John Hugh Sinclair was a professor of oral and maxillofacial surgery in Auckland , New Zealand. He was born in New Zealand on 5 June 1933. After studying dentistry in New Zealand, he travelled to the UK, where he became a fellow of the Faculty of Dental Surgery of the Royal College of Surgeons of England in 1962. He returned to New Zealand, becoming a specialist oral and maxillofacial surgeon in 1971 and a consultant to Canterbury Health in 1978. From 1989 he was also involved with teaching students at Otago Dental School, as an external examiner in oral and maxillofacial surgery, clinical director and director of national training. He was a representative of the Canterbury branch of the New Zealand Dental Association (NZDA) in 1984 and later became president of the branch and a representative on the NZDA council. He was elected an honorary life member of the NZDA in 1995 for his exceptional service to the association and its council. He was the New Zealand representative on the council of the Australian and New Zealand Association of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons (ANZAOMS) from 1982 to 1987. In October 2001 he was awarded a distinguished service award from ANZAOMS. He was an inaugural fellow of the Royal Australasian College of Dental Surgeons and chairman of the New Zealand regional committee from 1978 to 1986. He joined the college council in 1988 and held several positions, including president from 1998 to 2000. He was also a member of the Dental Council of New Zealand and was elected as a fellow of the International College of Dentists, the Academy of Dentistry International and the Pierre Fauchard Academy. Sinclair died suddenly at his home in Gulf Harbour on 26 February 2016 at the age of 82. He was survived by his wife Gay, their three children and their families.