Sir Denys Roberts | |
|---|---|
 | |
| 20th Chief Justice of Hong Kong | |
| In office 1979–1988 | |
| Preceded by | Geoffrey Briggs |
| Succeeded by | Ti-liang Yang |
| 25th Chief Secretary of Hong Kong (Colonial Secretary 1973–76) | |
| In office 30 September 1973 – 2 October 1978 | |
| Governor | Murray MacLehose |
| Preceded by | Hugh Norman-Walker |
| Succeeded by | Jack Cater |
| 18th Attorney General of Hong Kong | |
| In office 3 September 1966 – 29 September 1973 | |
| Preceded by | Maurice Heenan |
| Succeeded by | John William Dixon Hobley |
| 2nd Chief Justice of Brunei | |
| In office 1979–2001 | |
| Nominated by | Hassanal Bolkiah |
| Preceded by | Geoffrey Briggs |
| Succeeded by | Mohammed Saied |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 19 January 1923 London, United Kingdom |
| Died | 20 May 2013 (aged 90) Norfolk, United Kingdom |
| Spouses | Brenda Marsh
(m. 1949; div. 1973)Anna Fiona Dollar Alexander
(m. 1985) |
| Children | 3 |
| Alma mater | Wadham College, Oxford (MA; BCL) |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance |  United Kingdom |
| Branch/service |  British Army |
| Years of service | 1943–1946 |
| Rank | Captain |
| Unit | Royal Artillery |
| Battles/wars | World War II |
Sir Denys Tudor Emil Roberts KBE SPMB QC (Traditional Chinese: 羅弼時爵士; 19 January 1923 – 20 May 2013) was a British colonial official and judge. Joining the colonial civil service as a Crown Counsel in Nyasaland (now Malawi) in 1953, he became Attorney General of Gibraltar in 1960. In 1962, he was posted to Hong Kong as Solicitor-General, and was successively promoted to Attorney-General in 1966, Colonial Secretary/Chief Secretary in 1973 and Chief Justice in 1979. He was the first and only Attorney-General to become both Colonial Secretary (and Chief Secretary) in Hong Kong. Never having been a judge before, he was appointed as Chief Justice of the Supreme Court in 1979 and was the first and only Colonial Secretary (and Chief Secretary) of Hong Kong to receive such appointment.[2][3]
Roberts was the last non-Chinese person to hold the post of Chief Justice of Hong Kong. After retiring in 1988, he had served as President of the Court of Appeal of Bermuda, Chief Justice and President of Court of Appeal of Brunei Darussalam before finally retiring from the judicial service in 2003.
- ^ Supreme Court of Brunei Darussalam (c. 2000). "Rules to The Supreme Court (Amendment) (No. 3) Rules, 2000" (PDF). Retrieved 11 March 2022.
- ^ Who was who, London: Adam & Charles Black, 1996.
- ^ "Obituary: Sir Denys Roberts". The Daily Telegraph. 2 June 2013. Retrieved 3 June 2013.