Charles Courtenay, 19th Earl of Devon

Charles Peregrine Courtenay, 19th Earl of Devon^[1] (born 14 August 1975), styled as Lord Courtenay from 1998 until 2015, is an English hereditary peer and barrister. He is a crossbench member of the House of Lords, having been elected at a by-election in 2018.^[2][3]

The Right Honourable The Earl of Devon
Official portrait, 2019
Member of the House of Lords
Lord Temporal
as an elected hereditary peer 4 July 2018 (sworn in on 19 July)
By-election	4 July 2018
Preceded by	The 4th Earl Baldwin of Bewdley
Personal details
Born	Charles Peregrine Courtenay (1975-08-14) 14 August 1975 (age 49) Exeter, Devon, England
Political party	None (Crossbencher)
Spouse	A. J. Langer ​ (m. 2004)​
Children	2
Parent(s)	Hugh Courtenay, 18th Earl of Devon Diana Watherston
Residence	Powderham Castle
Education	Eton College
Alma mater	St John's College, Cambridge
Occupation	Barrister

Education and career

Courtenay was educated at Eton College.^[1] After obtaining an MA degree from St John's College, Cambridge, in 1997, he followed his legal studies at the Inns of Court School of Law.^[1] Courtenay was admitted to the bar at Inner Temple in 1999,^[4] and to the California State Bar in 2004.^[5]

Personal life

Courtenay married the American actress A. J. Langer in a civil ceremony in 2004.^[6] A formal wedding later took place on 30 April 2005, in Los Angeles. With his father's death in 2015, the then Lord Courtenay succeeded to his father's peerage and estate, becoming the 19th Earl of Devon.^[7]

Courtenay and Langer have two children.^[8][6] Courtenay announced that he had filed for divorce in November 2023.^[9] In February 2024, Courtenay filed to dismiss the couple's divorce application.^[10]

Courtenay practised law with the firm of Latham & Watkins from 2005 to 2018, starting at their Los Angeles, California office. In January 2014, he permanently relocated his family to London and transferred to his firm's London office.^[4] In January 2019, he joined the Exeter firm Michelmores as a partner, where he is known as Charles Courtenay.^[11] He and his family now reside at the family's ancestral home of Powderham Castle in Devon, England. He owns a 3,500 acre estate.^[12]

Arms

Coat of arms of Courtenay, Earls of Devon^[13]

Crest 1st, Out of a ducal coronet or, a plume of seven ostrich feathers four and three argent; 2nd, a dolphin embowed proper. Escutcheon Quarterly 1st and 4th Or, three torteaux (Courtenay); 2nd and 3rd Or, a lion rampant azure (Redvers, Earls of Devon). Supporters Two boars argent, bristled, tusked, and unguled or Motto Quod Verum Tutum (What is true is safe)

Ancestry

Ancestors of Charles Courtenay, 19th Earl of Devon

16. Henry Courtenay, Lord Courtenay (1836–1898) 8. Frederick Courtenay, 16th Earl of Devon (1875–1935) 17. Lady Evelyn Pepys (1839–1910), daughter of Charles Pepys, 1st Earl of Cottenham 4. Charles Courtenay, 17th Earl of Devon (1916–1998) 18. John Silva (1839–1923) 9. Marguerite Silva (1875–1950) 19. Mary Frances Corrie (1845–1929) 2. Hugh Courtenay, 18th Earl of Devon 10. Capt. John Vikris Taylor (1872–1956) 5. Sybil Venetia Taylor (d. 2001) 22. George Hopkinson (d. 1919) 11. Sybil Mary Hopkinson 23. Blanche Isabella Somerset (1847–1922) great-granddaughter of Henry Somerset, 5th Duke of Beaufort 1. Charles Courtenay, 19th Earl of Devon 6. Jack Greenshields Watherston 3. Diana Frances Watherston 7. Elizabeth Jean Eildon McConnel

References

1. Burke's Peerage, Baronetage & Knightage, 107th Edition, edited by Charles Mosley, Wilmington, Delaware, 2003, vol I, pp. 1121–6; ISBN 0-9711966-2-1
2. "Crossbench Hereditary Peers' By-Election, July 2018" (PDF). Parliament of the United Kingdom. Retrieved 4 July 2018.
3. "Oaths and Affirmations, 19 July 2018". Parliament of the United Kingdom. Retrieved 14 April 2023.
4. "Latham & Watkins: Charles Courtenay profile". Archived from the original on 15 September 2018. Retrieved 29 July 2019.
5. "Charles Peregrine Courtenay, Member Profile". The State Bar of California. Retrieved 29 May 2020.
6. "AJ Langer's Son Becomes Heir to Royal Title". People. 27 August 2009. Retrieved 14 December 2016.
7. Ivie, Devon (21 November 2017). "This My So-Called Life Star Is Now a Real-Life Countess". New York. Retrieved 22 November 2017.
8. "Passages". People. 67 (9). 5 March 2007.
9. "Earl of Devon to divorce 'Devon's Meghan Markle' AJ Langer". Devon Live. Retrieved 5 November 2023.
10. Bamidele, Afouda (25 February 2024). "'My So-Called Life' Star A.J. Langer's Husband Files To Dismiss Divorce". The Blast. Retrieved 1 September 2024.
11. Jonathan Kitchin (22 January 2019). "Michelmores appoints Charles Courtenay, Earl of Devon, as Partner in Disputes team". michelmores.com. Retrieved 29 May 2020.
12. Born to rule? The hereditary peers about to lose their seats – podcast
13. Debrett's peerage and baronetage 2003. Debrett's Peerage Ltd. 2002. p. 608.

Peerage of England
Preceded by Hugh Courtenay	Earl of Devon 2015–present	Incumbent
Parliament of the United Kingdom
Preceded by The Earl Baldwin of Bewdley	Elected hereditary peer to the House of Lords under the House of Lords Act 1999 2018–present	Incumbent