St John Branch

Sir Charles Ernest St John Branch KC (2 June 1865 – 1939), known as St John Branch, was Chief Justice of Jamaica and the 23rd Chief Justice of Ceylon.

Sir Charles Ernest St John Branch KC
23rd Chief Justice of Ceylon
In office 3 July 1925 – 25 May 1926
Appointed by	William Manning
Preceded by	Anton Bertram
Succeeded by	Stanley Fisher
Chief Justice of Jamaica
In office 1923–1925
Preceded by	Sir Anthony Coll
Succeeded by	Fiennes Barrett-Lennard
Personal details
Born	(1865-06-02)2 June 1865 Trinidad
Died	1939 Horsham, West Sussex, UK
Children	Denzil Templer Branch
Alma mater	Durham University

Charles Ernest Branch was born in San Ferdinand, Trinidad.

In 1910 he was made Auditor General of Jamaica and in 1921 a puisne judge in the Straits Settlements. In 1923 he returned to Jamaica as Chief Justice, a position he held until 1925. He was made a Knight Bachelor in the 1924 Birthday Honours.[1]

On 3 July 1925 he was appointed Chief Justice of Ceylon, succeeding Anton Bertram, a position he held until 25 May 1926, when he was succeeded by Stanley Fisher.[2][3][4]

He died in Horsham, West Sussex in 1939. He had married Agnes Irene Templer on 24 March 1900 and had two sons, the younger of which was killed in World War II.

References

1. "No. 32959". The London Gazette. 25 July 1924. p. 5636.
2. "Overview". Judicial Service Commission Secretariat. Archived from the original on 19 October 2013. Retrieved 19 October 2013.
3. "BRANCH, Sir (Charles Ernest) St John". Who's Who. ukwhoswho.com. A & C Black, an imprint of Bloomsbury Publishing plc. Retrieved 7 January 2013. (subscription or UK public library membership required)
4. Amerasinghe, A. Ranjit B. (1986). The Supreme Court of Sri Lanka : the first 185 years. Ratmalana: Sarvodaya Book Pub. Services. ISBN 955599000X.

Legal offices
Preceded by Anton Bertram	Chief Justice of Ceylon 1925-1926	Succeeded by Stanley Fisher
Preceded by Sir Anthony Coll	Chief Justice of Jamaica 1923-1925	Succeeded by Fiennes Barrett-Lennard