Murray Stuart-Smith


Sir Murray Stuart-Smith, KCMG is a former English barrister and High Court judge. His 1997 re-examination of Lord Taylor's report into the Hillsborough disaster is seen today as a "debacle".

Early life

He was educated at Radley College and at Corpus Christi College, Cambridge.
He was called to the bar by Gray's Inn in 1952 and was made a Bencher 1978. He was appointed Queen's Counsel in 1970, and as judge of the High Court of Justice in 1981. He was appointed to the Court of Appeal in 1987, and retired in 2000. He later served as President of the Court of Appeal of Gibraltar from 2007, and as Justice of the Court of Appeal of Bermuda from 2004.

Hillsborough Report

In retirement Sir Murray was appointed to re-examine Lord Taylor's report into the Hillsborough disaster, together with the wider question of whether the inquest process had been satisfactory. Sir Murray broadly concluded that there were no problems with the way that the inquiry had been handled. Lord Falconer later stated "I am absolutely sure that Sir Murray Stuart-Smith came completely to the wrong conclusion". Falconer added: "It made the families in the Hillsborough disaster feel after one establishment cover-up, here was another."
There was massive criticism of the Stuart-Smith inquiry, including outrage after the judge quipped during a meeting with families: “Have you got a few of your people or are they like the Liverpool fans, turn up at the last minute?”
Criminologist Professor Phil Scraton has remained highly critical of the Stuart-Smith scrutiny, describing it as a "debacle". Speaking in October 2012, Scraton said the findings of the Hillsborough Independent Panel – which disclosed that 41 of the 96 who died had the potential to survive had there been a more effective response to the emergency – showed "just how wrong he was."

Judgments

Notable judicial decisions of Stuart-Smith include:
Sir Murray is father to Jeremy Stuart-Smith, also a judge, and the landscape architect and garden designer Tom Stuart-Smith.

Footnotes