He was a moderate opponent of the Act of Union 1800, although in his pamphlet "Arguments for and against the Act of Union" he did endeavour to be fair to both sides of the debate. Like many former opponents of Union he was prepared to accept office under the new regime, although he refused to sit in the English House of Commons. He became Third Serjeant in 1816, Second Serjeant in 1818 and a justice of the Court of King's Bench (Ireland) in 1818.