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Daily Telegraph

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I am quoted by the Daily Telegraph in a story about cricket and neighbours here.  

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Interview by Radio New Zealand 

 

I have been interviewed by Radio NZ on the Chris Cairns match-fixing scandal here. Subsequently, in October 2015, Cairns stood trial on perjury charges, the allegation being that he lied about never having been involved in match-fixing.  He was acquitted. Details are in the second edition of Court and Bowled.

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New Zealand Herald 

 

I have been quoted in this article in the New Zealand Herald.

 

Wanganui Chronicle

 

I have been quoted by the Wanganui Chronicle here. 

 

New Law Journal

 

I was quoted by the NLJ on 25 January 2013 (vol 163) NLJ 52 (2) here (££). 

 

 

Youtube

 

I was one of the organisers of the seminar on Combating Corruption in a Global Business Environment, jointly presented by Halsbury's Law Exchange and the international law firm Eversheds. The video is below.  My own contributions are at approximately 2mins and 20mins.

 

In 1979, The Advocates Society welcomed Lord Tom Denning to Toronto. He was on a tour publicizing his latest book. I was gifted The Discipline of Law as a call to the bar gift shortly after.

 

Forty-five years on—and a quarter century after the world-famous jurist’s death at 100—James Wilson’s new biography is an excellent and thorough review of the still relevant, and always controversial jurist. Wilson himself practices law in New Zealand and the U.K., and is an accomplished writer on legal topics, including exploring legal cases around the game of cricket. The result is not only a highly readable biography but an excellent reference source on the innumerable areas of the law that Denning contributed to developing.

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The book’s 23 chapters extensively cover Denning’s life and upbringing and every stage of his legal career. These are preceded by the book’s opening, which includes quotes about him and by him (never overly modest!) Among the mostly glowing accolades is a comment from Reuben Hassan, Professor Emeritus at Osgoode Hall Law School, who opines that Lord Denning “fell considerably short of the stature of a great judge (or jurist).” The late-Lord Brooke declares him as “rather a discredited figure.”

 

Through an examination of the man’s life and times, Wilson gives us insight into what drove both Denning’s innovation as well as his often moralistic, judgmental rigidness. His strengths and weakness in many ways reflected the changing society of England during his long life. The book is also meticulously footnoted with a select bibliography of over ten pages including reports or works authored by Denning.

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The last chapter, appropriately titled “A Final Judgement,” includes a critical analysis of Denning’s well known, catchy, succinct openings that he is so remembered for: “It all started in a public house,” or “ A man’s head got caught in a propeller.” While memorable, among other criticisms, the author suggests that putting the merits of the case up front with the facts was Denning’s way of getting the reader to agree with his decision.

 

In summary, Wilson has delivered a well-organized, readable, and interesting biography / legal-social history that should give a judicial reader both insight and knowledge of perhaps the most influential jurist of the modern era.

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