Cecil Havers

Who was Cecil Havers?

Sir Cecil Robert Havers, KC was an English barrister and judge.

Cecil Havers led a legal dynasty and rose to become a High Court judge. His son Michael Havers became Lord Chancellor, his daughter Elizabeth Butler-Sloss became President of the Family Division of the High Court and his grandson Philip Havers is a Queen's Counsel. Another grandson Nigel Havers is a successful actor.

Cecil Havers was the trial judge who presided over the conviction of Ruth Ellis for murder in 1955. Ellis was the last woman sentenced to capital punishment in the United Kingdom. In a 2010 television interview his grandson, the actor Nigel Havers, revealed that his grandfather had written to the Home Secretary recommending a reprieve as he regarded it as a crime passionnel, but received a curt refusal. He subsequently sent money annually for the upkeep of Ellis's son.