Lord Toulson (Weymouth 1959-64)

Former Supreme Court justice Lord Toulson has died aged 70.
Lord Toulson died during a medical operation on Tuesday.

Lord Neuberger, President of the Supreme Court, said: ``It is with great

sadness that the Supreme Court learns of the death of Lord Toulson, who has been

serving on the Supreme Court's Supplementary Panel following his retirement as a

full time justice of the court in September 2016.

``Justices and staff alike are shocked by the news, and we offer our deepest

sympathy to Lady Toulson, his children and their families. They are all very

much in our thoughts at this tragic time.

``Through his judgments and during hearings, Lord Toulson demonstrated a

learned, deeply thoughtful and principled approach to resolving legal problems.

``These qualities ensure that his enormous contribution to the common law will

always be remembered as disproportionate to the relatively short time for which

he served upon the Supreme Court.

``And of course, he made great contributions to the law and to the

administration of justice as a judge in the High Court and Court of Appeal, as

well as a practising barrister before that.

``He will never know the full extent of the impact that his considerate,

thoughtful and encouraging nature had on the court, the wider profession and the

society we serve, but it is a legacy that we will all treasure long into the

future.

``He was a truly valued colleague, a man of honour, modesty and integrity who

will be deeply missed by all with whom he worked.''

Roger Grenfell Toulson was called to the Bar in 1969, became a QC in 1986 and

served as a recorder from 1987 to 1996.

In 1996, he was appointed to the High Court and was presiding judge on the

Western Circuit from 1997 to 2002.

Between 2002 and 2006, Lord Toulson was chairman of the Law Commission of

England and Wales, after which he was appointed to the Court of Appeal in 2007.

He was appointed justice of the Supreme Court in April 2013 and retired in

September 2016.

By Jan Colley, Press Association