Whether it was in the courtroom, Parliament or his personal life, Julian Hall will always be remembered as the quintessential showman.

The charismatic lawyer had a love of music and the performing arts, and his own life was also filled with drama.

Described by his peers as "colourful", "flamboyant" and "brilliant", Mr. Hall was equally at home at Fairylands dinner parties as he was in the bars of Court Street.

A formidable opponent in the courtroom itself, he once said: "I love fighting cases in front of juries; there is a theatre, excitement, drama and pathos."

Entertaining to the end, he peppered his speech with witty one-liners, while those who knew him also spoke of his wonderful singing voice.

When he successfully defended himself against fraud in the Betty McMahon case in 2005, immediately after the not-guilty verdict was rendered, Mr. Hall sang the second verse of 'Amazing Grace' from the Supreme Court dock, his rich baritone voice astounding those present.

But then this was a man who was full of surprises and with his passing, Bermuda has lost one of its most fascinating characters.

Mr. Hall was born on March 4, 1950 and grew up on Reid Street. His father Llewellyn (Piggy) Dill and mother Cecilia Phillips Hall divorced when he was four.

Mr. Dill died when Mr. Hall was 23 and he later spoke about his need for a father figure. One of these was a Mr. Astwood who ran an upholstery shop near to where he lived.

From the age of nine he read The Royal Gazette to three white wealthy spinsters, the Astwoods, one of whom left him $10,000.

He was to later discover a lawyer changed the will, removing his claim to real estate.

Mr. Hall was raised by his grandmother "Mama" Mary Phillips, along with his sisters Judith Hall-Bean and Debra Benton. Even after his mother remarried Police Sergeant Lynn Hall and went to live in Southampton, the children stayed with their grandmother for years.

"Despite the fact that we didn't have a lot of money, my grandmother's big pot of soup was fed to everybody, every alcoholic, prostitute and derelict came by that house. There were 20 or so a day. She taught me a lot about giving," he said.

Mr. Hall attended Victor Scott Primary School and then won a scholarship to the Berkeley Institute. A bright and bookish student, he went on to Mount Allison University in Canada, assisted financially by then UBP chairman Clarence Terceira.

Although he started out as a pre-med student, he quickly switched to law, and graduated as Valedictorian in 1970.

From 1971 to 1974 Mr. Hall attended the London School of Economics. Cherie Booth, wife of former UK Prime Minister Tony Blair, was a contemporary and friend.

He passed the bar exams without doing the bar course.

"To my surprise, I came second or third out of the thousands who wrote the exam. I was in a real hurry I came back to Bermuda anxious to start practising," he said.

Mr. Hall was called to the Bermuda Bar in October 1974, and became an associate at Conyers, Dill and Pearman in 1975 one of the first black lawyers to be employed at a large Bermudian law firm.

He joined the UBP, founding the Under-40 Caucus, penning documents and chairing key committees, but fell out with the Party over the Burrows and Tacklyn case.

Although he became deputy chairman at the age of 27, he resigned from the Party in 1979 and switched to the PLP.

Erskine (Buck) Burrows and Larry Tacklyn were hanged in 1977 for the murders of Governor Sir Richard Sharples and Captain Hugh Sayers.

Mr. Hall was critical of the special jury in the case and assisted defence lawyer (Dame) Lois Browne Evans. He argued before the Court of Appeal that the jury was unconstitutional but lost.

"We came out of the court at about 10.30 p.m. and there was an enormous crowd waiting. I put my thumbs down and I was shoved into a car along with the Crown counsel Robin McMillan, who today remains a dear friend," he said.

"I was in just as much danger as everyone else as far as that crowd was concerned. We were taken off to some place where we spent the next few days watching Hamilton burn. It was an awful time."

Defeats were rare however to this man, whom some regard as the finest courtroom lawyer of his generation.

Mr. Hall claimed to have lost only one or two jury trials. "I do have a very, very formidable record," he said.

This includes winning the right for a Jamaican-born child to be educated in Bermuda's public school system, in the landmark 1970s Fisher civil case, and successfully defending Michael Meredith. Mr. Meredith was accused of bludgeoning his wife Jacqueline to death in 1989.

Lawyer and friend Delroy Duncan described the case as "Bermuda's OJ". He said: "Julian did phenomenally well. I think it was the finest performance on his feet."

Mr. Hall was also a research fellow in international law at the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D.C. However, his professional life was fraught with financial problems.

Known to appreciate the finer things in life, he frequented the best restaurants and casinos. He also organised 'Summerfest' considered by many to be the best rock concert the Island has ever seen.

Featuring Al Green, Peter Tosh, Richie Havens and Wild Cherry, the 1977 concert was a financial disaster due to damage caused by gatecrashers.

The event signalled the start of his descent into bankruptcy in the early 1980s.

Despite claims he was owed $500,000 by people including the Hotel Employers of Bermuda, he was declared bankrupt in 1982.

In 1984, a law was then passed banning bankrupt lawyers from practising law in Bermuda, effectively ending his career. The PLP referred to the legislation as "the Julian Hall law", while the man himself claimed it was passed by the UBP to punish him for disloyalty.

He claimed Bermuda was the only country in the world to have such a blanket ban, and began practising from Canada instead.

Mr. Hall married Isabella Beattie in 1981, but the couple later divorced. They have three daughters, Nadia, Liana and Claudia.

In his political career he was elected to the House of Assembly as an Opposition MP for Hamilton Parish in 1989, but only served one term before losing his seat in 1993. His tenure in Parliament was however, colourful and controversial.

The criminal lawyer, never one to mince his words, later famously referred to PLP Senator David Burch as "a public relations train wreck in slow motion".

Mr. Hall was declared bankrupt for a second time in 2000. Months before his death however, he regained the right to practise.

In December, the Legislature passed The Bermuda Bar Amendment Act 2008, allowing bankrupt lawyers to practise for the first time since 1984.

Mr. Hall applied to the Bar Association for a practising certificate and this was granted on February 25 this year. However, his final illness made it impossible for him to return to the courtrooms before his death.

Mr. Hall's daughter Liana hopes that in addition to his legal and political legacy, his music will also live on. She explained yesterday: "Musically, my father was exceptionally gifted. I have spent the last few weeks collecting any and all video and audio recordings I can find. He sung at more weddings and funerals on this Island than most professionals. I am collecting any such personal recordings that people may have of him and they can contact me on liana.hall@gmail.com if they have any they would be able to provide. Especially of him singing 'My Way' his very favourite song in his repertoire, and the most fitting."

l More tributes – Page 4