Maxwell, Sir Peter (1816– 1893) Judge. Sir Peter Benson Maxwell was educated first in France, and later at Trinity College, Dublin. He was called to the Bar at the Inner Temple, and practised as a barrister in London.

Maxwell became Recorder of Penang on 20 March 1856, and in 1866, he succeeded Sir Richard McCausland as Recorder of Singapore. A year later, he became the first chief justice of the newly constituted Straits Settlements of Singapore, Malacca and Penang.

In 1866, Maxwell published The Duties of Straits Magistrates through the Government Printing Office. This was prescribed for all civil service examinations. The fifth chapter of the book, entitled ‘The Construction of Statutes’, formed the core of the textbook Maxwell on Statutes, published in London in 1875.

On 26 July 1871, Maxwell retired. In 1883, he travelled to Egypt to organize the court system after the British occupation of that country. In August 1885, he resigned his appointment in Egypt and retired to London.

Maxwell died from pneumonia and was buried in Grasse, France. In 1925, Maxwell Road was named after Sir Peter’s family, including his son Sir William Maxwell.