The Rt Hon Dame Anne Rafferty DBE

Biography

The Rt Hon Dame Anne Rafferty DBE was called to the Bar in 1973 by Gray’s Inn and took Silk in 1990. She became a Recorder in 1991 and in 1995 was the first woman to chair the Criminal Bar Association. After becoming a Deputy High Court Judge in 1996, in 2000 she was appointed a High Court Judge, sitting in the Queen’s Bench Division. In 2011, Dame Anne was appointed a Lord Justice of Appeal and Privy Counsellor. She retired from the Bench in July 2020. In March 2021 Highgate School’s Governing Body invited her to lead an independent review into alleged sexual abuse and harassment, which she completed in January 2022. In July 2022 Dame Anne was appointed by the Secretary of State for Defence to conduct individual fatality investigations assigned to her from time to time, with her agreement, by the Ministry of Defence.