Patrick Hodge, Lord Hodge

Lord Hodge
Deputy President of the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom
Assumed office
27 January 2020
Nominated byRobert Buckland
Appointed byElizabeth II
PresidentThe Lord Reed of Allermuir
Preceded byLord Reed
Justice of the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom
In office
1 October 2013 – 26 January 2020
Nominated byChris Grayling
Preceded byThe Lord Hope of Craighead
Non-Permanent Judge of the Court of Final Appeal of Hong Kong
In office
1 January 2021 – 30 March 2022
Appointed byCarrie Lam
Preceded byJames Spigelman
Senator of the College of Justice
In office
2005–2013
Nominated byJack McConnell
MonarchElizabeth II
Lord High Commissioner to the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland
In office
28 February 2022 – 10 March 2024
Preceded byThe Earl of Strathearn
Succeeded byThe Duke of Edinburgh
Personal details
Born
Patrick Stewart Hodge

(1953-05-19) 19 May 1953 (age 71)
Scotland
EducationGlenalmond College
Alma materCorpus Christi College, Cambridge
University of Edinburgh
Chinese name
Chinese
Transcriptions
Yue: Cantonese
Yale RomanizationHoh Jī Yih
JyutpingHo6 Zi1 Ji6

Patrick Stewart Hodge, Lord Hodge, PC (born 19 May 1953)[1] is a British lawyer, currently serving as Deputy President of the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom.

Early life

Hodge was educated at Croftinloan School, a private junior boarding school in Perthshire, and Trinity College, Glenalmond, also in Perthshire. He studied at Corpus Christi College, Cambridge (BA), and the University of Edinburgh School of Law (LLB), and worked as a civil servant at the Scottish Office between 1975 and 1978,[2] before being admitted to the Faculty of Advocates in 1983.[3]

Hodge was appointed Standing Junior Counsel to the Department of Energy from 1989 to 1991, and to the Inland Revenue from 1991 to 1996, in which year he became Queen's Counsel. As a QC, his practice was mainly in commercial law, judicial review and property law.[2] He served as a part-time Commissioner on the Scottish Law Commission from 1997 to 2003, and from 2000 to 2005 was a Judge of the Courts of Appeal of Jersey and Guernsey, and Procurator to the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland.

He was appointed a Senator of the College of Justice in 2005, taking the judicial courtesy title Lord Hodge.[2][3] Like all Scottish judges on the Supreme Court, he has sat in both the Court of Session and High Court of Justiciary, but had particular responsibility as the Exchequer judge in the Court of Session.[3] On 1 October 2013, Hodge succeeded The Lord Hope of Craighead as a Justice of the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom.[4] On 27 January 2020, Hodge was appointed Deputy President of the Supreme Court, succeeding Lord Reed who became president.[5] On 17 December 2024 his retirement from the Supreme Court, effective 31 December 2025, was announced.

Hodge was nominated to Hong Kong's Court of Final Appeal on 5 October 2020, where overseas judges are allowed to serve part-time in addition to appointments in their home jurisdictions.[6] He assumed office on 1 January 2021 to fill the vacancy left by Australian judge James Spigelman who had quit because of the concern over the controversial national security law enacted by China.[7][8] In a joint letter, a group of 32 lawmakers from both houses of the UK parliament raised concerns about Hodge's appointment.[9]

On 30 March 2022, he tendered his resignation as a Hong Kong judge, citing concerns about the national security law.[10]

The Queen appointed Hodge to represent her as Lord High Commissioner to the Church of Scotland's 2022 General Assembly.[11] King Charles III approved his reappointment in 2023.[12] He was succeeded in this role by The Duke of Edinburgh on 10 March 2024.[13]

Personal life

Hodge married Penelope Jane Wigin in 1983, with whom he has two sons and a daughter.[citation needed] His interests include opera and skiing, and he is a member of Bruntsfield Links Golfing Society.[citation needed] He has been a Governor of Merchiston Castle School, Edinburgh, since 1998.[citation needed]

See also

References

  1. ^ "Birthday's today". The Telegraph. 19 May 2011. Archived from the original on 11 June 2014. Retrieved 16 May 2014. Lord Hodge, a Senator of the College of Justice in Scotland, 58
  2. ^ a b c "Appointment of new judges". Scottish Executive. 2 February 2005. Archived from the original on 2 February 2014. Retrieved 18 August 2009.
  3. ^ a b c "Biographies – The Hon Lord Hodge". Scottish Court Service. Archived from the original on 13 June 2011. Retrieved 18 August 2009.
  4. ^ "Trio of judicial appointments to the Supreme Court" (News release). The Supreme Court of the United Kingdom. 26 February 2013. Archived from the original on 4 September 2018. Retrieved 26 August 2013. Lord Hodge will succeed Lord Hope, one of the two Scottish Justices, who retires on 27 June 2013. Lord Hodge will not take up his role until the beginning of the new legal year, in October 2013.
  5. ^ Court, The Supreme. "Lord Hodge named Deputy President of the Supreme Court - The Supreme Court". www.supremecourt.uk. Archived from the original on 7 April 2020. Retrieved 23 June 2021.
  6. ^ Lau, Jack; Cheung, Tony (5 October 2020). "Top Scottish judge appointed to Hong Kong's Court of Final Appeal in move seen as bid to assure public on judicial independence". South China Morning Post. Retrieved 5 October 2020.
  7. ^ "Appointment of non-permanent judge from another common law jurisdiction of the Court of Final Appeal". www.info.gov.hk. Archived from the original on 4 March 2021. Retrieved 4 March 2021.
  8. ^ "Former ABC chairman resigns as judge of Hong Kong court over new national security law". www.abc.net.au. 18 September 2020. Archived from the original on 6 May 2021. Retrieved 4 March 2021.
  9. ^ "UK lawmakers condemn judge's appointment to top HK court as British "complicity in abuses" | Apple Daily". Apple Daily. Archived from the original on 10 November 2020. Retrieved 4 March 2021.
  10. ^ "Role of UK Supreme Court judges on the Hong Kong Court of Final Appeal - update". 30 March 2022. Archived from the original on 30 March 2022.
  11. ^ "Appointment of the Lord High Commissioner to the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland 2022". gov.uk. 28 February 2022. Retrieved 2 May 2022.
  12. ^ "Appointment of the Lord High Commissioner to the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland 2023". gov.uk. 9 March 2023. Retrieved 4 May 2023.
  13. ^ "Appointment of the Lord High Commissioner to the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland 2024". GOV.UK. Retrieved 26 October 2024.
Legal offices
Preceded by Deputy President of the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom
2020–present
Incumbent
Preceded by Justice of the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom
2013–2020
Succeeded by
Preceded by
Senator of the College of Justice
2005–2013
Succeeded by
Preceded by Non-Permanent Judge of the Court of Final Appeal of Hong Kong
2021–2022
Succeeded by
Not Applicable