Graham Stoker was born in 1952 near London in the United Kingdom. He was educated at the London School of Economics and the London Institute of Advanced Legal Studies. Called to the English Bar, he is a Winston Churchill Prize holder, a member of the Middle Temple and Lincoln’s Inn, and a leading Barrister in the areas of Sport Law, Governmental, Environmental and Commercial Law. He specialises in Public Inquiries and has appeared at the House of Commons before Select Committees, and is a member of the Parliamentary Bar.
He also has a long standing involvement in International affairs. He has a Masters degree in International Law and Politics from the London School of Economics, served the Lord Chancellors Department as an Immigration Judge dealing with Political Asylum cases for ten years, and is a member of the Royal Institute of International Affairs (Chatham House).
Graham Stoker has had a life long commitment to motor sport, first becoming involved in the sport in his teenage years going on to graduate from the Ian Taylor Racing School in the UK, and the Winfield Elf Motor Racing School at Magny-Cours in France and he was active in historic and sports car racing. Joining the judicial panel of the Royal Automobile Club, Motor Sports Association (the UK ASN) in 1985 he went on to become Chairman of the Panel in 1995 when he also joined the MSA Motor Sports Council (the UK Sporting Commission of the ASN). He became Chairman of the Motor Sports Council in 2001, a member of the Board of the MSA and Chairman of the MSA’s pivotal Executive Committee. As joint President of the MSA he joined the FIA International Court of Appeal in 2001 hearing a range of motor sport cases, and acting as a President of the Court, and took a leading role in the major restructuring of the rules of the Court in 2004. In that year he was elected to the World Motor Sport Council as the titular representative for the United Kingdom. As joint head of the UK ASN he is at the centre of motor sport policy in the UK driving forward issues such as race and rally driver development, encouraging grass roots motor sport and club development, securing viable and sustainable championships, encouraging volunteers and grappling with sport governmental and environmental challenges. He regularly deals with Her Majesty’s Government, Secretaries of State and Ministers on the issue of motor sport.
As Chairman of the Motor Sport Council he leads a body of 25 notable motor sport individuals, supported by over 200 individual members of Panels and Committees, who in turn represent the 750 member clubs of the MSA. The Council, whose President is HRH Prince Michael of Kent GCVO, is the home of the sporting power in the UK, the UK ‘parliament’ of motor sport and produce the rules that govern the sport in the UK.
He is also a long standing member of the Royal Automobile Club and the Policy Committee of the RAC Foundation where he contributes to Mobility, Transportation and Automobile Policy.
Graham Stoker has produced a number of significant reports on motor sport issues such as the reports to the FIA on the British Grand Prix in 2001 and the use of Police Enforcement Cameras at the Wales Rally GB in 2004 and he has advised a broad range of major stakeholders in motor sport.
He is recognised as an expert in Sports Law having been a long standing member of the UK Sports Dispute Resolutions Panel. He has settled numerous disputes including selection for ‘Team England’ at the Commonwealth Games in 2001, football, skiing, athletics, judo, badminton, swimming and motorcycling. He is experienced in anti-doping and is an expert on the broader issues of sport governance and regulations within the European Union and worldwide, and also he is President of the FIA Anti Doping Commission.
Graham Stoker has been an active Steward in motor sport since 1985, becoming the first Chairman of the Permanent Stewards to the British Touring Car Championship from 1995 to 2001. As a MSA National Steward, FIA Steward and Super Licence Holder he has stewarded Formula One, WTCC, GT and Rally events and has regularly attended a wide range of national and international events including the Le Mans 24 hours and also travels worldwide to events such as to Mauritania in 2004 to visit the Paris - Dakar as part of his broad interest in all aspects of motor sport.
Graham Stoker is married with two sons.