– |
| Sir Brian Leveson | Merton | | current President of the Queen's Bench Division |
| Roger Ludlow | Balliol | | author of Fundamental Orders of Connecticut |
| Ronald King Murray, Lord Murray | Jesus | | MP 1970–79, Lord Advocate 1974–79, Senator of the College of Justice 1979– |
| Ann Olivarius | Somerville | | Chair, McAllister Olivarius, plaintiff in Alexander v. Yale, expert in discrimination, Title IX, revenge porn, sexual harassment law |
| William Osgoode | Christ Church | | first Chief Justice of Upper Canada 1792–1794, Chief Justice of Lower Canada 1794–1801 |
| Stephen Richards | St John's | | High Court Judge 1997–2005, Presiding Judge for Wales 2000–2003, Lord Justice of Appeal 2005– |
| Bernard Rix | New College | | Lord Justice of Appeal 2000– |
| Geoffrey Robertson | University | | QC, Recorder, Master of the Bench, head of chambers, visiting professor |
| David Trustram Eve, 2nd Baron Silsoe | Christ Church | | barrister 1955, QC 1972, expert in planning law |
| Mathew Thorpe | Balliol | | Lord Justice of Appeal 1996– |
| Lancelot Ware | Lincoln | | co–founder of Mesna 1946, barrister 1949, sometime Alderman London County Council |
| James Whitelocke | St John's | | Justice of the King's Bench 1624–32 |
| Ivy Williams | Society of Oxford Home-Students | 1896–1902 (student), 1920–1945 (lecturer) | First female barrister in England (1921), first female Doctor of Civil Law (1923) |
| Norman Wylie, Lord Wylie | St Edmund Hall | | MP 1964–74, Ld Advocate 1970–74, Sen Coll of Justice 1974–90, Justice of Appeal Botswana 1994–96 |
* Natasha Hausdorff (born 1989), barrister, international news commentator, and Israel advocate

## Judges and lawyers: other countries

* Byron White
* David Souter
* John Marshall Harlan II
* Elena Kagan
* Stephen Breyer
| Name | College | Years at Oxford | Country | Notes |
| Byron White | Hertford | | United States | Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States (1962–1993) |
| David Souter | Magdalen | | United States | Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States (1990–2009) |
| John Marshall Harlan II | Balliol | | United States | Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States (1955–1971) |
| Elena Kagan | Worcester | | United States | Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States (2010–) |
| Stephen Breyer | Magdalen | | United States | Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States (1994–) |
| Neil Gorsuch | University | 1992–93, 2004 | United States | Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States (2017–) |
| Cavinder Bull | Trinity | 1989–92 | Singapore | Senior counsel |
| John Doyle | | | Australia | Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of South Australia 1995– |
| James Edelman | | | Australia | Justice of the High Court of Australia |
| Kenneth Hayne | Exeter | | Australia | Justice of the High Court of Australia 1997– |
| Dyson Heydon | University | | Australia | Justice of the High Court of Australia 2003– |
| Michael Hwang | | | Singapore | Senior Counsel of the Supreme Court of Singapore and Chief Justice of the Dubai International Financial Centre Courts |
| Lee Eng Beng | | | Singapore | Senior Counsel |
| Aarif Barma | Exeter | | Hong Kong | Justice of appeal, Court of Appeal of Hong Kong 2012–; |
| Charles Ching | University | | Hong Kong | Permanent judge, Court of Final Appeal of Hong Kong 1997–2000; |
| Henry Litton | Merton | | Hong Kong | Permanent judge, Court of Final Appeal of Hong Kong 1997–2000; |
| David Malcolm | | | Australia | Chief Justice of Western Australia 1988–2006 |
| Geoffrey Nettle | | | Australia | Justice of the High Court of Australia |
| Patrick Keane | Magdalen | 1970s | Australia | Vinerian Scholar; Judge of Appeal of the Supreme Court of Queensland 2005– |
| Joel Bakan | | | Canada | author of The Corporation: The Pathological Pursuit of Profit and Power (2004) |
| Jean Beetz | | | Canada | Puisne Justice Supreme Court of Canada 1974–88 |
| Thomas Cromwell | Exeter | | Canada | Puisne Justice Supreme Court of Canada 2008–16 |
| Peter Blaikie | | | Canada | co–founder Heenan Blaikie (1973), President & Chief Operating Officer Unican Security Systems 1993–98 |
| Robert Chambers | | | New Zealand | Supreme Court of New Zealand |
| Julien Chouinard | | | Canada | Puisne Justice Supreme Court of Canada 1979–87 |
| Yves Fortier | | | Canada | Permanent Court of Arbitration 1984–9, Ambassador UN 1988–92, Pres London Court of International Arbitration 1998–2001 |
| Susan Glazebrook | | | New Zealand | Supreme Court of New Zealand |
| Wilbur Jackett | | | Canada | Chief Justice of the Federal Court of Canada 1971–79 |
| Gérard La Forest | St John's | | Canada | Puisne Justice Supreme Court of Canada 1985–97 |
| Sherwood Lett | | | Canada | Chief Justice Supreme Court of British Columbia 1955–64 |
| Jeremy Lack | Hertford | 1984–1989 | Switzerland | International Mediator |
| Margaret Chew | Brasenose | 1985–1988 | Singapore | Professor of Law, National University of Singapore |
| Howard Rosen | Exeter | 1976–1980 | Switzerland | Founder of Swiss Friends of Oxford University |
| Ronald Martland | Hertford | | Canada | Puisne Justice Supreme Court of Canada 1958–82 |
| Henry G. Nolan | | | Canada | Prosecutor International Military Tribunal for the Far East 1946–8, Puisne Justice Supreme Court of Canada 1956–7 |
| Roland Ritchie | | | Canada | Puisne Justice Supreme Court of Canada 1959–84 |
| Patrick Yu | Merton | | Hong Kong | Advocate, declined appointment to Supreme Court of Hong Kong 1971, 1974, 1979 |
| M.C. Chagla | Lincoln | 1919–22 | India | Chief Justice, High Court of Bombay, 1948–1958; Ad Hoc Judge, ICJ 1957–59; Indian High Commissioner in UK, 1962–63; Education Minister, Govt. of India, 1963–66; Minister of External Affairs, Govt. of India, 1966–67. |
| Sujata Manohar | Lady Margaret Hall | | India | Justice of the Supreme Court of India 1994–99 |
| Sajjad Zaheer | | | India | |
| Kailas Nath Wanchoo | Wadham | | India | Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of India 1967–68 |
| A N Ray | Oriel | | India | Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of India 1973–1977 |
| Ruma Pal | | | India | Judge,Supreme Court of India 2000–06 |
| Cornelia Sorabji | Somerville | | India | first woman to study law at Oxford, first female advocate in India, first woman to practice law in India and Britain |
| Edwin Cameron | Keble and All Souls | | South Africa | High Court Judge 95–, Acting Justice Constitutional Court 99–00, Judge of Appeal Supreme Court 00– |
| Guido Calabresi | Magdalen | | United States | Sterling Professor Emeritus Yale Law School, Judge US Court of Appeals 1994– |
| Clifford Durr | | | United States | attorney who represented Rosa Parks |
| William A. Fletcher | Merton | | United States | Circuit judge, US Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit 1998– |
| David Frederick | | 1987 | United States | Successful appellate attorney who has argued 21 cases before the U.S. Supreme Court |
| Frank E. Holman | | | United States | President of the American Bar Association 1948 |
| Ava Thomas | University of Oxford | | United States | US NAVY, Dept of Justice/FBI |
| David E. Kendall | Worcester | | United States | Criminal defense lawyer, sometime associate counsel NAACP Legal Defense Fund |
| Robert Luskin | University | | United States | Former US Dept of Justice lawyer, Karl Rove's attorney |

## Academia

See List of University of Oxford people in academic disciplines
The list of noted legal scholars includes H. L. A. Hart, Ronald Dworkin, A. V. Dicey, William Blackstone, John Gardner, Timothy Endicott, Peter Birks, John Finnis, Andrew Ashworth, Joseph Raz, Jeremy Waldron, Leslie Green, Tony Honoré, Neil MacCormick, Hugh Collins, John Eekelaar, Robert Stevens, Paul Craig, Ben McFarlane.
Other distinguished practitioners who have attended Oxford include Lord Pannick QC, Geoffrey Robertson QC, Amal Clooney, Lord Faulks QC, Dinah Rose QC, Ben Emmerson QC.