Human rights lawyer who helped to expand Britain’s Race Relations Act and investigated apartheid in South Africa

It is still shocking to recall that until the UK’s first Race Relations Act was passed in 1965, people could perfectly lawfully be refused accommodation or refreshment on the grounds of their race or nationality. Through the work he did to start putting this right, Geoffrey Bindman, who has died aged 92, stood out both in his profession of solicitor and the political world that surrounded it as a principled, committed and scholarly jurist, and a fundamentally decent man.

Quietly spoken, attentive and humorous, he lent his voice and his talents to the movement for racial equality and to the cause of justice for all. He did this at first as a partner of Lawford & Co, a north London firm of trade union lawyers (1965-74), and as legal adviser to the Race Relations Board (1966-76) and its successor, the Commission for Racial Equality (1976-83).

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