Abstract: A wide viewing angle polarizer having: a polarizing film; and a phase retarder adhesively laminated on at least one surface of the polarizing film through an adhesive layer, the phase retarder being made of a composite phase retarder constituted by a laminate in which a retardation layer B of a cholesteric liquid crystal-oriented solidified layer in a selective reflection wavelength range of not larger than 350 nm is supported by a retardation layer A of a thermoplastic resin exhibiting positive birefringence, the composite phase retarder being formed so that the laminate has Re of not smaller than 10 nm and Rth-Re of not smaller than 50 nm when Re and Rth are defined as Re=(nx−ny)×d and Rth=(nx−nz)×d respectively in which nx and ny are in-plane main refractive indices, nz is a thicknesswise refractive index, and d is a layer thickness.

Abstract: A laminated phase retarder having: a laminate of a retardation layer A made of a thermoplastic resin exhibiting positive birefringent characteristic and a retardation layer B constituted by an oriented solidified layer of cholesteric liquid crystal exhibiting a selective reflection wavelength range not larger than 350 nm; wherein Re of the laminate is not smaller than 10 nm and Rth−Re of the laminate is not smaller than 50 nm when Re and Rth are given by Re=(nx−ny)×d and Rth=(nx−nz)×d in which nx and ny are in-plane main refractive indices, nz is a thicknesswise refractive index, and d is a layer thickness. A polarizing member having: a laminate of a laminated phase retarder defined above; and a polarizer. A liquid-crystal display device having: a liquid-crystal cell; and a laminated phase retarder or a polarizing member defined above and disposed on at least one of opposite surfaces of the liquid-crystal cell.