Winter Spirits: A (legal) ghost story for Christmas

Lawyers will often claim that the law strives for objectivity and impartiality. They are in the business of making rational and reasoned arguments and have no time for the mysterious or macabre. However, in reality, the supernatural has been a regular topic in legal cases since Henry VIII made witchcraft a criminal offence in 1541. Our courts have seen all manner of monster, from psychics and witches to ghosts and aliens.  They’ve even been called upon to consider the existence of foul-mouthed furry demons. 

Jerome K. Jerome once observed that there is nothing more enjoyable on Christmas Eve than gathering by a fire to regale your friends and family with “authentic anecdotes of spectres”. For lawyers, those anecdotes are even more fun if they involve a sprinkling of legal history and a lively debate over the existence of the supernatural.

Therefore in the spirit of Christmas, please join Naomi Ryan and Middle Temple Library for an evening of mince pies and mulled wine, examining some of the strangest cases in legal history, in which the Fortean meets the forensic, the bizarre is examined by barristers and the strange is investigated by the state. Learn about the Old Bailey’s connection to vampires, decide whether murderous aliens are hovering over Todmorden and most importantly, discover the connection between the Attorney General and foul mouthed demons. 

Also featured are a few select rare books from the Library’s collection that will tie this theme together.

Naomi Ryan

Naomi Ryan is a criminal lawyer. After completing the BCL at St Catherine’s College, Oxford, she taught criminal law to undergraduates at St Hilda’s College Oxford and University College London before embarking on her career as a criminal barrister, where she both prosecuted and defended. She now works as an advisory lawyer on criminal matters within the civil service.

Members of all four Inns and their guests are welcome. Staff are also welcome to attend for free. Members of the other Inns and staff can book by calling 020 7427 4830 or emailing library@middletemple.org.uk.

This is not a Qualifying Session.

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