Simeon Jacobs

Sir Simeon Jacobs (1839 – June 15, 1883) was a Judge in the Supreme Court of the Cape of Good Hope.

Born in 1839 into a London Jewish family, Jacobs studied law and became a barrister of the Inner Temple in November 1852. In 1860, in an attempt to improve his poor health, he emigrated to the Cape of Good Hope, and in 1861 was appointed attorney-general of the new colony of British Kaffraria, which office he held till 1866 when British Kaffraria was incorporated into the Cape Colony's eastern districts. Upon this annexation, Jacobs became "Solicitor-General at the Cape of Good Hope for the Eastern Districts". He also served several times as acting Attorney-General of the Cape, in the absence of the Attorney General Mr Griffiths, and distinguished himself greatly with his extreme industriousness. He also worked on abolishing state aid to churches in the Cape Colony.

In 1874, Prime Minister John Molteno appointed him Attorney-General of the Cape Colony, to replace John de Villiers whom he had just promoted to Chief Justice. He was also promoted puisne judge and made a member of the executive council. However his extreme physical frailty worsened with age and hard work. He was vehemently critical of Carnarvon's plan to enforce confederation on the southern African states, and spent increasing amounts of time in the final years of his career attacking it as being illegal and highly unconstitutional. In August 1877 he retired from active life, due to ill health, to be succeeded as attorney general by Advocate Stockenstrom.

He was created C.M.G. in November 1882, and died in London in 1883.