The Langlois of the law retires after four decades

By Tom Edwards

AN ADVOCATE has retired after a law career spanning four decades. John Langlois will, however, retain an ambassadorial role for Carey Olsen.

He said he was leaving with a great sense of satisfaction.

‘The profession has been good to me,’ he said.

‘It’s changed a lot, but I’ve been able to do my bit for the justice system in Guernsey.’

Former Bailiff Sir de Vic Carey and current Bailiff Geoffrey Rowland spoke at a special lunch.

Both Bailiffs and Advocate Langlois were called to the Bar at the same time and have all taken on public roles in addition to their legal work.

Advocate Langlois said there were two main highlights to his career.

‘I had one case which ran for five weeks in the Royal Court and it was the first time the Security and Exchange Commission lost outside the USA, which was a tremendous achievement for Guernsey,’ he said.

‘The other highlight was when I appeared as a defendant in the House of Lords in a case about tax and that was very interesting.’

Educated at Elizabeth College, Advocate Langlois started his own law practice before merging it with Carey Son & Dorey in 1973.

He became a senior partner for the firm in 1977 and in 2004 he became a consultant for Carey Olsen following the merger of Carey Langlois and the Jersey firm, Olsens.

He was awarded an OBE in 2005 in recognition of his considerable political and charitable work.

While his daily association with Guernsey’s legal profession is over, his retirement will not be given over purely to leisure.

‘I have a trust company as well as between 50 and 80 directorships to stay on top of,’ he said.

‘I have always travelled for my charity work and that is something I will continue with.

‘I am a member of Advocates International, which is a group of Christian lawyers who work with governments around the world to promote human rights.

‘It’s safe to say I’ll have plenty to keep me busy.’