Sir Christopher John Pitchford (28 March 1947 – 18 October 2017)[1] was a senior British judge, who was a Lord Justice of Appeal in England and Wales from 2010 until he retired because of ill-health in 2017.

Sir Christopher Pitchford
In procession at Llandaff Cathedral in 2013
Lord Justice of Appeal
In office
12 January 2010 – 29 March 2017
Preceded bySir Scott Baker
Personal details
Born(1947-03-28)28 March 1947
Died18 October 2017(2017-10-18) (aged 70)

Pitchford was educated at Queen's College, Taunton and studied law at Queen Mary, University of London. He was called to the Bar in 1969, becoming a Bencher of Middle Temple in 1996. He became a Queen's Counsel in 1987 and appointed a Deputy High Court judge in 1996. Pitchford was appointed a full judge of that court on 28 September 2000 and received the customary knighthood. He was a Presiding Judge of the Wales and Chester Circuit from 2002 to 2005. On 12 January 2010, Pitchford became a Lord Justice of Appeal, and was subsequently appointed to the Privy Council.[2]

He was appointed to chair the Undercover Policing Inquiry, which was announced by Theresa May, the Home Secretary on 12 March 2015.[3]

He announced that he would step down from the Inquiry in May 2017 following the diagnosis of motor neurone disease,[4] and he died in October 2017.[5]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Senior Judiciary List". Archived from the original on 28 March 2010. Retrieved 20 April 2010.
  2. ^ "Lord Justice of Appeal Appointment". Archived from the original on 2 February 2010. Retrieved 20 April 2010.
  3. ^ "Home". Undercover Policing Inquiry. Retrieved 31 March 2016.
  4. ^ "Sir John Mitting to take over undercover police inquiry". The Guardian. 31 May 2017. Archived from the original on 3 June 2023.
  5. ^ Home