James Hamilton
OfficeDirector of Public Prosecutions
Term start11 July 1999
Term end6 November 2011
AppointerGovernment of Ireland
PredecessorEamonn Barnes
SuccessorClaire Loftus
Birth date20 March 1949 (age 77)
Birth placeDublin, Ireland
Alma mater

James Hamilton (born 20 March 1949) is an Irish barrister and administrator who served as the Director of Public of Prosecutions from 1999 to 2011. In September 2010, Hamilton was elected President of the International Association of Prosecutors, succeeding Francois Falletti.[1][2]

Hamilton became Director of Public Prosecutions in 1999, succeeding Eamonn Barnes. Before becoming Director of Public Prosecutions, Hamilton was a practising barrister and was head of the office of the Attorney General of Ireland.[3]

In 2018, Hamilton was appointed to chair a review into the anti-Fraud and anti-Corruption Measures in the Department of Justice and Equality, instituted by Tánaiste Frances Fitzgerald.[4]

He was appointed as an independent advisor to the Scottish Government on the ministerial code in 2013 by former Scottish First Minister Alex Salmond and was reappointed by his successor First Minister Nicola Sturgeon in 2015.[5] He was also appointed to the same role by the Welsh Government.[6] In 2017, he concluded that Welsh First Minister Carwyn Jones did not mislead the Welsh Assembly over what he knew about bullying allegations at the top level of government.[7] Hamilton also conducted an investigation into the Alex Salmond scandal, namely whether Sturgeon had breached the Scottish ministerial code during the Scottish Government's investigation into sexual harassment complaints made against Salmond.[8] This was paused in 2019 and resumed in August 2020.[9] On 22 March 2021, his report was published, concluding that Sturgeon did not breach the ministerial code.[10][11] However, he caveated that "It is for the Scottish parliament to decide whether they were in fact misled."[12] A majority of MSPs on the Committee on the Scottish Government Handling of Harassment Complaints concluded that it was "hard to believe" Sturgeon when she told Parliament she had not known about concerns of inappropriate behaviour Mr Salmond before November 2017. It also determined that Sturgeon gave an "inaccurate account" of what happened when she met Mr Salmond at her home on 2 April 2018 and had misled the committee.[13]

References

  1. ^ "International Association of Prosecutors". Archived from the original on October 8, 2011. Retrieved April 3, 2011.
  2. ^ Davidson, Gina (22 March 2021). "What the Hamilton inquiry into Nicola Sturgeon's actions says". www.scotsman.com. Retrieved 23 March 2021.
  3. ^ "Mr James Hamilton". Council of Europe. Archived from the original on 17 March 2011. Retrieved 11 April 2011.
  4. ^ "Anti-corruption review group seeks input". Archived from the original on March 22, 2021. Retrieved March 22, 2021.
  5. ^ Merson, Adele. "James Hamilton QC: Who is the lawyer with the potential to decide Nicola Sturgeon's future?". Press and Journal. Retrieved 2021-03-22.
  6. ^ "Bullying: The Irish lawyer investigating Carwyn Jones". BBC News. 2017-12-06. Archived 2021-02-11 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 2021-03-22.
  7. ^ "Carwyn Jones did not mislead assembly over bullying claims – report". the Guardian. 2018-04-17. Archived 2020-11-09 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 2021-03-22.
  8. ^ McLaughlin, Mark. "Independent investigator James Hamilton holds Sturgeon's fate in his hands". ISSN 0140-0460. Archived 2021-03-20 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 2021-03-22.
  9. ^ Pooran, Neil & Eden, Tom (22 March 2021). "James Hamilton inquiry: Report into whether Nicola Sturgeon breached ministerial code to be released today". The Scotsman. Archived 22 March 2021 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 22 March 2021.
  10. ^ "Nicola Sturgeon cleared of breaching ministerial code over Alex Salmond saga". BBC News. 22 March 2021. Archived 22 March 2021 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 22 March 2021.
  11. ^ "Independent report by James Hamilton on the First Minister’s self-referral under the Scottish Ministerial Code - gov.scot". Scottish Government publications. Scottish Government. 22 March 2021. Retrieved 23 March 2021.
  12. ^ "What did report that cleared Sturgeon of misleading Scottish parliament say?". The Guardian. 22 March 2021. Retrieved 2021-06-03.
  13. ^ "Nicola Sturgeon rejects claims over Alex Salmond inquiry evidence". BBC News. 19 March 2021. Retrieved 2021-06-03.