A Tribute to Mr Michael Sherrard QC CBE
23 June 1928 to 30 October 2012
Ever since I was a little girl studying in a grammar school in London, United Kingdom between 1971 and 1973, I used to wonder what I would do with my life when I grew up. I would say that 1973 proved to be the turning point of my young life at the time, when I met Mr Michael Sherrard, QC, who was at that point in time a distinguished Queens Counsel in the United Kingdom.
What began as a chance encounter in London in 1973, blossomed into a guru shishya relationship, spanning a period of almost 40 years. Mr Sherrard guided me throughout my studies as a law student between 1977 and 1908 and thereafter during my career as a lawyer. Being admitted as an Indian Advocate in 1980 at the Bar Council of Maharashtra [transferred to the Bar Council of Delhi in 1997] and subsequently as a Solicitor of the Supreme Court [of England] in 1997, Mr Sherrard constantly guided me across the miles from 1973 onwards, through his beautifully penned handwritten letters, [during those years when there was no internet and there were no computers], via email, after the internet became an integral part of our lives, and on the telephone.
It is a quintessential element of the Indian tradition and of Indian civilization that we are trained to worship and respect our elders as we consider them the embodiment of wisdom, erudition, nobility and experience, et al. Continuing this tradition, I was inspired by Mr Sherrard to seriously consider becoming a lawyer. I sought his guidance and blessings. I have always considered him to be my mentor in the legal profession.
I was pained and overwhelmed with grief and shock when I heard from Mrs Shirley Sherrard, his beloved wife, of Mr Sherrard’s passing a few weeks ago, on 30 October 2012 in London. It is extremely difficult for me to reconcile myself to his being no more. I know that his last few years were difficult for him due to his distressing illness. He fought his illness valiantly till his peaceful and final departure from this world.
Mr Sherrard has been for me an embodiment of kindness, wisdom, erudition, professionalism, brilliance, wit, and so much more, which remain unparalleled in the legal profession. He was extremely humane and intensely gentle which was evident in his continuing kindnesses to me, across oceans and countries and different jurisdictions, whether I was in the United Kingdom, in Dubai, United Arab Emirates [where I lived and practised as a lawyer for many years], or in India.
In one of his innumerable handwritten notes to me on 4 December 1981, he blessed me with the following inspirational words: “May you continue to fight your causes and flourish as a proud Palm Tree, impervious to the winds of intolerance”. His blessings and writings stay with me always and his humility, good humor and endearing personality continue to inspire me. It was an honour and a privilege to have been his shishya and to have received his blessings.
Mr Sherrard’s biography, Wigs and Wherefores, by Linda Goldman and Michael Sherrard is a compelling and fascinating read. His extraordinary achievements, his unstinted devotion to his work, his outstanding advocacy skills as one of the finest QCs the world has ever known, his deep commitment to the Middle Temple, where he was Treasurer, and also Director of Advocacy, Middle Temple, his being honoured with the CBE in 2003 by Her Majesty the Queen for services to the legal profession…………..I need say no more.
An extraordinary era has indeed closed, leaving us bereft of a treasured human being and sorrowing for a deeply noble soul.
May God give his family the fortitude and strength to cope with his passing. May his soul rest eternally in peace.
Ramni Taneja
New Delhi, India
23 November 2012
23 June 1928 to 30 October 2012
Ever since I was a little girl studying in a grammar school in London, United Kingdom between 1971 and 1973, I used to wonder what I would do with my life when I grew up. I would say that 1973 proved to be the turning point of my young life at the time, when I met Mr Michael Sherrard, QC, who was at that point in time a distinguished Queens Counsel in the United Kingdom.
What began as a chance encounter in London in 1973, blossomed into a guru shishya relationship, spanning a period of almost 40 years. Mr Sherrard guided me throughout my studies as a law student between 1977 and 1908 and thereafter during my career as a lawyer. Being admitted as an Indian Advocate in 1980 at the Bar Council of Maharashtra [transferred to the Bar Council of Delhi in 1997] and subsequently as a Solicitor of the Supreme Court [of England] in 1997, Mr Sherrard constantly guided me across the miles from 1973 onwards, through his beautifully penned handwritten letters, [during those years when there was no internet and there were no computers], via email, after the internet became an integral part of our lives, and on the telephone.
It is a quintessential element of the Indian tradition and of Indian civilization that we are trained to worship and respect our elders as we consider them the embodiment of wisdom, erudition, nobility and experience, et al. Continuing this tradition, I was inspired by Mr Sherrard to seriously consider becoming a lawyer. I sought his guidance and blessings. I have always considered him to be my mentor in the legal profession.
I was pained and overwhelmed with grief and shock when I heard from Mrs Shirley Sherrard, his beloved wife, of Mr Sherrard’s passing a few weeks ago, on 30 October 2012 in London. It is extremely difficult for me to reconcile myself to his being no more. I know that his last few years were difficult for him due to his distressing illness. He fought his illness valiantly till his peaceful and final departure from this world.
Mr Sherrard has been for me an embodiment of kindness, wisdom, erudition, professionalism, brilliance, wit, and so much more, which remain unparalleled in the legal profession. He was extremely humane and intensely gentle which was evident in his continuing kindnesses to me, across oceans and countries and different jurisdictions, whether I was in the United Kingdom, in Dubai, United Arab Emirates [where I lived and practised as a lawyer for many years], or in India.
In one of his innumerable handwritten notes to me on 4 December 1981, he blessed me with the following inspirational words: “May you continue to fight your causes and flourish as a proud Palm Tree, impervious to the winds of intolerance”. His blessings and writings stay with me always and his humility, good humor and endearing personality continue to inspire me. It was an honour and a privilege to have been his shishya and to have received his blessings.
Mr Sherrard’s biography, Wigs and Wherefores, by Linda Goldman and Michael Sherrard is a compelling and fascinating read. His extraordinary achievements, his unstinted devotion to his work, his outstanding advocacy skills as one of the finest QCs the world has ever known, his deep commitment to the Middle Temple, where he was Treasurer, and also Director of Advocacy, Middle Temple, his being honoured with the CBE in 2003 by Her Majesty the Queen for services to the legal profession…………..I need say no more.
An extraordinary era has indeed closed, leaving us bereft of a treasured human being and sorrowing for a deeply noble soul.
May God give his family the fortitude and strength to cope with his passing. May his soul rest eternally in peace.
Ramni Taneja
New Delhi, India
23 November 2012
