Sir William Gorman (15 October 1891 - 21 December 1964) was an English barrister and judge and Liberal Party politician.
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Gorman was born in Wigan in Lancashire, [1] the son of William Gorman, a shopkeeper in Wigan, and Catherine Jump. He was the grandson of Henry Gorman, also a Wigan shopkeeper, who was born in Tipperary, Ireland in 1825. He was educated at Wigan Grammar School. He never married. [2]
Gorman went in for the law and was called to the Bar at the Middle Temple in 1921. [2] He took silk in 1932.[3] He practised on the Northern Circuit and was elected a Bencher of the Middle Temple in 1938, [4] acting as its Treasurer in 1959. He was made a judge in 1934, serving as Recorder of Wigan from 1934-1948 and was Recorder of Liverpool from 1948-1950. [2] In 1950 he was appointed a Judge of the High Court of Justice, King’s Bench Division. [5] As Mr Justice Gorman, he was the judge who presided over the infamous A6 Murder trial, [6] the longest murder trial in modern times, [7] at which James Hanratty was convicted. Hanratty was later hanged for the murder.
During the Second World War, Gorman served in the Royal Artillery , 7th Division, in France, Belgium and Italy. He also served in the Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve from 1940-1944, leaving with the rank of Wing Commander. From 1942-1944 he held the position of Assistant Judge Advocate General. [2]
Gorman first tried to enter the House of Commons at the 1922 general election when he fought Royton as a Liberal. In a three-cornered contest he was 1,093 votes behind the sitting Conservative MP, Sir Wilfrid Sugden. The Labour candidate Mr J Battle came third with just under 20% of the poll, giving Gorman hope that in a straight fight he might win the seat at a future attempt. [8]
In 1923 Gorman again fought Royton and there was again a three-cornered contest. This time however the effects of Liberal reunion between the Lloyd George and Asquithian wings of the Liberal Party gave him a valuable boost and he overtook Sugden to capture the seat with a majority of 2,516 votes. Labour again came bottom of the poll, their candidate the Rev. J B Turner, losing his deposit. [9]
Labour refused to concede Gorman a straight fight against the Tories in 1924 either. Their candidate, Mr A E Wood, duly came bottom of the poll again but raised his party’s share of the vote to 19%. With the anti-Tory vote thus split again and the Conservatives resurgent in the country after the brief period of the first Labour government, their new candidate Arthur Davies, defeated Gorman by a majority 2,426. Gorman did not stand for Parliament again. [9]
Gorman retained his association with Liberal politics however and was elected President of the Oldham Reform Club in 1925. [10]
Gorman was knighted in 1950. He served as President of Caterham School in Surrey from 1953. He was made an Honorary Freeman of Wigan in 1954 [2] and received the Honorary degree of Doctor of Laws from the University of Manchester in 1957. [11]
In 1944, Gorman was appointed by the Ernest Bevin, the Minister of Labour and National Service to sit on the National Arbitration Tribunal, [12] a body established to resolve labour disputes under wartime restrictions on strikes and lockouts. [13] He also served on the Industrial and Staff Canteen Undertakings Wages Board, set to consider wage claims under the Catering Wages Act 1943. [14]
Gorman died in the West London Hospital on 21 December 1964 [15] aged 73 years. [16] A memorial service was held for him in the Temple Church on 11 February 1965 attended by senior members of the judiciary and the legal profession. [17]
| Parliament of the United Kingdom | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Wilfrid Sugden |
Member of Parliament for Royton 1923 – 1924 |
Succeeded by Arthur Vernon Davies |