David Bruce Weir, Lord Weir (born 19 December 1931) is a Scottish retired lawyer and judge. He was a

Senator of the College of Justice The senators of the College of Justice in Scotland are judges of the College of Justice, a set of legal institutions involved in the administration of justice in Scotland. There are three types of senator: Lords of Session (judges of the Court ...

in Scotland from 1985 to 1997.

Biography

The son of a marine engineer, Weir was educated at

Kelvinside Academy Kelvinside Academy is a private day school in Glasgow, Scotland, founded in 1878. It has a capacity of over 600 pupils and spans two years of Nursery, six years of Junior School (primary school), a transition year of Senior Preparatory, and six ...

The Glasgow Academy The Glasgow Academy is a coeducational Private schools in the United Kingdom, private day school for pupils aged 3–18 in Glasgow, Scotland. In 2016, it had the third-best Higher level exam results in Scotland. Founded in 1845, it is the oldes ...

The Leys School The Leys School is a co-educational private school in Cambridge, England. It is a boarding and day school for about 565 pupils between the ages of eleven and eighteen. The head is a member of the Headmasters' and Headmistresses' Conference. ...

, before attending the

University of Glasgow The University of Glasgow (abbreviated as ''Glas.'' in Post-nominal letters, post-nominals; ) is a Public university, public research university in Glasgow, Scotland. Founded by papal bull in , it is the List of oldest universities in continuous ...

. He was admitted to the

Faculty of Advocates The Faculty of Advocates () is an independent body of lawyers who have been admitted to practise as advocates before the courts of Scotland, especially the Court of Session and the High Court of Justiciary. The Faculty of Advocates is a const ...

in 1959 and was appointed an

advocate depute The Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service () is the independent public prosecutor, prosecution service for Scotland, and is a Ministerial Department of the Scottish Government. The department is headed by Charles III of the United Kingd ...

in 1964. He became a

Queen's Counsel A King's Counsel (Post-nominal letters, post-nominal initials KC) is a senior lawyer appointed by the monarch (or their Viceroy, viceregal representative) of some Commonwealth realms as a "Counsel learned in the law". When the reigning monarc ...

in 1971. A keen sailor, he was a member of the

Royal Naval Reserve The Royal Naval Reserve (RNR) is one of the two volunteer reserve forces of the Royal Navy in the United Kingdom. Together with the Royal Marines Reserve, they form the Maritime Reserve. The present RNR was formed by merging the original ...

from 1955 until 1964. Lord Weir was appointed a

in 1985, in succession to

Lord Mackay of Clashfern James Peter Hymers Mackay, Baron Mackay of Clashfern (born 2 July 1927) is a British lawyer. He served as Dean of the Faculty of Advocates, Lord Advocate, and Lord Chancellor (1987–1997). He was formerly an active member of the House of Lords, ...

. He was installed on the same day as the retirement of his father-in-law, Lord Cameron. In 1990, he was one of three Scottish judges questioned by Lord Hope over allegations of homosexual conduct, which eventually led to the resignation of Lord Dervaird.{{Cite news , date=20 January 1990 , title=Scottish law chief rules out inquiry into judges’ lives , pages=2 , work=

The Daily Telegraph ''The Daily Telegraph'', known online and elsewhere as ''The Telegraph'', is a British daily broadsheet conservative newspaper published in London by Telegraph Media Group and distributed in the United Kingdom and internationally. It was found ...

His son Robert Weir, Lord Weir has been a Senator of the College of Justice since 2020, having taken the same judicial title as his father.

References

Scottish King's Counsel Senators of the College of Justice Scottish lawyers Members of the Faculty of Advocates Royal Naval Reserve personnel Alumni of the University of Glasgow Botswana judges