Henry Finch

Sir Henry Finch (died 1625) was an English lawyer and politician, created serjeant-at-law and knighted, and remembered as a legal writer. Life He was born the son of Sir Thomas Finch of Eastwell and Catherine Moyle, daughter of Sir Thomas Moyle and the brother of Moyle Finch. He was educated at Christ's College, Cambridge, under Laurence Chaderton, graduating BA, and was admitted of Gray's Inn in 1577, and called to the bar there in 1585. In February 1593, he was elected to parliament for Canterbury, and he retained the seat at the election of 1597. He became an ancient of his inn in 1593, and the same year was appointed counsel to the Cinque ports. He was reader at his inn in the autumn of 1604. In 1613 he was appointed recorder of Sandwich, on 11 June 1616 he was called to the degree of serjeant-at-law, and nine days later he was knighted at Whitehall Palace. At this time he was engaged, in conjunction with Francis Bacon, William Noy, and others, in an abortive attempt to codify the statute law. He was elected to Parliament for St Albans in 1614.