Supreme Court pays tribute to judge Lord Rodger

Supreme Court president Lord Phillips said: “I’m deeply distressed to learn of the death of Alan Rodger. For 10 years he’s been a mainstay of the Law Lords and of the Supreme Court. He was an outstanding jurist and a wonderful companion. His premature death is a tragic loss to the court and to the nation.”

Rodger joined the bar in 1974 and went on to take silk in 1985. Between 1989 and 1992 he was appointed solicitor general for Scotland before being made a life peer in 1992. In the same year he was elevated to the role of Lord Advocate for Scotland.

In 2009, he became one of two Scottish judges to be appointed to the Supreme Court alongside deputy Supreme Court president Lord Hope.

President of the Law Society of Scotland Cameron Ritchie said Roger was an “eminent and distinguished figure within the Scottish legal profession”.

He added: “His more recent role as a member of the UK Supreme Court; one of only two Scottish Judges served to underline his considerable contribution, not only to the justice system but to society as a whole. Above all he was a great ambassador for the Scottish legal profession and someone who will be greatly missed.”