Document Archive - Abyssinia Law Reform and Modernization - High Court Judge and Femaile Founder of First Law School by MULLEN, Leonard & Mary - 1948

Ethiopia, 1948. Addis Ababa, Abyssinia [Ethiopia], 1948. Archive of papers pertaining to the loss of two individuals of influence in Abyssinia's then recently restructured legal system, including the resignation of a British judge serving in Ethiopia's High Court, and the death of the female solicitor who founded the first law school for indigenous attorneys to receive proper legal qualifications, the latter two being Mr. and Mrs. Mullen, a husband and wife from Liverpool, each engaged by the Ethiopian Ministry of Justice. Includes the judge's travel passport with photograph, his Allied Force permit, an Ethiopian form of photographic identification, letters from the British Foreign Office and the Ethiopian Minister of Justice and others, an official stamped Ethiopian manuscript letter, together with a newspaper announcement and other other papers addressing the solicitor's death, and the couple's original marriage certificate. Documents and letters range in size. Some are in manuscript, some typed, some printed. Several are signed in the original. Slight loss to the Ethiopian documents, some creasing, otherwise the lot in very good condition. Providing a glimpse into the judicial system of Ethiopia during the reign of Emperor Haile Selassie I as he endeavored to modernize Ethiopia, and also of the influence of English Law, these papers are from the personal archives of Ethiopia's High Court Judge, the Right Honorable Leonard Mullen, and his wife Agnes whom in her own right made a positive impact to the community by founding the very first law school in the country. Leonard Robert Mullen (born in Liverpool, 1908) [sometimes seen as Mullin], was appointed solicitor and judge of the High Court of Ethiopia in October 1947. Together with his wife Agnes, he became a notable resident of Addis Ababa. Leonard served as a judicial leader in the newly modernized court of law, while Agnes established the first law school in Ethiopia and was an instructor there. In very short order, however, in January 1948, Agnes fell ill and passed away. In August, Leonard subsequently returned to England, settling in Chislehurst, Kent. A time of tremendous loss for the judge, on 3 February 1947 his father had also died. The archive's letters acknowledge Leonard's resignation from service, and further reveal the ongoing ineffectiveness of Ethiopian administration, as well as the cultural differences surrounding death. After the termination of his contract, without empathy or understanding of bereavement, the Director-General of Ethiopian Ministry of Justice, Tamirat Yigazu, further demanded Leonard's departure from the country. Yigazu also claimed that the judge was over-payed for the last period of his services, and funds are due to be returned. Leonard's passport reveals that he travelled extensively throughout Africa between 1947 and 1956, possibly in part to deal with the affairs of his wife and/or his own financial matters with the Ministry. With some stamps made in Ethiopian and Arabic script, others in English or French, during the nine-year period he was in Egypt, Sudan, Ethiopia, Eritrea, Suez, and Aden. Agnes Carus Mullen (1907-1947, née Neville) was the eldest daughter of Liverpool solicitor John Herbert Neville and Jane Helen Carus. Agnes was a practicing junior solicitor working for her father's firm when she married Leonard Mullen in 1931. When Leonard accepted a post as judge for the High Court of Ethiopia, naturally, she travelled with him, the couple making a home in Addis Ababa. The newspaper obituary notice present in this archive, describes her individual accomplishments in Ethiopia, her legacy being the founding of Ethiopia's first school of law. Almost immediately upon her arrival, the Ethiopian Imperial Government learned of her accreditation as a solicitor, and invited her to form the law school, and to educate indigenous lawyers on proper legal practices, thus Ethiopian advocates would finally be appointed according to qualifications as opposed to personal referral. [After the Ethiopian Liberation War, a 1941 campaign, efforts were made to follow the legal procedures and apply the rules of evidence employed by the British courts. Directly a result of Mrs. Mullen's initiaive, by 1948 there were a number of qualified Ethiopian lawyers practicing in the various courts, and a great demand existed for their services, owing to the highly litigious character of the community. However, there remained a lack of trained and experienced lawyers for the High Court, where proceedings were conducted in both Amharic and English. Interestingly, at this time, the Ethiopian criminal law codified in 1930 (a revision of the Fitha Negast) was enforced for Ethiopian citizens, whereas Italian law was enforced for all foreigners, until a then very recent ruling granted a foreigner with the right to choose either the Ethiopian or the Italian penal code for his/her trial and sentencing. ] Born in in a mud hut in Ejersa Gora, Ethiopia in 1892, Emperor Haile Selassie I worked to modernize Ethiopia for several decades. For a country eager to curry favor with the West and gain its foothold at the turn of the century, the progressive Haile Selassie, then still known by his birth name Lij Tafari Makonnen, was the symbol of hope for the young population. In 1923 he led Ethiopia into the League of Nations. The following year, he traveled to Europe, becoming the first Ethiopian ruler to go abroad. In 1928 he appointed himself king, and, after the death of Zauditu, Haile Selassie was crowned emperor in 1930, assuming the name Haile Selassie ("Might of the Trinity"). The emperor was exiled during World War II after leading the resistance to the Italian invasion, but was reinstated in 1941. He sought to modernize the country over the next few decades, implementing social, economic and educational reforms. His efforts greatly strengthened schools, law, and the police force. In the face of a wave of anti-colonialism sweeping across Africa, in 1955 he granted a new constitution which outlined equal rights for his citizens, while maintaining his own authoritative power. He ruled until 1974, when famine, unemployment and political opposition forced him from office, purportedly having been killed by the government officials who replaced him. Leonard's father was Dennis Joseph Mullen (1864-1947), who served 42 years as foreign staff in China, acquiring two properties in Nanking which he bequeathed to his son. Born in Manchester, he was first employed in Customs Office in China at age 24, holding this post from January 1888 to December 1898, then being assigned to various cities as a postal officer, deputy postmaster, inspector, commander in charge, and Deputy Postal Commissioner, finally retiring in 1929. As well as speaking English and French, he was fluent in Chinese at a young age. In 1892 he received a gold medal by the British Government for "gallantry and humanity" in rendering assistance to the barque Stanfield which was in distress. For "outstanding military and civil achievement", four times during the First World War he was granted the decoration of the Chia ho, also known as the Order of Excellent Crop of the Classes, or Order of the Golden Grain. . Very Good. Photo.