James Booth (judge)

His Honour James Booth (3 May 1914 – 31 August 2000), was a British Judge and a Liberal Party politician.

Background

Booth was a son of James and Agnes Booth.^[1] He was educated at Bolton School, Bolton, Lancashire and Manchester University, where he received a Bachelor of Law with Honours.^[2] In 1954 he married Joyce Doreen Mather. They had two sons.^[3]

Professional career

Booth qualified as a Barrister and in 1936 received a Call to the bar by Gray’s Inn, making him Britain's youngest barrister.^[4] In 1939 he became Town Clerk of Ossett, West Yorkshire, serving until 1941.^[5]

World War Two

In 1941 Booth joined the Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve as a Flight lieutenant.^[6] He served in Northern Ireland and Iceland.^[7]

Political career

Booth was Liberal candidate for the West Leeds division of West Yorkshire at the 1945 General Election. This was an unpromising seat that a Liberal had not fought since 1929. He finished third but managed to save his deposit;

General Election 1945: Leeds West[8]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Thomas William Stamford	26,593	59.0	+14.7
	Conservative	Samuel Vyvyan Adams	12,457	27.7	-26.6
	Liberal	Fl-Lt. James Booth	6,008	13.3	n/a
Majority			14,136	31.4	39.9
Turnout				76.1	+5.6
	Labour gain from Conservative		Swing	+20.0

Five years later he was Liberal candidate for the Darwen division of Lancashire at the 1950 General Election.^[9] In a difficult election for the Liberal Party he saw the Liberal vote fall from 1945, however unlike many of his colleagues elsewhere, he again managed to save his deposit;

General Election 1950:Darwen[10]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	William Robert Stanley Prescott	17,903	48.5	+7.1
	Labour	Ronald Haines	13,334	36.1	+1.8
	Liberal	James Booth	5,656	15.3	-8.9
Majority			4,569	12.4
Turnout				89.6	+6.9
	Conservative hold		Swing	+2.6

He did not stand for parliament again.^[11]

Professional career

Booth returned to law and practised in Manchester. In 1967 he became Recorder of Barrow-in-Furness. In 1969 he became a Circuit Judge (formerly a County Court Judge). In 1984 he retired at the age of 70.^[12]

References

1. ‘BOOTH, His Honour James’, Who Was Who, A & C Black, an imprint of Bloomsbury Publishing plc, 1920–2014; online edn, Oxford University Press, 2014 ; online edn, April 2014 accessed 7 November 2014
2. Who's Who of 475 Liberal Candidates fighting the 1950 General Election
3. ‘BOOTH, His Honour James’, Who Was Who, A & C Black, an imprint of Bloomsbury Publishing plc, 1920–2014; online edn, Oxford University Press, 2014 ; online edn, April 2014 accessed 7 November 2014
4. The Times House of Commons, 1950
5. ‘BOOTH, His Honour James’, Who Was Who, A & C Black, an imprint of Bloomsbury Publishing plc, 1920–2014; online edn, Oxford University Press, 2014 ; online edn, April 2014 accessed 7 November 2014
6. ‘BOOTH, His Honour James’, Who Was Who, A & C Black, an imprint of Bloomsbury Publishing plc, 1920–2014; online edn, Oxford University Press, 2014 ; online edn, April 2014 accessed 7 November 2014
7. Who's Who of 475 Liberal Candidates fighting the 1950 General Election
8. "Politics Resources". Election 1945. Politics Resources. 5 July 1945. Retrieved 2011-11-08.
9. Who's Who of 475 Liberal Candidates fighting the 1950 General Election
10. British parliamentary election results 1950-1973, Craig, F.W.S.
11. British parliamentary election results 1950-1973, Craig, F.W.S.
12. ‘BOOTH, His Honour James’, Who Was Who, A & C Black, an imprint of Bloomsbury Publishing plc, 1920–2014; online edn, Oxford University Press, 2014 ; online edn, April 2014 accessed 7 November 2014