Michael Gryffin

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Michael Gryffin (also spelled Gryffen) (died 1467) was an English-born judge who worked in Ireland. By 1440 he had a long record of service to the English crown and was described as a gentleman. In 1441 he was made Chief Baron of the Irish Exchequer for life because of his loyal service.

His appointment led to a clash with John Cornwalsh, whose father had held the same office and who claimed the position in reversion. This fight became part of Ireland’s big political split between the Butlers and the Talbots. With the Talbots’ backing, the crown supported Gryffin and ordered an inquiry into how Cornwalsh had challenged him. Gryffin held the post for five years, but in 1446 Cornwalsh, backed by James Butler, 4th Earl of Ormonde, won a declaration that Gryffin’s patent had been obtained “surreptitiously and illegally.” Parliament then passed a law annulling Gryffin’s patent. Cornwalsh was considered the better qualified lawyer, having studied at the Inns of Court in the 1430s, while Gryffin apparently had no formal legal training. A 1442 memorandum suggested the Chief Baron should be a qualified lawyer, and a compromise candidate, John Gough, was discussed but not chosen.

In 1449 Gryffin faced accusations of various offences, but he refused to give up his bid to stay in office. He sat on a commission to hear and try cases, which his enemies called illegal. In 1454, after conditions in Ireland had calmed, he was exonerated of wrongdoing. He died in 1467.