Introduction
Sir Lewis William Cave (3 July 1832 – 7 September 1897) was a British judge.
Biography
He was born at Desborough, Northamptonshire, the eldest son of William Cave, a local landowner, and his wife, Elizabeth. After attending Rugby School, he went to Lincoln College, Oxford, from where he graduated in 1855 with a degree in humanities.
Shortly after graduating, Cave started studying law, and married Julia Watkins, the daughter of the vicar of Brixworth on 5 August 1856. Cave was called to the bar on 10 June 1859 and built up a large general practice in the English Midlands.
In 1873, he was appointed recorder of Lincoln, Lincolnshire, and two years later became a Queen's Counsel. He edited several legal texts, including Stone's Practice of Petty Sessions (1861), Reports of the Court for the Consideration of Crown Cases Reserved, Addison's Treatise on the Law of Contracts (1869; 1875) and Addison's Law of Torts (1879).
Despite being well known in the Midlands, Cave was not well known in London. His appointment as a Justice of the Queen's Bench in 1881, and his coincident knighthood, came as something of a surprise.
As a judge, he gained a reputation as bluff and concise, often cutting short arguments which he considered too lengthy.