Sir Anthony Hart Memorial Lecture

The inaugural Sir Anthony Hart Memorial Lecture “1798: A tale of two barristers” took place last week. The lecture which was organised by the Sir Anthony Hart Memorial Committee, was delivered by The Right Honourable Lord Stephens (who was a pupil of Sir Anthony) and also featured a contribution from The Honourable Bernard Barton.

Sir Anthony was called to the Northern Ireland Bar in 1969. He became a Queen’s Counsel in 1983. In 1985 he was appointed a County Court Judge and Recorder of Londonderry in that year. In 1997 he became Recorder of Belfast, and in 2002, the first presiding judge of the county courts. Following his retirement he chaired the Inquiry into Historical Institutional Abuse.

Among his many interests, was the history of the law. A former president of the Irish Legal History Society, he was awarded the Society’s Gold Medal in 2012. His interest culminated in his 2013 work, “A History of the Bar and Inn of Court of Northern Ireland”.

Due to public health restrictions the event was live streamed.