Lord Bingham
13 September 2010
Statement from Lord Hope, Deputy President of the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom on behalf of the Justices of the Supreme Court.
“The debt we owe to Tom Bingham, the greatest jurist of our time, is immense and incalculable.
“It is to him, perhaps more than anyone else, that the Supreme Court itself owes its existence – something that he had long believed in and happily was realised during his lifetime.
“But his real legacy lies in the depth and quality of the many judgments that he delivered, especially during his eight years as the Senior Law Lord. His energy, his unshakeable grasp of principle, the clarity and force of his language and his strong sense of history shone through everything that he said and wrote. It is a tragedy that someone who still had so much to give should have died so early after his retirement when, at last, he had the time and freedom to do what he wanted.
Our deepest sympathy goes out to his wife and family at this very sad loss.”