Elizabeth Gloster

{{Short description|Former judge of the Court of Appeal of England and Wales (born 1949)}}

{{Infobox officeholder

| honorific-prefix = The Right Honourable Dame

| name = Elizabeth Gloster

| honorific-suffix = DBE

| image = Royal coat of arms of the United Kingdom (St. Edward's Crown).svg

| imagesize = 150px

| caption = Royal coat of arms of the United Kingdom

| office = Lady Justice of Appeal

| term_start = 9 April 2013

| term_end = 1 June 2018

| monarch = Elizabeth II

| predecessor =

| successor =

| office2 = High Court Judge

| term_start2 = 21 April 2004

| term_end2 = 9 April 2013

| predecessor2 =

| successor2 =

| birth_date = {{Birth date and age|df=yes|1949|06|05}}

| birth_place =

| death_date =

| death_place =

| restingplace =

| nationality = British

| spouse = {{ubl|{{marriage|Stanley Brodie QC||2004|end=div}}|{{marriage|Sir Oliver Popplewell|2008|2024|end=died}}}}

| residence =

| alma_mater = Girton College, Cambridge

| occupation = Judge

| profession = Barrister

}}

Dame Elizabeth Gloster, Lady Popplewell, DBE, PC (born 5 June 1949{{cite web |url=http://www.judiciary.gov.uk/about-the-judiciary/judges-magistrates-and-tribunal-judges/list-of-members-of-the-judiciary/senior-judiciary-list |title=Senior judiciary |date=3 October 2011 |publisher=The Judicial Office |accessdate=26 October 2011 |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://archive.today/20120803031806/http://www.judiciary.gov.uk/about-the-judiciary/judges-magistrates-and-tribunal-judges/list-of-members-of-the-judiciary/senior-judiciary-list |archivedate=3 August 2012 }}) is a British lawyer who was a judge of the Court of Appeal of England and Wales and Vice-President of the Civil Division. She was the first female judge of the Commercial Court.{{cite news |last=Malkin |first=Brendan |title=Gloster QC is first female Commercial Court judge |url=http://www.thelawyer.com/gloster-qc-is-first-female-commercial-court-judge/109591.article |work=The Lawyer |date=13 April 2004 |accessdate=25 October 2011}}

Education

Gloster was educated at Roedean School and Girton College, Cambridge.{{cite web|title=Elizabeth Gloster QC |url=http://www.thecommonwealth.org/Internal/185183/185198/185199/185208/elizabeth_gloster_qc__uk___mrs_s__e__brodie/ |publisher=Commonwealth Secretariat |year=2011 |accessdate=25 October 2011 |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20120929235855/http://www.thecommonwealth.org/Internal/185183/185198/185199/185208/elizabeth_gloster_qc__uk___mrs_s__e__brodie/ |archivedate=29 September 2012 }}

Career

Gloster was called to the bar by the Inner Temple in 1971 (and made a bencher in 1992).{{cite web |title=Gloster, Dame Elizabeth – Hot 100 |url=http://www.thelawyer.com/gloster-dame-elizabeth-hot-100/113393.article |work=The Lawyer |date=7 January 2005 |accessdate=25 October 2011}} In 1989, she became a Queen's Counsel. She was appointed a judge of the Courts of Appeal of Jersey and Guernsey in 1993 and a Recorder in 1995.{{cite web|url=http://www.judiciary.gov.uk/media/media-releases/2010/news-release-appointment-new-judge-commercial-crt |title=Appointment of new judge in charge of the Commercial Court |date=6 July 2010 |publisher=The Judicial Office |accessdate=26 October 2011 |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20120528100344/http://www.judiciary.gov.uk/media/media-releases/2010/news-release-appointment-new-judge-commercial-crt |archivedate=28 May 2012 }}

On 21 April 2004, Gloster was appointed a High Court judge,{{London Gazette|issue=57274|page=5305|date=28 April 2004}} receiving the customary appointment as a Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire (DBE) and allocated to the Queen's Bench Division (Commercial Court).{{Cite web|url=https://www.judiciary.uk/announcements/court-of-appeal-retirement-of-lady-justice-gloster-dbe/|title=Court of Appeal: Retirement of Lady Justice Gloster DBE|website=www.judiciary.uk|language=en-GB|access-date=17 December 2018}} From 2010 to 2012, she was the judge in charge of the Commercial Court.

Gloster heard a case in 2012 involving two Russian oligarchs in which Boris Berezovsky claimed Roman Abramovich had intimidated him into selling shares in Russian oil giant Sibneft. and was claiming £3bn in damages.{{cite news |title=Roman Abramovich wins court battle against Berezovsky |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-19433325 |work=BBC News |date=31 August 2012}} She found Berezovsky to be "an inherently unreliable witness" and found in favour of Abramovich. An editorial in The Times agreed with the judge's conclusion.{{Cite news |date=1 September 2012 |title=Richly Deserved – Berezovsky's ill-advised case against Abramovich has failed dramatically |work=The Times |url=https://www.thetimes.com/best-law-firms/profile-legal/article/richly-deserved-zfdchtjchx2}} At the start of the trial she had disclosed in court that her stepson had represented Abramovich as a barrister at an early stage of the case.{{cite news |last1=Leppard |first1=David |title=Berezovsky cries foul over £3.5bn Abramovich trial judge |url=https://www.thetimes.com/uk/law/article/berezovsky-cries-foul-over-pound35bn-abramovich-trial-judge-wrgwrp9dbq7 |date=2 November 2023 |language=en}}{{cite book |title=IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUSTICE QUEEN'S BENCH DIVISION MEDIA AND COMMUNICATIONS LIST |url=https://www.judiciary.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/Abramovich-v-HarperCollins-judgment-241121.pdf}} Berezovsky's lawyers said their client had no objection to her continuing to hear the case. They later claimed that the barrister's involvement for which he had been paid £469,000 in fees had been understated but did not appeal against the judgment.{{Cite book |last=Belton |first=Catherine |title=Putin's People How the KGB Took Back Russia and Then Took on the West |publisher=HarperCollins |year=2021 |isbn=9780007578818 |location=London |pages=5, 506}} Asked outside the court if he felt Russia's President Vladimir Putin would be happy with the ruling, Berezovsky replied: "Sometimes I have the impression that Putin himself wrote this judgment."{{Cite news |title=Roman Abramovich wins court battle against Berezovsky |work=BBC News |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-19433325}} A Statement from the Judicial Office which represents judges said Dame Elizabeth's stepson had not appeared at any hearings where she had been present. The statement said: "Where a judge has disclosed a family relationship to the parties, it is a judicial decision whether a judge believes he or she should recuse him or herself. The way to challenge a decision not to recuse would be by appealing through the courts."{{cite news|last=Leppard|first=David|date=22 September 2012|title=Berezovsky cries foul over £3.5bn Abramovich trial judge|url=https://www.thetimes.com/uk/law/article/berezovsky-cries-foul-over-pound35bn-abramovich-trial-judge-wrgwrp9dbq7|work=The Times|access-date=23 April 2021|url-access=limited}}

On 9 April 2013, Dame Elizabeth was appointed a Lady Justice of Appeal{{London Gazette |issue=60472|page=7097|date=11 April 2013}} and consequently appointed to the Privy Council.{{cite web |title=Privy Council members |url=https://privycouncil.independent.gov.uk/privy-council/privy-council-members/ |website=Privy Council}}

She became Vice-President of the Civil Division of the Court of Appeal on 7 December 2016, on the retirement of Lord Justice Moore-Bick.{{Cite web |url=https://www.judiciary.gov.uk/announcements/appointed-of-the-new-vice-president-of-the-court-of-appeal-civil/ |title=Courts and Tribunals Judiciary | Appointment of the new Vice-President of the Court of Appeal (Civil) |access-date=16 November 2016 |archive-date=17 November 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161117063538/https://www.judiciary.gov.uk/announcements/appointed-of-the-new-vice-president-of-the-court-of-appeal-civil/ |url-status=dead }} She retired from the Court of Appeal on 1 June 2018.

She serves as a commercial court judge, applying English Common Law, on the ADGM (Abu Dhabi Global Market) Courts.{{Cite web |title=ADGM Judges |date=21 May 2024 |url=https://www.adgm.com/adgm-courts/judges}}{{Cite web |title=ADGM Courts | date=20 May 2024 |url=https://www.adgm.com/adgm-courts#:~:text=At%20the%20core%20of%20ADGM%20Courts%2C%20we%20proudly,ADGM%27s%20status%20as%20a%20leading%20global%20financial%20hub.}}

=Judgments=

Relfo Ltd v Varsani [2014] EWCA Civ 360 – English unjust enrichment law concerning to what extent enrichment of the defendant must be at the expense of the claimant; Gloster LJ concurring with Arden LJ

= Private life =

In 2005, Elizabeth Gloster was divorced from Stanley Brodie QC. On 15 March 2008, she married Sir Oliver Popplewell.{{cite news|last=Rozenberg|first=Joshua|authorlink=Joshua Rozenberg|title=Brief Encounters|work=The Telegraph|date=4 June 2008|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/2056786/Brief-Encounters.html|accessdate=25 October 2011}}