Lord Goodhart was educated at Eton, Trinity College Cambridge (MA Law 1956) and Harvard University (Harkness Fellowship) and did National Service 1951-1953. He has practised as a barrister since 1959 and was appointed Queen's Counsel in 1979.
Lord Goodhart is an active member of the Liberal Democrat Party and drafted its Constitution, as he had done seven years previously for the SDP as a founder member. He was the Parliamentary candidate for Kensington 1983 and 1987 and for the byelection 1988 and also 1992 for Oxford West and Abingdon.

In 1989 Lord Goodhart was knighted and in 1997 made a Life Peer. He acted as the Lord's Liberal Democrat shadow Lord Chancellor until December 2006, when he was appointed Chair of the Delegated Powers Committee. He also sits on the Committee on Standards in Public Life and two Select Committees.

Lord Goodhart has been a member of JUSTICE's Council since 1972.


Jennifer McDermott is chair of the Executive Board. She is a partner at Withers and works in their media and judicial review teams. She has particular experience of the implications of the Human Rights Act 1998, having taken several cases to the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg. Recently she has been challenging Sark's feudal system, including the process by which the Privy Council approves constitutional matters for Crown Dependencies. Jennifer also advises claimants and the media on defamation, privacy and related matters.


Roger Smith is a solicitor and has been director of JUSTICE since November 2001. He has been director of legal education and training at the Law Society; director of the Legal Action Group; solicitor to the Child Poverty Action Group and director of West Hampstead Community Law Centre. He is an honorary professor at the University of Kent and a visiting professor at London South Bank University.

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