John Mortimer Leggate, known as Jack, was born at West Kirby on 7 April 1904, the son of a general practitioner, James Leggate, and his wife Elizabeth, née Thomas. He was educated at Liverpool College and the University of Liverpool where he became President of the Guild of Undergraduates. He graduated with honours from the University of Liverpool in 1929. After passing his FRCS in 1933 he became a medical missionary in Manchuria at the Moukden Medical College, a Church of Scotland foundation. In order to take up this appointment he had to have a working knowledge of Chinese and attended a six month language course in Peking. Whilst in Manchuria he met and, in 1936, married a missionary colleague, Grace Clark. He came home at the beginning of the war to join the RAMC. He took part in the Normandy landing in 1944, for which he was mentioned in despatches, and then was in charge of the surgical division of a West African Hospital in India with the rank of Lieutenant-Colonel. After the war he returned to Manchuria where he spent three years, his wife and son remaining in England. Returning to this country he was appointed senior registrar in the neurosurgical unit at Walton Hospital, Liverpool but soon after was invited to apply for the post of whole-time Dean of the Faculty of Medicine in the University. After an initial period as Assistant Dean he assumed full responsibility of Deanship in 1953, a post he held for sixteen years until his retirement. By common consent Jack Leggate was an outstanding Dean, not only for his powers of leadership and administration but also for obtaining the best from students who always felt free to come to him with problems and for advice. He represented the Medical School on the General Medical Council and General Dental Council and in his time was Chairman of the Provincial Medical Deans' Conference. He was also successful in attracting considerable funding for research in the North West of England. After his retirement an admirer donated a silver cup to Liverpool University Medical School, the Jack Leggate Cup, to be awarded to the student or recent graduate who had done most to further the good name of the School. He died suddenly on 1 January 1985, aged 80, and was survived by his wife Grace and a son.