Anthony J. Hederman Explained

Office:Judge of the Supreme Court
Term Start:1 July 1981
Term End:14 January 1993
Nominator:Government of Ireland
Appointer:Patrick Hillery
Order1:18th
Office1:Attorney General of Ireland
Taoiseach1:Jack Lynch
Charles Haughey
Term Start1:6 July 1977
Term End1:29 June 1981
Predecessor1:John M. Kelly
Successor1:Peter Sutherland
Birth Date:11 August 1921
Birth Place:Naas, County Kildare, Ireland
Death Place:Blackrock, Dublin, Ireland
Nationality:Irish
Party:Fianna Fáil
Education:Castleknock College

Anthony James Hederman (11 August 1921 – 10 January 2014) was an Irish judge and barrister who served as a Judge of the Supreme Court from 1981 to 1993 and Attorney General of Ireland from 1977 to 1981.

Early life

He was born on 11 August 1921 in Naas, County Kildare, Ireland.[1] He was educated at Castleknock College, a private Roman Catholic boys' school in Dublin where he developed a useful network of contacts.[2] [3] His contemporaries at school included the future Taoiseach Liam Cosgrave.[3] He went on to obtain an honours degree in legal and political science from University College Dublin. He was a member of Fianna Fáil and for a time in the 1960s was joint Honorary Treasurer of the party (along with Neil Blaney).

Legal career

Hederman was called to the Bar in 1944.[4] He mainly undertook prosecutions and other State work.[1] He was Attorney General of Ireland from July 1977 to June 1981.[5] In 1981, he was appointed as a Judge of the Supreme Court of Ireland and served there until 1993. He was the sole dissenter in the X Case judgement. He was later appointed as the president of the Law Reform Commission.[6] He died in 2014. After his death the UCD Student Legal Service society named its annual moot court competition in honour of the late Mr Justice Hederman.[7]

Notes and References

  1. News: Mr Justice Anthony Hederman. 21 January 2014. The Times. 21 January 2014. 10 May 2015. https://web.archive.org/web/20150510040617/http://www.thetimes.co.uk/tto/opinion/obituaries/article3981981.ece. live.
  2. News: O'Regan. Michael. Legal life of the late Anthony Hederman was 'a vocation'. 21 January 2014. Irish Times. 15 January 2014. 22 September 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20210922225610/https://www.irishtimes.com/news/ireland/irish-news/legal-life-of-the-late-anthony-hederman-was-a-vocation-1.1656007. live.
  3. Web site: Anthony Hederman. Independent.ie. en. 2019-12-22. 2019-12-22. https://web.archive.org/web/20191222161932/https://www.independent.ie/irish-news/anthony-hederman-29950929.html. live.
  4. News: Hand. Lise. Judge Anthony Hederman hailed as 'quiet hero' at funeral Mass. 21 January 2014. Irish Independent. 15 January 2014. 1 February 2014. https://web.archive.org/web/20140201235829/http://www.independent.ie/irish-news/judge-anthony-hederman-hailed-as-quiet-hero-at-funeral-mass-29917341.html. live.
  5. Web site: Gallery of previous Attorneys General - 1954 to 1981 . Office of the Attorney General . 25 December 2011 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20120204083623/http://www.attorneygeneral.ie/ago/gallery3.html . 4 February 2012 .
  6. News: Hederman's term extended. The Irish Times. 10 October 1997. 21 December 2011. 22 September 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20210922225612/https://www.irishtimes.com/news/hederman-s-term-extended-1.118049. live.
  7. News: HEDERMAN, Justice Anthony: Death notice. The Irish Times. 12 January 2014.