Richard Hermer
 Lord Hermer    (barrister) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Born | September 1968 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Alma mater | University of Manchester | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Party | Labour | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Consented to Palestine Action co-founder Richard Barnard being charged under Terrorism legislation
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Richard Simon Hermer, Baron Hermer, is a British barrister and life peer who Keir Starmer appointed Attorney General for England and Wales and Advocate General for Northern Ireland on 5 July 2024.
On 18 September 2024, Palestine Action co-founder Richard Barnard appeared at Westminster Magistrates' Court charged with expressing an opinion or belief that was supportive of a proscribed organisation, namely Hamas, or being reckless as to whether it encouraged support of that organisation, contrary to Section 12(1A) of the Terrorism Act 2000. PA co-founder Huda Ammori said:
- It was revealed in court the new Attorney General Richard Hermer had decided to proceed with the terrorism charge, despite his supposed pro-Palestinian signalling, and it reveals the new government is more determined to crack down on citizens who believe they are acting in line with international law, than to confront Israel and Elbit Systems, a company complicit and profiting directly from the war on Gaza.[1]
"Political" positions
Upon Lord Hermer's appointment, Guido Fawkes wrote:
- Starmer has snubbed Emily Thornberry by appointing human rights lawyer Richard Hermer KC, of Matrix Chambers, as his Attorney General.
- Hermer has co-authored a chapter in a book called “Corporate Complicity in Israel’s Occupation: Evidence from the London Session of the Russell Tribunal on Palestine” co-edited by Asa Winstanley and Frank Barat. The book says it has the intention of “examining the involvement of corporations in the illegal occupation of Palestinian land by Israel”…
- Hermer himself has pushed for the ICJ to consider whether Israel is an “apartheid state” and has spoken at events for Lawyers for Palestinian Human Rights, which is itself allegedly running a BDS campaign against construction firm JCB.
- This year he has spent his time representing Gerry Adams. This is now the government’s top chief legal adviser.[2]
Background
Born and raised in Wales, Richard Hermer attended Cardiff High School. He went on to study politics and modern history at the University of Manchester and later pursued a legal career; being called to the bar in 1993. He joined Doughty Street Chambers in the same year and took silk in 2009, before leaving in 2012 to join Matrix Chambers. He later became the head of chambers at Matrix, and was appointed a deputy High Court judge in 2019. In his legal career spanning over three decades between 1993 and 2024, Hermer has been involved in a number of landmark cases. He has worked on numerous Supreme Court cases, including Lungowe v Vedanta Resources plc, and also intervened for Liberty in Begum v Home Secretary where he argued that Shamima Begum should have been allowed to return to the United Kingdom. He has also been involved in multiple cases related to the war on terror, including representing victims in the Afghan unlawful killings inquiry. In 2022, he was appointed to the Task Force on Accountability for Crimes Committed in Ukraine, and in 2023 he acted as an advisor to the Labour Party regarding the Economic Activity of Public Bodies (Overseas Matters) Bill.
Martyn Day, the founder of human rights law firm Leigh Day, who has known Hermer for 26 years, says:
- “It is the most impressive appointment within the legal world that I’ve seen. He really is a man of integrity.
- I think we as a nation can thank Keir Starmer for such an innovative decision to bring somebody totally outside politics into what is quite a critical post.”[3]
Government minister
A friend and former colleague of Keir Starmer at Doughty Street Chambers, Hermer was a donor to Starmer's campaign in the 2020 Labour Party leadership contest. After Starmer became Prime Minister following the UK/General election/2024, he appointed Hermer to the government as Attorney General for England and Wales and Advocate General for Northern Ireland. Hermer was concurrently nominated for a life peerage and was appointed to the Privy Council.
References
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