Sir Thomas Alexander Crispin Leech (born 16 February 1964), styled Mr Justice Leech, is a British High Court judge.[1][2]

Mr Justice Leech
Justice of the High Court
Assumed office
1 November 2021
Personal details
Born (1964-02-16) 16 February 1964 (age 60)[3]
London
NationalityBritish
Alma materOxford University

Early life

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Leech was born in London and brought up in Lancaster, Lancashire and, later, Kirkby Lonsdale, Cumbria; he attended Lancaster Royal Grammar School. [4]

He went on to study Classics and Law at the University of Oxford, graduating in 1986.[5] He continued his studies and later completed a post graduate degree, Bachelor of Civil Law.[6]

His father was Geoffrey Neil Leech FBA (16 January 1936 – 19 August 2014), a specialist in English language and linguistics.

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In 1988 Leech was called to the Bar by Middle Temple and joined Maitland Chambers.[5]

Leech was appointed King's Counsel in 2010.[2]

In 2014, Leech became a partner in the Advocacy Team at Herbert Smith Freehills.[5][7]

Leech is one of the authors for a Law Textbook titled 'Flenley & Leech on Solicitors’ Negligence' and a co-editor of ' Spencer Bower: Reliance-based estoppel'.[8]

He was appointed as a High Court judge on 1 November 2021 and assigned to the Chancery division by the Lord Chief Justice.[2] He received his customary Knighthood in March 2022, at Windsor Castle.[1]

References

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  1. ^ a b "CENTRAL CHANCERY OF THE ORDERS OF KNIGHTHOOD | Honours and Awards | The Gazette". www.thegazette.co.uk. Retrieved 2022-11-08.
  2. ^ a b c "High Court Appointment: Leech QC". Judicial Careers. 2021-10-21. Retrieved 2022-09-18.
  3. ^ "LEECH, Mr Thomas Alexander Crispin QC - JustCite". www.justcite.com. Archived from the original on 2022-09-18. Retrieved 2022-09-18.
  4. ^ "High Court Judges 2021". Judicial Appointments Commission. 2021-09-16. Retrieved 2022-09-18.
  5. ^ a b c "PARTNER MOVES - Herbert Smith Freehills hires Tom Leech QC of Maitland Chambers to its advocacy unit | Legal Monitor". www.legal-monitor.com. Retrieved 2022-09-18.
  6. ^ "Deputy High Court Judges 2019". Judicial Appointments Commission. 2020-11-02. Retrieved 2022-09-18.
  7. ^ "'To be a good advocate you need courage above all'". Legal Cheek. 18 June 2015. Retrieved 2022-09-18.
  8. ^ "Tom Leech QC | Herbert Smith Freehills | Global law firm". 2021-10-20. Archived from the original on 2021-10-20. Retrieved 2022-09-18.