# Michael Rubinstein > Mediated Wiki article. Canonical URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Michael_Rubinstein > Markdown URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Michael_Rubinstein.md > Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michael_Rubinstein > Source revision: 1296536141 > License: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/) {{Use dmy dates|date=April 2022}} '''Michael Bernard Rubinstein''' (6 November 1920 – 12 January 2001) was a solicitor who specialised in representing authors and publisher. He acted for [Penguin Books](/source/Penguin_Books) in the obscenity trial in 1960, ''[R v Penguin Books Ltd.](/source/R_v_Penguin_Books_Ltd.)'', following publication of an uncensored edition of [D.H. Lawrence](/source/D.H._Lawrence)'s novel ''[Lady Chatterley's Lover](/source/Lady_Chatterley's_Lover)''. ==Early life== Rubinstein was born in Kensington. His father [Harold Rubinstein](/source/Harold_Rubinstein) (1891–1975) was a solicitor with expertise in publishing matters; he acted on the unsuccessful defence of [Radclyffe Hall](/source/Radclyffe_Hall)'s novel, ''[The Well of Loneliness](/source/The_Well_of_Loneliness)'' on obscenity charges in 1928. His mother, Lina Naomi Rubinstein, née Lowy (died 1939) was the sister of [Ruth](/source/Ruth_Gollancz), wife of publisher [Victor Gollancz](/source/Victor_Gollancz). His father also wrote several plays, which were published by his brother-in-law. His younger brother [Hilary Rubinstein](/source/Hilary_Rubinstein) became a publisher and literary agent. Rubinstein was educated at [St Paul's School, London](/source/St_Paul's_School%2C_London). In the Second World War, he served in the [Royal Engineers](/source/Royal_Engineers) and then the [Royal Artillery](/source/Royal_Artillery), being demobilized as a captain. He then studied law. He married Edna Joy Smith Douthwaite in July 1955. She was a ballet dancer, better known under her stage name Joy Boulter. They had two daughters, Imogen and Polly and two sons, Adam and Zachary. ==Career== In 1948 Rubinstein joined his father as a lawyer at the family law firm Rubinstein, Nash & Co, founded by his grandfather Joseph Samuel Rubinstein in 1889. He specialised in representing publishers and authors, including [Chatto & Windus](/source/Chatto_%26_Windus), [Sidgwick & Jackson](/source/Sidgwick_%26_Jackson), [Hodder & Stoughton](/source/Hodder_%26_Stoughton), [Jonathan Cape](/source/Jonathan_Cape), [Victor Gollancz](/source/Victor_Gollancz_Ltd), and [Penguin Books](/source/Penguin_Books). He acted for [Penguin Books](/source/Penguin_Books) in its successful defence on charges of obscenity in 1960 following publication of an uncensored edition of [D.H. Lawrence](/source/D.H._Lawrence)'s novel ''[Lady Chatterley's Lover](/source/Lady_Chatterley's_Lover)'', marshalling 35 witnesses to testify to the book's literary merit. He also represented several publishers in a [Restrictive Practices Court](/source/Restrictive_Practices_Court) case in 1962, which retained the [Net Book Agreement](/source/Net_Book_Agreement) that maintained [minimum retail price](/source/minimum_retail_price)s for books. The Net Book Agreement survived until 1997, when it was declared illegal by the same court. Rubinstein acted for publishers in libel cases, including defending [Leon Uris](/source/Leon_Uris) and William Kimber against a libel claim brought by Dr [Wladislaw Dering](/source/Wladislaw_Dering) in 1964 for passages in Uris's novel ''[Exodus](/source/Exodus_(Uris_novel))'' describing medical experiments conducted by Dering on prisoners at [Auschwitz](/source/Auschwitz). Dering was awarded was a derisory half penny in damages, but faced substantial legal costs. Rubinstein was also a member of the Lord Chancellor's committee on defamation from 1971 to 1974, which made suggestions included in the [Defamation Act 1996](/source/Defamation_Act_1996). His book ''Wicked, Wicked Libels'' was published in 1972. He retired in 1994 and died at the [Lister Hospital](/source/Lister_Hospital%2C_Stevenage) in Stevenage. He was survived by his wife, Joy, and their four children. ==Other== Rubinstein's hearing was damaged in the Second World War, but he still enjoyed music. He was a director of [Youth and Music](/source/Youth_and_Music) and a governor of the [Purcell School](/source/Purcell_School). He also served the [Society for the Promotion of New Music](/source/Society_for_the_Promotion_of_New_Music) as trustee, chairman, and then vice-president. He published a book about music, ''Music to my Ear'', in 1985. ==References== * Obituary, The Independent, 15 January 2001 * Obituary, The Times, 25 January 2001 * David Hooper, ‘Rubinstein, Michael Bernard (1920–2001)’, Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press, Jan 2005; online edn, Jan 2009 [http://www.oxforddnb.com/view/article/89673 accessed 4 Sept 2014] {{Authority control}} {{DEFAULTSORT:Rubinstein, Michael}} Category:1920 births Category:2001 deaths Category:People educated at St Paul's School, London Category:People from Kensington Category:English solicitors Category:20th-century English lawyers Category:British Army personnel of World War II Category:Royal Engineers officers Category:Royal Artillery officers --- Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Michael Rubinstein](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michael_Rubinstein) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michael_Rubinstein?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.