My father, William Nash, who has died aged 72 of a brain tumour, was a campaigning lawyer who relished a fight with the establishment and broke new ground on human rights.

He was one of those who defended the journalist Crispin Aubrey and the former signals officer John Berry during the controversial ABC trial in 1978, where his clients were accused of breaching the Official Secrets Act. The case was a landmark one regarding journalistic freedom and the ability to question the arcane dealings of the security services. During proceedings, the government labelled William a threat to national security and tried to remove him from court.

This post was originally published on Human rights | The Guardian.