John Jackson

John Jackson is a lawyer who has never practised the law professionally. He is Chairman Emeritus of Mishcon de Reya and was a founding member of the Board of openDemocracy. He recently launched JJ Books.

Who makes the law in Britain?

One thing is certain: if we do eventually get a written constitution for our country it will not start with the words "We the judges". This remark is

By John Jackson

/ 6 Dec 2007

Lord Bingham's Remarkable Journey

It is helpful if those whose opinions can affect our lives think out loud in an open and honest way so that we can follow the development, and particularly the

By John Jackson

/ 15 Nov 2007

From deliberative to determinative democracy

What we call "democracy" is an amalgam of values, rights and systems. Attempts to define it will always be fuzzy round the edges. The same goes for "

By John Jackson

/ 15 Oct 2007

"We the Judges"

John Jackson (London, Charter88): I sympathise with the views of John Denham reported by Anthony Barnett. At least one very senior retired judge is believed to think that a written

By John Jackson

/ 11 Jul 2007

Alice Wheeldon and the attorney-general

In March 1917 the British attorney-general, FE Smith, led the prosecution of Alice Wheeldon (a seller of second-hand clothes), two of her daughters (both schoolteachers) and her son-in-law (a lecturer

By John Jackson

/ 17 Apr 2007

A democracy in trouble

The patrons of freedom fighters, having won freedom, often seek to control how it is to be used. They strangle the baby with its own umbilical cord. That is the

By John Jackson

/ 1 Mar 2006

One challenge

In the last days of 2005, leading thinkers and scholars from around the world share their fears, hopes and expectations of 2006. Forty-nine of openDemocracy’s distinguished contributors, from Mariano Aguirre to Slavoj Zizek, Neal Ascherson to Jonathan Zittrain – offer their predictions for the com

By John Jackson

/ 22 Dec 2005

Write the constitution down!

Anthony Barnett, editor of openDemocracy, writes: The oldest democratic constitution in the world Britains is in tatters. This has been apparent for some time for those with the eyes

By John Jackson

/ 17 Feb 2005

Do we want freedom, or simply to rattle the bars?

I was recently invited to attend a discussion about freedom. It was connected to the debates on the pro-Tory right about liberty and freedom, although not all those present were

By John Jackson

/ 7 Aug 2001

Mr. Town meets Mr. Country

The rural-urban divide defines a vital part of society everywhere. Here, two representatives of the British experience meet for the first time and try to establish their common ground. They

By John Jackson and Richard Rogers

/ 13 Jun 2001