Dame Elizabeth Gloster, DBE (born 5 June 1949), styled The Hon. Mrs Justice Gloster, is the first appointed female judge of the Commercial Court in the United Kingdom

United Kingdom

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...

. Gloster was educated at Roedean School

Roedean School

-Roedeanians in fiction:* Lady Penelope Creighton-Ward * Dawn Drummond-Clayton * Emily James...

and Girton College, Cambridge

Girton College, Cambridge

Girton College is one of the 31 constituent colleges of the University of Cambridge. It was England's first residential women's college, established in 1869 by Emily Davies and Barbara Bodichon. The full college status was only received in 1948 and marked the official admittance of women to the...

. She was called to the Bar

Call to the bar

The Call to the Bar is a legal term of art in most common law jurisdictions where persons must be qualified to be allowed to argue in court on behalf of another party, and are then said to have been "called to the bar" or to have received a "call to the bar"...

, Inner Temple

Inner Temple

The Honourable Society of the Inner Temple, commonly known as Inner Temple, is one of the four Inns of Court in London. To be called to the Bar and practise as a barrister in England and Wales, an individual must belong to one of these Inns...

 in 1971, and joined the Magic Circle

Magic Circle (law)

The "Magic Circle" is an informal term used to collectively describe what are generally regarded to be the five leading UK-headquartered law firms and the four or five leading London-based commercial barristers' chambers.-Law firms:...

 set of One Essex Court

One Essex Court

One Essex Court is a set of barristers' chambers in London, specialising in commercial litigation.Currently comprising 76 full-time members, 26 of whom are silks or Queen's Counsel. One Essex Court boasts well-known silks Lord Anthony Grabiner QC, Sydney Lipworth QC and Laurence Rabinowitz QC...

.

Career

• 1971: Called to the Bar, Inner Temple
  Inner Temple
  The Honourable Society of the Inner Temple, commonly known as Inner Temple, is one of the four Inns of Court in London. To be called to the Bar and practise as a barrister in England and Wales, an individual must belong to one of these Inns...
  
  
• 1989: Appointed Queen's counsel
  Queen's Counsel
  Queen's Counsel , known as King's Counsel during the reign of a male sovereign, are lawyers appointed by letters patent to be one of Her [or His] Majesty's Counsel learned in the law...
  
  
• 1992: Bencher
  Bencher
  A bencher or Master of the Bench is a senior member of an Inn of Court in England and Wales. Benchers hold office for life once elected. A bencher can be elected while still a barrister , in recognition of the contribution that the barrister has made to the life of the Inn or to the law...
  
  
• 1993: Appointed Judge of the Courts of Appeal of Jersey and Guernsey
• 1995: Recorder
• 2004: Created Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire ("DBE")
• 2004: Appointed High Court Judge
  High Court of Justice
  The High Court of Justice is, together with the Court of Appeal and the Crown Court, one of the Senior Courts of England and Wales...
  
   (Commercial Court, Queen's Bench division)
• 2010: Appointed head of the Commercial Court

Private life

In 2004 Elizabeth Gloster was divorced from her husband of three decades, Stanley Brodie (QC

Queen's Counsel

Queen's Counsel , known as King's Counsel during the reign of a male sovereign, are lawyers appointed by letters patent to be one of Her [or His] Majesty's Counsel learned in the law...

).. On 15 March 2008, she remarried former judge, Sir Oliver Popplewell

Oliver Popplewell

The Honourable Sir Oliver Bury Popplewell is a former British judge. He chaired the inquiry into the Bradford City stadium fire, presided over the libel case brought by Jonathan Aitken MP against The Guardian newspaper which eventually led to Aitkin's imprisonment for perjury, and was widely...

.