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James Mackay, Baron Mackay of Clashfern

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The Right Honourable
The Lord Mackay of Clashfern
KT PC FRSE
Official portrait, 2018
Lord Clerk Register
In office
27 April 2007 – November 2022
MonarchsElizabeth II
Charles III
Preceded byThe Earl of Wemyss
Succeeded byLady Elish Angiolini
Shadow Lord Chancellor
In office
2 May 1997 – 11 June 1997
LeaderJohn Major
Preceded byThe Lord Irvine of Lairg
Succeeded byThe Lord Kingsland
Lord Chancellor
In office
28 October 1987 – 2 May 1997
MonarchElizabeth II
Prime Minister
Preceded byThe Lord Havers
Succeeded byThe Lord Irvine of Lairg
Lord of Appeal in Ordinary
In office
1 October 1985 – 28 October 1987
Preceded byThe Lord Fraser of Tullybelton
Succeeded byThe Lord Jauncey of Tullichettle
Lord Advocate
In office
5 May 1979 – 16 May 1984
Prime MinisterMargaret Thatcher
Preceded byRonald King Murray
Succeeded byThe Lord Cameron of Lochbroom
Member of the House of Lords
Lord Temporal
Life peerage
6 July 1979 – 22 July 2022
Personal details
Born(1927-07-02)2 July 1927
Edinburgh, Scotland
Died7 July 2026(2026-07-07) (aged 99)
PartyConservative
Spouse
Elizabeth Hymers
​
(m. 1958)​
EducationUniversity of Edinburgh
Trinity College, Cambridge

James Peter Hymers Mackay, Baron Mackay of Clashfern (2 July 1927 – 7 July 2026) was a British lawyer. He served as Dean of the Faculty of Advocates, Lord Advocate, and Lord Chancellor (1987–1997). He was an active member of the House of Lords, where he sat as a Conservative; Mackay retired from the House on 22 July 2022.[1]

Early life and education

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Mackay was born in Edinburgh on 2 July 1927.[2] He was the son of railway signalman James Mackay and his wife Janet Hymers.[2] They were both from the far north of Scotland, with his father originally coming from the farm of Claisfearn near Tarbet in Sutherland, and his mother coming from Caithness. He grew up as an only child, and his family were devout members of the Free Presbyterian Church of Scotland.[3]

Having won a scholarship, he was educated at George Heriot's School, an independent school in Edinburgh.[4] He then studied mathematics and physics at the University of Edinburgh, receiving a joint undergraduate Master of Arts (MA Hons) degree in 1948.[2] Mackay taught mathematics for two years at the University of St Andrews.[2] He then moved to Trinity College, Cambridge, on a scholarship, from which he obtained a Bachelor of Arts (BA) degree in mathematics in 1952.[2] He returned to Scotland, studying law at the University of Edinburgh, and graduated with a Bachelor of Laws (LLB) degree with distinction in 1955.[2]

Career

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Mackay giving a public lecture at LSE in 1989

Mackay was elected to the Faculty of Advocates in 1955. He was appointed a Queen's Counsel in 1965.[2] He was Sheriff Principal for Renfrew and Argyll from 1972 to 1974.[2] In 1973 he became vice-dean of the Faculty on Advocates and from 1976 until 1979 served as its dean, the leader of the Scots bar.[2]

In 1979, Mackay was appointed Lord Advocate, the senior law officer in Scotland, and was created a life peer as Baron Mackay of Clashfern, of Eddrachillis in the District of Sutherland; he took his territorial designation from his father's birthplace, a cottage beside Loch na Claise Fearna (located next to the A894 between Scourie and Laxford Bridge).[5] After his retirement as Lord Advocate in 1984, Mackay was active in the House of Lords until 22 July 2022.[6] His final contribution was during a debate on Seafarers' Wages Bill on 20 July 2022.[7]

He served as Lord of Appeal in Ordinary for two years between 1985 and 1987, and as Lord Chancellor for a decade after.[8] He was also Commissary to the University of Cambridge in the period between 2003 and 2016.[8] He was the editor-in-chief of Halsbury's Laws of England, the major legal work which states the law of England, first published in 1907; the post is usually held by a former Lord Chancellor.[9]

Personal life

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Family and religion

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A tree planted in the grounds of the National Law School of India University in Bangalore by Lord Mackay of Clashfern

Mackay married Elizabeth Gunn Hymers, of Halkirk, in 1958. They had a son, James, and two daughters, Elizabeth and Shona,[10] as well as several grandchildren and great-grandchildren.

Mackay was raised a member of the Free Presbyterian Church of Scotland; as an adult he was an elder of the church.[2] The church forbids its members to attend Catholic religious services; nevertheless Mackay attended two Catholic funeral Masses for members of the judiciary (for Charles Ritchie Russell in 1986,[5] and again for John Wheatley in 1988).[2] Following the second Mass Mackay was called before a church synod where he denied that he had broken the church's prohibition of showing "support for the doctrine of Catholicism", saying "I went there purely with the purpose of paying my respects to my dead colleagues."[11] The church suspended Mackay from the eldership and from membership.[2] The synod met again in Glasgow in 1989 to review the decision; the meeting asked Mackay to undertake not to attend further Catholic services, but he announced "I have no intention of giving any such undertaking as that for which the synod has asked",[12] and later withdrew from the church. The dispute precipitated a schism, leading to the formation of the Associated Presbyterian Churches. Mackay did not join the new communion, but as of 1993 worshipped with their Inverness congregation.[5] While on duties in London, he was also a regular worshipper at All Souls Church, Langham Place, a conservative evangelical church within the Church of England.[13][14]

As a Presbyterian, Mackay was a firm believer in moderation. At a gathering for the Faculty of Advocates, Mackay had laid on a spread of tea and toast, complete with a tiny pot of honey. One of the lawyers in attendance contemplated the pot and remarked, "I see your Lordship keeps a bee."[15][16] Mackay was also the Honorary President of the Scottish Bible Society until his death.[17] He supported the society's programme to send a Bible to every law court in Scotland[17] and wrote in support of "The Bible in Scots Law", a pamphlet it distributed to Scottish lawyers which described the Bible as a "foundational source book for Scotland's legal system".[18] He was a strict sabbatarian, refusing to work or travel on a Sunday, or even to give an interview if there was a chance it could be rebroadcast on the sabbath.[5]

Death

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Mackay died at home on 7 July 2026, at the age of 99.[19][20] He was survived by his wife, Elizabeth ("Bett"), as well as children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren. A North Memorial Service took place on Wednesday 15 July at 11.30am at Kingsview Christian Centre, Inverness, which is the Inverness branch of the APC denomination. His Funeral Service took place on 23 July at St. Giles' Cathedral, in Edinburgh, followed by his interment in Dean Cemetery.[21]

Honours and arms

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Styles of
The Lord Mackay of Clashfern
Reference styleHis Lordship
Spoken styleYour Lordship
Alternative styleSir

Mackay was appointed a Knight of the Thistle by Queen Elizabeth II on 27 November 1997.[22] In 2007, the Queen appointed him to the office of Lord Clerk Register, replacing David Charteris, 12th Earl of Wemyss.[23] He retired from this office in November 2022, and was succeeded by Lady Elish Angiolini.[24] He became a fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh in 1984.[25] In 1989, he was elected honorary fellow of Trinity College, Cambridge.[26] He received an honorary doctorate from Heriot-Watt University in 1990.[27]

He was awarded an honorary degree (Doctor of Laws) by the University of Bath in 1994[28] and by Northumbria University in 2017.[29]

Coat of arms of James Mackay, Baron Mackay of Clashfern
Coronet
Coronet of a Baron
Crest
A Dexter Arm couped at the Elbow proper the hand grasping a Pair of Balances Or
Escutcheon
Azure on a Chevron Argent between two Bears' Heads couped Argent muzzled Gules in chief and a Fleece Argent in base a Roebuck's Head erased between two Hands grasping Daggers the points turned towards the buck's head all proper
Supporters
Dexter: a Male Figure attired in the Robes of the Lord High Chancellor; Sinister: a Male Figure attired in the Robes of one of Her Majesty's Counsel learned in the Law in Scotland proper
Motto
Manu Justi (With the hand of a just man)[30]
Orders
Order of the Thistle

References

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  1. ↑ "Lord Mackay of Clashfern". UK Parliament. Archived from the original on 5 July 2022. Retrieved 22 July 2022.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 O'Connor, J. J. and Robertson, E. F. (April 2006). "James Peter Hymers Mackay". The MacTutor History of Mathematics archive. School of Mathematics and Statistics, University of St Andrews. Archived from the original on 31 January 2020. Retrieved 31 January 2020.
  3. ↑ Bates, Stephen (8 July 2026). "Lord Mackay of Clashfern obituary". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 15 July 2026.
  4. ↑ "James Mackay, Lord Mackay of Clashfern, b. 1927. Judge and Lord Chancellor". National Galleries of Scotland. Retrieved 15 July 2016.
  5. 1 2 3 4 McCrystal, Cal (12 December 1993). "Profile: Never on a Sunday: The Lord Chancellor is a tireless legal reformer, but only six days a week". The Independent.
  6. ↑ "Parliamentary career for Lord Mackay of Clashfern – MPs and Lords – UK Parliament". members.parliament.uk. Archived from the original on 5 July 2022. Retrieved 8 July 2026.
  7. ↑ "Lords Chamber: Volume 823: debated on Wednesday 20 July 2022". Hansard Parliament. Retrieved 15 July 2026.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  8. 1 2 "Experience for Lord Mackay of Clashfern – MPs and Lords – UK Parliament". members.parliament.uk. Archived from the original on 12 August 2025. Retrieved 8 July 2026.
  9. ↑ "Halsbury's Laws : History". LexisNexis. Archived from the original on 22 July 2012. Retrieved 10 July 2012.
  10. ↑ "Lady Mackay flown to hospital after breaking leg hillwalking". The Glasgow Herald. 9 June 1998. Archived from the original on 21 January 2022. Retrieved 21 January 2022.
  11. ↑ "British Lord Goes to Funerals, Loses Church Post". Associated Press (Los Angeles Times). 6 November 1988. Retrieved 10 July 2012.
  12. ↑ "British official quits church over its curbs". Toledo Blade. 28 May 1989. p. 5.
  13. ↑ Gibb, Frances (30 July 2022). "Lord Mackay: 'Margaret Thatcher stuck to the rules. Boris Johnson didn't'". The Times. Retrieved 11 August 2026.
  14. ↑ Sarah Mullally, The Archbishop of Canterbury (9 July 2026). "Tributes: Lord Mackay of Clashfern". Parliamentary Debates (Hansard). Vol. 858. United Kingdom: House of Lords. col. 262–263.
  15. ↑ McCartney, Jenny (18 May 2008). "How little Leo Blair was conceived is definitely too much information". The Daily Telegraph. Archived from the original on 14 January 2018. Retrieved 27 February 2017.
  16. ↑ This jest is also associated with Jimmy Shand http://logicsrock.blogspot.com/2014/09/i-see-you-keep-bee-and-why-yessers.html Archived 2 April 2024 at the Wayback Machine.
  17. 1 2 "Bibles for the courts". Scottish Bible Society. July 2010. Archived from the original on 29 August 2010.
  18. ↑ MacQueen, Hector L and Wortley, Scott (22 August 2010). "The Bible in Scots law". Scots Law News. School of Law, University of Edinburgh. Archived from the original on 23 July 2012.
  19. ↑ "Former Lord Chancellor Lord James Mackay of Clashfern dies aged 99". The Standard. 7 July 2026. Retrieved 7 July 2026.
  20. ↑ "James Peter Hymers, The Rt Hon The Lord Mackay of Clashfern KT". The Times. 14 July 2026. Retrieved 14 July 2026.
  21. ↑ "MACKAY OF CLASHFERN". www.facebook.com. 14 July 2026. Retrieved 15 July 2026.
  22. ↑ "No. 24306". The Edinburgh Gazette. 28 November 1997. p. 3025.
  23. ↑ "Lord Clerk Register appointed". Scottish Executive. 27 April 2007. Archived from the original on 7 June 2011. Retrieved 3 May 2007.
  24. ↑ "New Lord Clerk Register of Scotland". Scottish Courts and Tribunals Service. 5 June 2023. Archived from the original on 5 June 2023. Retrieved 5 June 2023.
  25. ↑ "Fellows > Lord James Mackay of Clashfern FRSE". The Royal Society of Edinburgh. Retrieved 15 July 2026.
  26. ↑ "Trinity College, Cambridge – Honorary Fellows". Trinity College, Cambridge. Archived from the original on 3 March 2016. Retrieved 4 March 2014.
  27. ↑ "Heriot-Watt University Edinburgh: Honorary Graduates". www1.hw.ac.uk. Archived from the original on 18 April 2016. Retrieved 4 April 2016.
  28. ↑ "Honorary Graduates 1989 to present". bath.ac.uk. University of Bath. Archived from the original on 19 December 2015. Retrieved 18 February 2012.
  29. ↑ "Former Lord Chancellor honoured by Northumbria University". Mynewsdesk. 13 July 2017. Archived from the original on 17 July 2021. Retrieved 17 July 2021.
  30. ↑ Debrett's Peerage. 2019. p. 3500.
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