Early career Having had little success in London, Foster returned to Marlborough and then moved to
Bristol, where, he gained quite a reputation as a barrister.
Recorder In August 1735, he was chosen to be the recorder of Bristol and, in spring 1736, became a
serjeant-at-law. He held the post of recorder until his resignation in 1764. During Foster's tenure in office, several important cases came before him including the case of Goodere and Broadfoot. In 1741, Captain
Samuel Goodere was tried for the murder of his brother,
Sir John Dineley Goodere, 2nd Baronet, and the case established that city had the right to try capital offences committed within its jurisdiction. In the Broadfoot case, Alexander Broadfoot, a crewman on a
cargo ship, was indicted for the murder of Cornelius Calahan, a sailor in the navy, who boarded Broadfoot's vessel in an attempt to press Broadfoot into naval service, Foster delivered a long judgment in support of the legality of
impressment (conscription), as being in the public interest and a prerogative inherent of the crown, grounded in
common law, and recognised by numerous statutes. However, he directed the jury to find Broadfoot guilty only of
manslaughter, as Calahan had acted without legal warrant.
Later career and encomiums On the recommendation of
Lord Chancellor Hardwicke, Foster was appointed a
puisne judge of the
King's Bench to succeed Sir William Chapple. Foster was knighted on 21 April 1745 and took his seat on the bench on 1 May 1745. During the 18 years, he sat in the King's Bench, he acquired a character for learnedness, integrity, and independence of judgment. ==Death and family==