Richard Johnson (judge)

{{Short description|Irish judge (1937–2019)}}

{{Use dmy dates|date=September 2020}}

{{Infobox officeholder

| image =

| office = President of the High Court

| term_start = 22 November 2006

| term_end = 7 October 2009

| nominator = Government of Ireland

| appointer = Mary McAleese

| predecessor = Joseph Finnegan

| successor = Nicholas Kearns

| office1 = Judge of the High Court

| term_start1 = 1 May 1987

| term_end1 = 7 October 2009

| nominator1 = Government of Ireland

| appointer1 = Patrick Hillery

| birth_date = {{birth date|1937|10|27|df=y}}

| birth_place = Blennerville, County Kerry, Ireland

| death_date = {{death date and age|2019|8|4|1937|10|27|df=y}}

| death_place = Merrion Road, Dublin, Ireland

| nationality = Irish

| spouse = {{marriage|Nuala Johnson|1969}}

| children = 4

| alma_mater = {{Ubl|University College Dublin|King's Inns}}

|}}

Richard Johnson (27 October 1937 – 4 August 2019) was an Irish judge who served as President of the High Court from 2006 to 2009 and a Judge of the High Court from 1987 to 2009.{{cite news |url=http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/ireland/2006/1122/1163947858447.html |title=Cabinet approves judicial appointments |author=Stephen Collins |date=22 November 2006 |newspaper=The Irish Times |accessdate=20 March 2008 |archive-date=21 October 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121021213018/http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/ireland/2006/1122/1163947858447.html |url-status=live }}

Johnson was also under the terms of the Constitution of Ireland by that office an ex-officio member of the Supreme Court. In the absence of the Chief Justice, he acted as a member of the Presidential Commission.

Johnson was born in Blennerville, County Kerry, and studied law at University College Dublin (UCD). He qualified as a barrister at the King's Inns in 1960. He practised on the South Western Circuit (Kerry, Limerick and Clare) until he became Senior Counsel in 1977. As a Senior Counsel, he practised on the Munster Circuit and in Dublin until 1987. He was appointed a High Court judge in 1987. His father was a district court judge for several years and his son and daughter are barristers. The Government of Ireland nominated Justice Nicholas Kearns on 7 October 2009 to replace him as President of the High Court.

After his retirement as president and a judge, he gave an interview to the media in which he suggested the legislature should revisit the issue of whether the death penalty should be allowed as punishment for particularly serious crimes, such as murder committed in the course of armed robbery.{{cite web |url=http://www.herald.ie/national-news/judge-consider-death-penalty-for-some-killers-1944794.html |title=Judge - consider death penalty for some killers - News, Frontpage - Herald.ie |website=www.herald.ie |access-date=22 May 2022 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20120801083417/http://www.herald.ie/national-news/judge-consider-death-penalty-for-some-killers-1944794.html |archive-date=1 August 2012 |url-status=dead}} Mayor of Limerick Kevin Kiely supported the proposal as a response to the continuing increase in murders in Ireland.{{Cite web |url=http://www.irishcentral.com/news/Limerick-mayor-wants-death-penalty-for-Ireland-95719909.html |title=Limerick mayor wants death penalty for Ireland | Irish News and Politics spanning the US, Ireland and the World | IrishCentral |access-date=16 June 2011 |archive-date=28 June 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120628001124/http://www.irishcentral.com/news/Limerick-mayor-wants-death-penalty-for-Ireland-95719909.html |url-status=live }}

Johnson died in Merrion Road, Dublin on 4 August 2019, at the age of 81.{{cite news |title=Richard Johnson obituary: Serious and thoughtful judge |url=https://www.irishtimes.com/opinion/richard-johnson-obituary-serious-and-thoughtful-judge-1.3994588 |access-date=7 February 2024 |publisher=The Irish Times |date=24 August 2019}}