Birger Ekeberg (1880–1968) was a Swedish jurist and legal scholar. He served as justice minister of Sweden, and during his tenure the Swedish Parliament abolished the death penalty on 7 May 1921.

Birger Ekeberg
Minister of Justice
In office
19 April 1923 – 18 October 1924
Prime MinisterGerhard Louis De Geer
Oscar von Sydow
Preceded byAssar Åkerman
Succeeded byTorsten Nothin
In office
27 October 1920 – 13 October 1921
Prime MinisterErnst Trygger
Preceded byAssar Åkerman
Succeeded byAssar Åkerman
Marshal of the Realm
In office
1946–1959
MonarchsGustaf V
Gustaf VI Adolf
Preceded byAxel Vennersten
Succeeded byNils Vult von Steyern
Personal details
Born
Lars Birger Ekeberg

10 August 1880
Uppsala, Sweden
Died30 November 1968(1968-11-30) (aged 88)
Political partyIndependent
Alma materUppsala University
OccupationLawyer

Early life and education

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Ekeberg was born in Uppsala on 10 August 1880.[1] He graduated from Uppsala University in 1902 receiving a degree in law.[1] He completed his PhD in private law at the same university in 1904 and became an associate professor the same year.[1]

Career

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Following his graduation he joined his alma mater as a faculty member where he worked until 1907 when he began to work at the newly founded law faculty of Stockholm University.[1] There he was the professor of private and civil law and a member of the Swedish Academy between 1945 and 1968.[1][2]

He was first appointed minister of justice in 1920 and served in the post for one year.[1] One of his most significant contributions was the annulment of the death penalty in Sweden in 1921.[2] He was reappointed to the post in 1923 and remained in office until 1924.[1] Then he worked at the council of justice which he also headed from 1927 and at the supreme court.[1]

He was named as the head of the Court of Appeal in 1931.[1][3] His term ended in 1946 with the royal permission.[1] He was appointed Marshal of the Realm in 1947,[1] replacing Axel Vennersten in the post.[4] Ekeber remained in office until 1959.[1]

In addition to these academic and political posts Ekeberg was the board member of the following organizations: Stockholm University (1927–1958), Stockholm School of Economics (1939–1957), Nobel Foundation (1947–1960) and Swedish Association of Judges (1935–1948).[1]

Work and death

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Ekeberg published many articles most of which were about patent law and maritime law.[5] He was among the founders of the law journal entitled Svensk Juristtidnings and was a member of its editorial board between in 1916 and 1960.[2] He headed the journal's editorial board from 1940 to 1960.[2]

He died on 30 November 1968.[1]

Awards

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Ekeberg was awarded honorary doctorate by Heidelberg University in 1923, by the University of Copenhagen in 1945, by the University of Helsinki in 1955 and by Stockholm University in 1953.[1]

References

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  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o "Obituary. Birger Ekeberg". Svensk Juristtidnings (in Swedish): 691. 1968.
  2. ^ a b c d "Från Undén till Kling" (in Swedish). InfoTorg Juridik. 18 February 2011. Retrieved 14 December 2022.
  3. ^ "The Swedish Penal Code of 1965". Duke Law Journal. 1968 (1): 72. February 1968. doi:10.2307/1371443. JSTOR 1371443.
  4. ^ Caroline Lagercrantz (17 June 2004). "Taffeltäckare, marskalk och fatbursjungfru". Populär Historia (in Swedish). Retrieved 14 December 2022.
  5. ^ "Ekeberg, Birger". WorldCat. Retrieved 14 December 2022.
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