Head of Sir Patrick Fraser on his grave, Dean Cemetery

Grave of Sir Patrick Fraser, Dean Cemetery

The grave of Patrick Fraser, Dean Cemetery

Patrick Fraser, Lord Fraser LLD (1817–1889) was a Scottish judge and legal scholar.

Life

He was born in

Perth Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia. It is the fourth most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of 2.1 million (80% of the state) living in Greater Perth in 2020. Perth is ...

in 1819 the son of Patrick Fraser, a merchant. After studies at

Perth Grammar School Perth Grammar School is a secondary school in Perth, Scotland. It is located in the Muirton district of Perth at the junction of Bute Drive and Gowans Terrace. The catchment serves the area to the north of Perth between Murthly and Methven whi ...

and then studying law at the

University of St Andrews (Aien aristeuein) , motto_lang = grc , mottoeng = Ever to ExcelorEver to be the Best , established = , type = Public research university Ancient university , endowment ...

, he was admitted to the bar of the

Court of Session The Court of Session is the supreme civil court of Scotland and constitutes part of the College of Justice; the supreme criminal court of Scotland is the High Court of Justiciary. The Court of Session sits in Parliament House in Edinburgh ...

in 1843, where he participated in some of the most prominent cases of his time. In 1864 he was made

Sheriff of Renfrew A sheriff is a government official, with varying duties, existing in some countries with historical ties to England where the office originated. There is an analogous, although independently developed, office in Iceland that is commonly transla ...

shire. The

University of Edinburgh The University of Edinburgh ( sco, University o Edinburgh, gd, Oilthigh Dhùn Èideann; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in post-nominals) is a public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Granted a royal charter by King James VI in 15 ...

awarded him an honorary doctorate (LLD) in 1871 for his historical research. Following the resignation of Lord Gifford due to ill-health, Fraser became a Lord of Session, and was given the title Lord Fraser. He served as

Dean of the Faculty of Advocates The Dean of the Faculty of Advocates, also known as the Dean of Faculty, is the head of the Faculty of Advocates, the independent body for advocates in Scotland. The Dean is elected by the whole membership. List of deans of Faculty * 1582 to ??? ...

from 1878 to 1881 and was created

Queen's Counsel In the United Kingdom and in some Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth countries, a King's Counsel (Post-nominal letters, post-nominal initials KC) during the reign of a king, or Queen's Counsel (post-nominal initials QC) during the reign of ...

in 1880. In Edinburgh he lived at 5 Heriot Row in the New Town.Edinburgh and Leith Post Office Directory 1861-62 Fraser published widely in the area of commercial and family law. He was among those who established the tradition of scientific

monograph A monograph is a specialist work of writing (in contrast to reference works) or exhibition on a single subject or an aspect of a subject, often by a single author or artist, and usually on a scholarly subject. In library cataloging, ''monograph ...

s treating specific questions of law from a critical historical and philosophical point of view. He died at Gattonside House near Melrose on 27 March 1889. He is buried in

Dean Cemetery The Dean Cemetery is a historically important Victorian cemetery north of the Dean Village, west of Edinburgh city centre, in Scotland. It lies between Queensferry Road and the Water of Leith, bounded on its east side by Dean Path and on ...

on the south side of one of the north paths in the original cemetery, towards the west end.

Family

He married Margaret Ann Sharp, daughter of a

Birmingham Birmingham ( ) is a city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands in England. It is the second-largest city in the United Kingdom with a population of 1.145 million in the city proper, 2.92 million in the West ...

merchant. They had one son and four daughters.

Publications

*''A Treatise on the Law of Scotland as applicable to Personal and Domestic Relationships'' (1846) *''Tytler's History of Scotland Examined'' (1848) *''Domestic Economy, Gymnastics and Music'' (1855) *''The Conflict of Laws in Cases of Divorce'' (1860) *''A Sketch of the Career of Duncan Forbes of Culloden'' (1875) *''A treatise on Husband and Wife, according to the Law of Scotland'' (1876) *''Treatise on Master and Servant, Employer and Workman, and Master and Apprentice according to the Law of Scotland'' (1882)

References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Fraser, Patrick 1817 births 1889 deaths Lawyers from Edinburgh People from Perth, Scotland Alumni of the University of St Andrews Scottish sheriffs Senators of the College of Justice Deans of the Faculty of Advocates Scottish legal scholars 19th-century Scottish judges