Bill Woodward was a lifelong member of the Society and, as our Minutes record, a frequent contributor to ON and School appeals. At school he was a direct contemporary of Kenneth Clarke MP. Having been called to the Bar by Inner Temple in 1963, he took up practice at 24, The Ropewalk where he remained throughout his career. He took silk in 1985 and was the Head of Chambers during a critical period of expansion in the late 1980s and 1990s following the elevation of Brian Appleby QC to the Circuit Bench.
Bill was one of the giants of the Nottingham Bar and appeared in a number of leading cases in the field of personal injury and, particularly, occupational disease law. He was Junior Counsel in the leading case of Thompson v Smiths Ship repairers in 1984; Leading Counsel instructed by South Yorkshire Police in relation to the Hillsborough tragedy, which took him to the House of Lords twice, in the cases of Alcock v Chief Constable of South Yorkshire Police in 1991 and Hicks v Chief Constable of South Yorkshire Police in 1992; and Leading Counsel in the Court of Appeal in Jameson v CEGB in 1997. The breadth of his reach and intellect can be noted from his appointments as Justice of the Court of Appeal for St Helena and as a Special Professor at Nottingham University.

He was a compassionate and fierce advocate, tireless in pursuit of his clients’ causes and rightly considered a formidable opponent by any of his many friends at the Bar. He was a Bencher of the Inner Temple and, with others, was responsible for the development of Ropewalk Chambers from a multi-disciplinary provincial common law set into the specialised and nationally regarded civil set it has become. Perhaps the best insight into Bill’s sense of humour and zest for life comes from the interests he routinely listed during his time in professional practice in “Havers’ Companion to the Bar”, published annually. These were “Austin 7s, windsurfing in calm conditions, serendipity and ponds”.

He leaves his wife, Carolyn, with whom he had three children, William, Fergus (both ONs) and Rebecca.

Bill’s funeral is on Friday 27th January at 12.30pm in the Serenity Chapel at Bramcote Crematorium.

Chris Popple (ON 1948-1959)

“I was extremely sorry to learn of the death of Bill Woodward as I was a direct contemporary of the two of them and also a lawyer but I never scaled their heights. What I do remember is that, as a lowly articled clerk after university, I was instructed to apply for a ‘Restaurant licence’ for a restaurant at Etwall near Derby and of course, I had no right of audience. I instructed Bill and we went off to the village Hall at Hilton, Derbyshire which, in April, still had its Christmas lights. Never has an application been so well prepared. Bill stood up and said to the magistrates, ‘Sirs, I appear for the applicant’ at which point the Chairman of the Bench interrupted saying, ‘We all dined there last Friday and had an excellent meal – application granted’

 

Shortly afterwards (and while still under Articles) I opened a Branch off ice of my Firm in Nottingham. On the very first morning I was instructed by a new client charged with ‘Assault causing actual bodily harm’ in a pub fight. Bill’s cross-examination was masterful arguing successfully that none of the witnesses could see what had occurred. As we were leaving Court the Client said, ‘I am pleased that you got me off that because I didn’t dare tell you before that I am an Army boxing champion!”

Richard Finking (ON 1950 – 1959)

“I was saddened to read the email concerning the death of WC Woodward recently. I had lost touch with Bill over the years and always had the impression that his illustrious legal career had taken him away from this area.
During our schooldays we had much fun together, I recall climbing the Scott monument (Princess Street, Edinburgh) with him and also carrying out a rather dangerous gas experiment together at the home of his parents on Stratford Road, West Bridgford. Needless to say, his parents were out at the time!”