An Advocate's Tale - Reviews & Comments

Author : Lord Brand
Category: Biography


'He was a friendly and much-respected figure in Parliament House from 1948 to just before his death in April 1996... [he was] a courageous soldier, someone with a very engaging sense of humour and a lover of the outdoors. He had a lasting fund of stories of Parliament House and contributed a great deal to life there and to the stature of the law in Scotland. He will be sadly missed and this book, published just before his death, provides a timely reminder of his valuable contribution to the legal landscape of Scotland.'
The Scotsman
"Our extract from An Advocate's Tale, has had the populace crying out for more. Thus we offer this second fragment ... "The interior decoration and facilities provided for members of the legal profession were remarkable and, one trusts, unique. The decor could only be described as 'Victorian', the walls being lined with glazed green titles. Unhappily, the impression of ample sanitation was belied by the facts. Any member of the legal profession who required to answer the call of nature had to obtain a key from the gentleman in the library -- who rejoiced in the grandiloquent title of 'Librarian'. When asked, he handed the key over with admonition, 'Mind tae bring it back!' What sanitary provision was made for the needs of the public, I do not know. It can only have been Dickensian!"
The Herald
'A lively and often humorous autobiographical account by one of our foremost judges, Solicitor-General for Scotland between the years 1970 and 1972. Many stories focus on the old judicial ways but there are also up-to-the-minute comments on the legal profession today. Several interesting trials are recalled in detail.'
The Scots Magazine
'There are stories of famous cases and of senior colleagues with nicknames like ‘Thrawn Jimmy’, ‘The Wee Grocer’ and ‘The Puffin’, and revelations of stupid, pompous and self-important legal luminaries. But you’ll have to read the book to discover who they were.'
Dumfries Courier
'This is a short but highly entertaining book. The late Lord Brand takes us from his childhood to his retirement. There are sketches of the bar and bench in the early and later parts of the twentieth century. The book can be read at a sitting and is well worth it.'
DJ Cusine, Journal of the Law Society of Scotland

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An Advocate's Tale