A SOLICITOR who acted for the inhabitants of the South Atlantic island of St Helena, Tristan da Cunha and Ascension Island in helping them to recover their full British Citizenship, has announced his retirement after 50 years in the legal profession.

At that time Richard Hughes, from Castle Caereinion, was a partner in the Shropshire law firm of Milton, Francis & Hughes, but in 2018 he became a consultant solicitor with GHP Legal after the two firms merged.

Saint Helena and all other Crown Colonies were reclassified as British Independent Territories when the British Nationality Act of 1981 came into force. As a result, the islands’ inhabitants lost their full British passports.

This situation remained until 1992, when a Bishops Commission was established with the aim of restoring full British citizenship rights to the islanders. The islanders needed a UK based solicitor to represent them and Richard Hughes was instructed to investigate a means of achieving this goal.

The eventual outcome of the islanders’ plight came in 2002 with the introduction of the British Overseas Territories Act which restored their rights and designated St Helena and all other British Dependent Territories as British Overseas Territories.

Richard Hughes qualified as a solicitor in 1977. He was articled to Mr Edward Tomley of the Montgomeryshire firm of Williams Gittins & Tomley. During that time, he was also appointed acting town clerk of Montgomery.

With extensive experience in Estate Administration, Wills, Business and Agricultural matters, Richard was a member of the Law Society’s Agricultural Law Association and Probate Section and a Member of Solicitors for the Elderly.

Richard’s interest in agriculture and agricultural communities goes back to the days when, after being educated at Llanarmon D C and Castle Caereinion primary schools, Christ’s Hospital in Sussex and gaining a law degree at UCW Aberystwyth, he worked on the family farm at Castle Caereinion near Welshpool.

He said: “My farming experience taught me the skills of ‘feeding and mucking out’, and perhaps this can also apply to legal practice. I have always endeavoured to foster inter-generational relationships with my clients and be involved with local country and farming pursuits, and in return I have been fortunate to receive a great deal of loyalty from my clients.

“I have thoroughly enjoyed my working life, but now it is time to hand over to Richard Lloyd and his excellent team at GHP Legal.

“Looking to the future, I plan to enjoy more time spent with my grandchildren, gardening, travelling (post COVID), fulfilling a long list of outstanding DIY tasks... and thinking about what to do when I grow up.”