Obituary: Sir Richard Gaskell (B3 1950-54)

Richard Gaskell rose from being an articled clerk to one of Britain’s most respected solicitors who was at the heart of the biggest shake-up of the legal profession in the 20th century.

As president of the Law Society, Gaskell was credited with persuading the government to break the monopoly that the Bar held on advocacy and litigation in the higher courts by granting solicitors rights of audience in the Crown Court, High Court, Court of Appeal, Court of Session, Privy Council, and House of Lords. As a result, the 1990 Courts and Legal Services Act became known as the “Big Bang” of the legal profession.

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