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Senior British civil servant
The Clerk of the Crown in Chancery in Great Britain is a senior civil servant who is the head of the Crown Office.
The Crown Office, a section of the Ministry of Justice, has custody of the Great Seal of the Realm, and has certain administrative functions in connection with the courts and the judicial process, as well as functions relating to the electoral process for House of Commons elections, to the keeping of the Roll of the Peerage, and to the preparation of royal documents such as warrants required to pass under the royal sign-manual, fiats, letters patent, etc.
Antonia Romeo (right) taking oath as Clerk of the Crown in Chancery.The position evolved from the mediaeval office of the Chancery. The first individual known to be designated as Clerk of the Crown in Chancery was Benedict Normanton in 1331. After 1384, it became common for two persons to hold the clerkship in two separate offices, and in some cases two persons held one of the offices in survivorship.[1]
From 1885 onwards, the office of Clerk of the Crown in Chancery has always been held by the Permanent Secretary to the Lord Chancellor's Department (now the Ministry of Justice). The Clerk of the Crown is formally appointed by the monarch under the royal sign-manual;[2] they must take an oath before assuming the office, which is now administered by the Lord Chancellor.
Since 1885, the office of Clerk of the Crown in Chancery has been combined with that of Permanent Secretary to the Lord Chancellor's Department (now the Ministry of Justice). The Clerk of the Crown in Chancery is appointed by the Monarch under the royal sign-manual.[2]
All formal royal documents (such as warrants to be signed by the monarch; letters patent, both those that are signed by the King himself and those that are approved by warrant; and royal charters) are prepared by the Crown Office.[citation needed]
The Crown Office is also responsible for sealing with the Great Seal of the Realm all documents that need to pass under that seal, once the authority for the use of the seal is signified by the Sovereign (authorisation to use the Seal is granted either by the monarch signing a warrant that approves the draft text of letters patent, directs that they be prepared and authorises them to be sealed and issued; or by the Sovereign directly signing the letters patent that are to pass under the great seal, as is necessary in some cases, such as with letters patent that grant Royal Assent to bills passed by Parliament and with instruments of consent relating to royal marriages).[citation needed]
The Clerk of the Crown in Chancery discharges his or her functions regarding the use of the Great Seal and the preparation of royal warrants, letters patent, etc., under the direction of the Lord Chancellor, who is the keeper of the Great Seal of the Realm.[citation needed]
The Crown Office is also responsible for maintaining and updating the Roll of the Peerage. The Secretary of State for Justice is the keeper of the Peerage Roll, and his duties in that regard are daily discharged by a Registrar of the Peerage and a Deputy Registrar, who work within the Crown Office and are therefore under the supervision of the Clerk of the Crown in Chancery. The duties of the Ministry of Justice regarding the keeping and maintenance of the Roll of the Peerage are discharged in collaboration with the Garter King of Arms and Lord Lyon King of Arms, regarding their respective heraldic jurisdictions. The Crown Office also compiles the Official Roll of the Baronetage.[citation needed]
The Crown Office also has duties relating to the elections for the House of Commons. The Clerk of the Crown in Chancery initiates a parliamentary election in a constituency by sending an election writ to the returning officer of the constituency, and historically received all ballot papers and ballot stubs after the election was complete[3] though they are now kept locally by the registration officer for each area (and retained for a year).[4]
The Clerk issues election writs to all constituencies whenever the King makes a proclamation summoning a new parliament, and issues an election writ to a specific constituency whenever that constituency's seat is certified as vacant. The Clerk of the Crown in Chancery also prepares a Return Book, listing the names of all those who are returned as members of the House of Commons in a general election, and delivers that book to the Clerk of the House of Commons on the first day of a new parliament.
List of Clerks of the Crown[edit]The office of Clerk of the Crown in Chancery was carried over to Canada. From 1791 to 1866, there were Clerks for both Lower Canada and Upper Canada. They carried out electoral functions similar to the British Clerk. Following Confederation in 1867, the federal government established the position of Clerk of the Crown to oversee elections. The office was amalgamated into the position of Chief Electoral Officer in 1920.[27]
Whitehall, July 30, 1834. The King has been pleased to nominate and appoint Denis Le Marchant, Esq. to be Clerk of the Crown in Chancery, in the room of Henry Earl Bathurst, deceased.
Whitehall, November 15, 1834. The King has been pleased to nominate and appoint Leonard Edmunds, Esq. to be Clerk of the Crown in Chancery, in the room of Denis Le Marchant, Esq. resigned.
Whitehall, March 14, 1848. The Queen has been pleased to nominate and appoint the Honourable Charles Edward Pepys to be Clerk of the Crown in Chancery, in the room of Leonard Edmunds, Esq. resigned.
Whitehall, July 11, 1851. The Queen has been pleased to nominate and appoint Charles Romilly, Esq. to be Clerk of the Crown in Chancery, in the room of Charles Edward, Earl of Cottenham, resigned.
Whitehall, September 18, 1880. THE Queen has been pleased to appoint Ralph Charlton Palmer, Esq., to be Clerk of the Crown in Chancery, in the room of Charles Romilly, Esq., resigned.
THE Queen has been pleased, by Warrant dated the 17th ultimo, to appoint Kenneth Augustus Muir Mackenzie, Esq., to be Clerk of the Crown in Chancery, in the room of Ralph Charlton Parlmer, Esq., resigned.
The KING has been pleased, by Warrant under His Royal Sign Manual, bearing date the 2nd instant, to appoint Sir Claud Schuster to be Clerk of the Crown in Chancery, in the room of Kenneth Augustus, Baron Muir Mackenzie, resigned.
The QUEEN has been pleased by Warrant under Her Majesty's Royal Sign Manual, bearing date the 4th instant, to appoint George Phillips Coldstream, Esq., C.B., to be Clerk of the Crown in Chancery, in the room of the Honourable Sir Albert Edward Alexander Napier, K.C.B., Q.C, retired.
The QUEEN has been pleased by Warrant under Her Majesty's Royal Sign Manual, bearing date the 1st April, to appoint Denis William Dobson, Esq., C.B., O.B.E., to be Clerk of the Crown in Chancery, in the room of Sir George Phillips Coldstream, K.C.B., Q.C., retired.
The QUEEN has been pleased by Warrant under Her Majesty's Royal Sign Manual, bearing date the 12th April 1977, to appoint John Wilfrid Bourne, Esq., C.B., to be Clerk of the Crown in Chancery in the room of Sir Denis William Dobson, K.C.B, O.B.E., Q.C., who has retired.
The QUEEN has been pleased by Warrant under Her Majesty's Royal Sign Manual, bearing the date 1st October, to appoint Antony Derek Maxwell Oulton, Esquire, C.B., M.A., Ph.D., to be Clerk of the Crown in Chancery in the room of Sir John Wilfred Bourne, K.C.B., Q.C., who has retired.
THE QUEEN has been pleased by Warrant under Her Majesty's Royal Sign Manual bearing date 16th September 1989, to appoint Thomas Stuart Legg, Esquire, CB, MA, LLM, to be Clerk of the Crown in Chancery in the room of Sir Anthony Derek Maxwell Oulton, GCB, QC, MA, PhD, who has retired.
The Queen has been pleased by Warrant under Her Majesty's Royal Sign Manual, bearing date 11th April 1998, to appoint Sir Gerald Hayden Phillips, K.C.B., to be Clerk of the Crown in Chancery in the room of Sir Thomas Stuart Legg, K.C.B., Q.C., who has retired.
The following notice is in substitution for that which appeared on page 11898 of The London Gazette dated 21 September 2004: The QUEEN has been pleased by Warrant under Her Majesty's Royal Sign Manual, bearing date 2 August 2004, to appoint Alexander Claud Stuart Allan to be Clerk of the Crown in Chancery upon the retirement of Sir Gerald Hayden Phillips GCB.
The QUEEN has been pleased by Royal Warrant bearing date 10 December 2007, to appoint Sir Sumantra Chakrabarti K.C.B. as the Clerk of the Crown in Chancery. G A Bavister
The QUEEN has been pleased by Royal Warrant bearing date 12 July 2012 to appoint Ursula Mary Brennan as the Clerk of the Crown in Chancery [in succession to Sir Sumantra Chakrabarti, K.C.B.]. G A Bavister
The Queen has been pleased by Royal Warrant under Her Royal Sign Manual dated 18th January 2021 to appoint Antonia Romeo to the Office of Clerk of the Crown in Chancery.
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