Sir Peter Cresswell, who served as a judge in the Cayman Islands Grand Court for five years, has passed away. He was 81 years old.
Cresswell, who was one of the first justices in the Cayman courts’ Financial Services Division, which he was instrumental in establishing, died on 10 Sept.
Cresswell had been a judge of the High Court, Queen’s Bench Division and the Commercial Court of England and Wales between 1991 and 2008. From 1993-94, as the judge in charge of the Commercial Court, he was responsible for the first practice direction which encouraged litigants to consider mediation as an alternative to expensive and time-consuming litigation.
He was also the judge in charge of the Lloyd’s Litigation from 1993-1996, one of the largest pieces of civil litigation in the UK.
He was one of the founding editors of the Encyclopaedia of Banking Law and was also a Bencher of Gray’s Inn. He was also a former chairman of the General Council of the Bar of England and Wales.
Following his retirement from the Commercial Court in 2008, he was appointed a judge of the Grand Court of the Cayman Islands on 24 Nov. 2009 “and served with great distinction until his retirement in 2014”, noted a statement posted on the Cayman judiciary website on Tuesday.
It continued, “Sir Peter presided over many important cases in the Grand Court, and the Cayman Islands Law Reports contain many of his leading judgments, which are still cited in the courts today.”
Role in setting up commercial court
During his time in the Grand Court in Cayman, Cresswell presided over a number of high-profile cases, including the illegality of the search of the home of another judge, Alexander Henderson, in the infamous Operation Tempura corruption investigation.
The judiciary said in its statement that it was “greatly appreciative of the contributions he made to the administration of justice on the Cayman Islands and, in particular, for his involvement in establishing the [Financial Services Division], which is now recognised internationally as a leading commercial court.
“We are indebted to Sir Peter for his work in these Courts and for his significant service to the Cayman Islands.”
Sir Anthony Smellie, who was chief justice during Cresswell’s tenure in Cayman, described him as “a true friend and stalwart supporter of the administration of justice for the Cayman Islands”, and recalled how he had stepped forward to help set up a commercial court here.
“Having decided the crucially important case of Justice Henderson v Martin Bridger and Others during the Operation Tempura debacle, and having formed his own impressions of the high standards of the justice system of the Islands, he offered to assist in the establishment of a commercial court for the Islands.
“I readily accepted his offer. He had recently retired as Head of the Commercial Court for England and Wales based in London and had immeasurable insights and experience to impart,” he said.
Smellie added that, with Cresswell’s “invaluable help”, he was able, along with the other members of the Grand Court Rules Committee, to settle the rules and users’ guidelines for the establishment of the Financial Services Division of the Grand Court, which, he said, was now one of the most respected courts in the financial world.
“Together, we were invited by the Lord Chief Justice of England and Wales to represent the [Financial Services Division] as a founding member of the Standing International Forum for Commercial Courts, at the inauguration of that body in London in 2017, one of only six jurisdictions which were so recognised.”
As a founding judge of the Financial Services Division, Cresswell served within that court, delivering a number of important judgments, Smellie added.
“At the personal level, I came to know him quite well and regarded him as a friend. He was a true gentleman (and a keen fisherman!) who will always be remembered with great fondness and respect,” he said.
Outside of court, among Cresswell’s pastimes were fly fishing and collecting antique salmon flies. At one time, he served as president of the Flyfishers’ Club of London.
William Peake, global managing partner at Harney’s, in a LinkedIn post paying tribute to Cresswell, recalled appearing before him on a number of occasions in the Grand Court of the Cayman Islands, where he found him to be “unfailingly polite and inordinately patient with a solicitor finding his way as an advocate”.
Following his retirement from the bench in 2014, Cresswell worked at London’s 3 Verulam Buildings chambers, known as 3VB, as an associate member, where he built up a strong practice, particularly in mediation. He was a strong advocate of mediation in disputes and was patron of the Society of Mediators.
3VB, in a statement on Cresswell’s passing, said, “3VB remembers Sir Peter not only for his outstanding legal career, but also as a valued colleague whose foresight and leadership played a vital role in shaping 3VB’s position today as a leading set of chambers in financial services and banking cases worldwide.
“He will be greatly missed.”
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