Chief Judicial Commissioner for the Western Pacific

The Chief Justice of the High Commissioner's Court, more commonly known as the Chief Judicial Commissioner for the Western Pacific, was the chief judicial officer throughout the British Western Pacific Territories from 1877 through 1976. This was a supra-colonial entity established by the Western Pacific Orders-in-Council 1877 (amended in 1879 and 1880), and by the Pacific Order-in-Council 1893.^{[note 1]} Headed by a High Commissioner for the Western Pacific, who was also ex officio the Governor of Fiji, until the end of 1952, it included numerous islands, mostly small, throughout Oceania. Composition varied over time, but Fiji (1877-1952) and the Solomon Islands (1893-1976) were its most durable members.

From 1877 through 1961, the Chief Justice of Fiji was ex officio Chief Judicial Commissioner, apart from a three-year suspension of the High Commission from 1942 through 1945 during the War in the Pacific, when many of Britain's colonies in Oceania were under either military administration or Japanese occupation. Appeals lay to the Privy Council in London.

From the beginning of 1953, Fiji and Tonga were separated from the High Commission as a prelude to full independence, and the High Commission offices were transferred to Honiara on Guadalcanal in the Solomon Islands, with the Governor of the Solomon Islands now being the High Commissioner ex officio. The High Commissioner's Court, however, continued to meet in Suva, with the Chief Justice of Fiji continuing as Chief Judicial Commissioner for another decade, until 1962, when the two offices were separated. Under the Western Pacific (Courts) Order in Council, gazetted on 15 August 1961 and effective from 9 April 1962, the High Commissioner's Court was renamed the High Court of the Western Pacific and relocated to the Solomon Islands.^[1] The court consisted of a Chief Justice (as the office of Chief Judicial Commissioner was renamed — no longer the Chief Justice of Fiji) and two puisne judges, one based in Port Vila, New Hebrides (now Vanuatu), and the other in Tarawa, Gilbert and Ellice Islands (now Kiribati and Tuvalu).^[2]

Most of the island groups had gained either independence or internal self-government by 1971. On 2 January 1976 after nearly all had been given separate statehood, the office of High Commissioner and the entity of the Pacific Territories were abolished. The High Commission of the Western Pacific was abolished, the last archives being finally packed up in Honiara in August 1978.^[3] A remnant of the High Commission was the right of appeal from the courts of many island nations to the Fijan Court of Appeal, which persisted into the late 1970s.^[2]

List of Chief Judicial Commissioners

#	Incumbent	Portrait	Tenure		Head of State	Notes
#	Incumbent	Portrait	Took office	Left office	Head of State	Notes
Chief Judicial Commissioner for the Western Pacific and Chief Justice of Fiji (1877-1962)
1.	Sir John Gorrie^[4]^[5]		1877	1882	Victoria
	Sir Fielding Clarke Acting		1882	1882	Victoria
2.	Sir Henry Wrenfordsley^[6]^[7]^[8]		1882	1885	Victoria
	Sir Fielding Clarke Acting for Wrenfordsley		1884	1885	Victoria
3.	Sir Fielding Clarke		1885	1889	Victoria
4.	Sir Henry Berkeley^[9]^[10]^[11]^[12]		1889	1902	Victoria Edward VII
5.	Sir Charles Major^[13]^[14]^[15]^[16]^[17]		1902	1914	Edward VII George V
	Albert Ehrhardt^[18] Acting for Major		1910	21 February 1911	Edward VII George V	Ehrhardt, the then Attorney-General of Fiji, acted as Chief Judicial Commissioner while Major, the incumbent Chief Judicial Commissioner, was acting as High Commissioner for the Western Pacific.
6.	Sir Charles Davson^[19]^[20]^[21]^[22]^[23]		1914	1922	George V
	Sir Kenneth Muir MacKenzie^[24]^[25] Acting		1922	1923	George V
7.	Sir Alfred Young, KC		1923	1929	George V
8.	Sir Maxwell Anderson, CBE, KC, RN (retd.)		1929	1936	George V Edward VIII
9.	Owen Corrie, MC^[26]		1936	1942	Edward VIII George VI
	Office suspended		1942	1945	George VI
10.	Sir Claud Seton, MC^[27]^[28]^[29]		25 April 1945	22 November 1949	George V
11.	Sir James Thomson		1949	1953	George VI Elizabeth II
12.	Sir Ragnar Hyne^[30]^[31]^[32]^[33]^[34]		1953	1958	Elizabeth II
13.	Sir Albert Lowe^[35]		1958	1962	Elizabeth II
Chief Justice of the High Court of the Western Pacific (1962-1976)
14.	Sir Geoffrey Briggs^[36]		1962	1965	Elizabeth II
15.	Sir Jocelyn Bodilly, R.N.V.R., V.R.D^[1]^[37]^[38]^[39]^[40]^[41]		14 June 1965	1975	Elizabeth II

References

Notes

↑ "B. (1.) The Chief Justice and every other judge for the time being of the Supreme Court, shall be, by virtue of his office, a Judicial Commissioner for the Western Pacific for the purposes of this Order, and is in this Order referred to as a Judicial Commissioner. (2.) Where, in the opinion of the High Commissioner, the attendance of a Judicial Commissioner holding office as aforesaid is impracticable, or would be inconvenient, the High Commissioner may from time to time in the name and on behalf of Her Majesty, by writing under his hand and seal, appoint a person of legal knowledge and experience to be a Judicial Commissioner for particular purposes or for a particular time. The London Gazette, 8 September 1893 (26439), pp. 5119-5121.

Citations

1 2 "Judicial System". Solomon Islands Historical Encyclopaedia 1893-1978. © Solomon Islands Historical Encyclopaedia, 1893-1978, 2013. Retrieved 20 August 2015.
1 2 Justice Gordon Ward (2005) Achieving effective legal representation in small Pacific island Commonwealth States. Commonwealth Law Conference, London, September 2005
↑ "Western Pacific High Commission". Ameliapedia. TIGHAR. Retrieved 19 November 2013.
↑ Brereton 1997, p. 104.
↑ Cooper, Charles Alfred (1896) An editor's retrospect; fifty years of newspaper work p. 147
↑ London Gazette, 19 June, 1883
↑ Australian Dictionary of Biography
↑ Bennett, John Michael. Sir Henry Wrenfordsley: Second Chief Justice of Western Australia, 1880-1883
↑ Knighthood for Chief Justice of Fiji and Chief Judicial Commissioner for the Western Pacific Knighthood for Berkeley
↑ 'The Times' 2 October 1918: 30 September 1918, death of Sir Henry Spencer Berkeley, 3rd son of Thomas Berkeley Hardtman-Berkeley
↑ Dictionary of Australasian Biography
↑ Family tree at RootsWeb
↑ Replaced Berkeley in 1902 The Otago Witness, 13 August 1902
↑ Knighted June 1911, still CJ, W. Pacific
↑ Sir Charles Major biog. Chief Justice of Fiji and Chief Judicial Commissioner for the W. Pacific 1902-14 (maybe 1902-11) and M.E.C.(possibly HC=High Commissioner) of Fiji 1905-14
↑ Announcement as CJ, British Guiana The Edinburgh Gazette, 29 September, 1914
↑ This source says that Albert Ehrhardt, the Attorney-General, was acting as JCWP in October 1910 (p.148) and that Charles Major "had returned to his substantive position as JCWP" by August 1911 (p.153) (Lavaka 1981, pp. 148, 153)
↑ Ehrhardt was also Attorney General 1903-1914; acting for Major while Major was Acting High Commissioner (1910-1911). (Lavaka 1981, pp. 148)
↑ (1857-1933) Charles Davson: called to the Bar at the Middle Temple in 1881. Joined the Bar of British Guiana in 1882. Solicitor General, 1898. Appointed Puisne Judge of Mauritius in 1905; Chief Justice of Fiji and Chief Judicial Commissioner for Western Pacific in 1914. Knighted 1917.
↑ The Times 13 February 1917, p. 6
↑ Died 6 November 1933
↑ Stewart's Handbook of the Pacific p. 90
↑ Daley 1996, p. 114.
↑ His surname was Muir Mackenzie
↑ Acting Chief Justice (Fiji) between 1922 and 1923
↑ He was appointed Chief Justice of Fiji and Chief Judicial Commissioner for the Western Pacific. Tuesday 25 February 1936 Corrie
↑ definite dates of office
↑ Biography
↑ By May 1950 Seton was chairing a judicial inquiry in Kenya Kenya Gazette, 9 May 1950
↑ CJ Tonga & Solomon Islands, a Judicial Commissioner 1930 Burra Record 18 June 1930
↑ Knighted 1956 London Gazette 10 February 1956 p. 825
↑ V. brief biog. His father's surname was Hein.
↑ Notice of death, Sydney Morning Herald 6 October 1966
↑ Picture of Hyne in judge's wig & robe
↑ Christie's sale of medals with biog.
↑ April 1962. The QUEEN has been pleased to give directions for the appointment of Geoffrey Gould Briggs, Esq., Puisne Judge, Unified Judiciary of Sarawak, North Borneo and Brunei, to be Chief Justice designate to the High Court of the Western Pacific.
↑ Justice Gerard Winter. One South Pacific. One regional court. Three case studies Archived May 27, 2013, at the Wayback Machine..
↑ London Gazette, 4 March 1969 Knighthood
↑ Died 27 April 1997 London Gazette Issue 54773, 23 May 1997
↑ Van Der Vat, Dan Eel Pie Island with picture
↑ He was the grandson of Francis Bodilly, artist and colonial judge. He married Phyllis Maureen Gotch, also an artist. His grandmother was also a Gotch. Cornwall artists index

Sources

Biles, John (1996). "Western Pacific Territories". In Olson, James Stuart; Shadle, Robert. Historical Dictionary of the British Empire, Volume 2. Greenwood Publishing Group. pp. 1156–7. ISBN 9780313293672.

Brereton, Bridget (1997). Law, Justice and Empire: The Colonial Career of John Gorrie 1829-1892. University of the West Indies Press. ISBN 9789766400354.

Care, Jennifer Corrin; Paterson, Donald Edgar (2007). Introduction to South Pacific Law (revised, 2nd ed.). Routledge. ISBN 9781845680398.

Daley, Kevin (1996), Communalism and the challenge of Fijian unity (PDF) (D. Phil. dissertation)

Lal, Brij V.; Fortune, Kate (2000). The Pacific Islands: An Encyclopedia. University of Hawaii Press. ISBN 9780824822651.

Lavaka, Penny (1981). "The Tonga Ma'a Tonga Kautaha: a watershed in British-Tongan relations". Pacific Studies. Institute for Polynesian Studies. 4 (2, Spring 1981).

Library Resources for Pacific History, University of Auckland Library
Duff, Peter (1997) The evolution of trial by judge and assessors in Fiji Care, Jennifer Corrin (ed.) Journal of Pacific Studies Volume 21: Sources of Law in the South Pacific.
Handley, K.R. (2001) The constitutional crisis in Fiji. The Australian Law Journal, Volume 75, November 2001, pp. 688–693.

Chief Justices of the Territories of the British Empire and the United Kingdom

Legend: Current territory; Former territory; * Now a Commonwealth realm; Now a member of the Commonwealth of Nations

Europe

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North America

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1. Occupied jointly with the United States.
2. In 1931, Canada and other British dominions obtained self-government through the Statute of Westminster. See Canada's name.
3. Gave up self-rule in 1934, but remained a de jure Dominion until it joined Canada in 1949.

South America

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4. Now the San Andrés y Providencia Department of Colombia. 5. Occupied by Argentina during the Falklands War of April–June 1982.

Africa

17th and 18th centuries	19th century		20th century

Since 1658 Saint Helena¹⁴ 1792–1961 Sierra Leone 1795–1803 Cape Colony	Since 1815 Ascension Island¹⁴ Since 1816 Tristan da Cunha¹⁴ 1806–1910 Cape Colony 1807–1808 Madeira 1810–1968 Mauritius 1816–1965 The Gambia 1856–1910 Natal 1868–1966 Basutoland (Lesotho) 1874–1957 Gold Coast (Ghana) 1882–1922 Egypt	1884–1966 Bechuanaland (Botswana) 1884–1960 British Somaliland 1887–1897 Zululand 1890–1962 Uganda 1890–1963 Zanzibar (Tanzania) 1891–1964 Nyasaland (Malawi) 1891–1907 British Central Africa Protectorate 1893–1968 Swaziland 1895–1920 East Africa Protectorate 1899–1956 Anglo-Egyptian Sudan	1900–1914 Northern Nigeria 1900–1914 Southern Nigeria 1900–1910 Orange River Colony 1900–1910 Transvaal Colony 1903–1976 Seychelles 1906–1954 Nigeria Colony 1910–1931 South Africa 1914–1954 Nigeria Colony and Protectorate 1915–1931 South West Africa (Namibia) 1919–1960 Cameroons (Cameroon)⁶ 1920–1963 Kenya 1922–1961 Tanganyika (Tanzania)⁶ 1923–1965 Southern Rhodesia (Zimbabwe)⁷ 1924–1964 Northern Rhodesia (Zambia) 1953–1963 Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland 1954–1960 Nigeria 1979–1980 Southern Rhodesia (Zimbabwe)⁷

6. League of Nations mandate.
7. Self-governing Southern Rhodesia unilaterally declared independence in 1965 (as Rhodesia) and continued as an unrecognised state until the 1979 Lancaster House Agreement. After recognised independence in 1980, Zimbabwe was a member of the Commonwealth until it withdrew in 2003.

Asia

17th and 18th century	19th century		20th century

1685–1824 Bencoolen (Sumatra) 1702–1705 Pulo Condore 1757-1862 Bengal (to 1862) 1862–1947 Bengal (from 1862) (West Bengal (India) and Bangladesh) 1762–1764 Manila and Cavite 1786–1946 Penang (Malaysia) 1795–1948 Ceylon (Sri Lanka) 1796–1965 Maldives	1812–1824 Banka (Sumatra) and Billiton (Sumatra) 1819–1826 British Malaya (West Malaysia and Singapore) 1826–1946 Straits Settlements (Malaysia and Singapore) 1839–1967 Colony of Aden 1839–1842 Afghanistan 1841–1997 Hong Kong 1841–1946 Kingdom of Sarawak (Malaysia) 1848–1946 Labuan (Malaysia) 1858–1947 British India (India, Pakistan and Bangladesh, Burma) • Bombay • Calcutta • Madras • North-Western Provinces/Allahabad) 1874–1963 British Borneo (East Malaysia and Brunei)	1879–1919 Afghanistan (protectorate) 1882–1963 British North Borneo (Malaysia) 1885–1946 Unfederated Malay States 1888–1984 Sultanate of Brunei 1891–1971 Muscat and Oman protectorate 1892–1971 Trucial States 1895–1946 Federated Malay States 1898–1930 Weihai Garrison	1907–1949 Bhutan (protectorate) 1918–1961 Kuwait protectorate 1920–1932 Iraq⁸ 1921–1946 Transjordan⁸ 1923–1948 Palestine⁸ 1945–1946 South Vietnam 1946–1963 North Borneo (Malaysia) 1946–1963 Sarawak (Malaysia) 1946–1963 Singapore 1946–1948 Malayan Union 1948–1957 Federation of Malaya (Malaysia) Since 1960 Akrotiri and Dhekelia (before as part of Cyprus) Since 1965 British Indian Ocean Territory (before as part of Mauritius and the Seychelles)

⁸ League of Nations mandate. Iraq's mandate was not enacted and replaced by the Anglo-Iraqi Treaty

Oceania

18th and 19th centuries		20th century

1788–1901 New South Wales 1803–1901 Tasmania 1807–1863 Auckland Islands⁹ 1824–1980 New Hebrides (Vanuatu) 1824–1901 Queensland 1829–1901 Western Australia 1836–1901 South Australia since 1838 Pitcairn Islands	1841–1907 Colony of New Zealand 1851–1901 Victoria 1874–1970 Fiji¹⁰ 1877–1976 British Western Pacific Territories 1884–1949 Territory of Papua 1888–1901 Cook Islands⁹ 1889–1948 Union Islands (Tokelau)⁹ 1892–1979 Gilbert and Ellice Islands¹¹ 1893–1978 British Solomon Islands¹²	1900–1970 Tonga (protected state) 1900–1974 Niue⁹ 1901–1942 Commonwealth of AustraliaNorthern Territory 1907–1953 *Dominion of New Zealand 1919–1942 Nauru 1945–1968 Nauru 1919–1949 Territory of New Guinea 1949–1975 Territory of Papua and New Guinea¹³

9. Now part of the *Realm of New Zealand.
10. Suspended member.
11. Now Kiribati and *Tuvalu.
12. Now the *Solomon Islands.
13. Now *Papua New Guinea.

Antarctica and South Atlantic

Since 1658 Saint Helena¹⁴ Since 1815 Ascension Island¹⁴ Since 1816 Tristan da Cunha¹⁴ Since 1908 British Antarctic Territory¹⁵ 1841–1933 Australian Antarctic Territory (transferred to the Commonwealth of Australia) 1841–1947 Ross Dependency (transferred to the Realm of New Zealand)

14. Since 2009 part of Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha; Ascension Island (1922–) and Tristan da Cunha (1938–) were previously dependencies of Saint Helena. 15. Both claimed in 1908; territories formed in 1962 (British Antarctic Territory) and 1985 (South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands).

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Chief Judicial Commissioner for the Western Pacific

List of Chief Judicial Commissioners

References

Further reading