Ronald David Mackay, Lord Eassie, (born 1945) is a Scottish lawyer and retired

judge A judge is a person who presides over court proceedings, either alone or as a part of a panel of judges. A judge hears all the witnesses and any other evidence presented by the barristers or solicitors of the case, assesses the credibility an ...

of the country's Supreme Courts, sitting in the

Inner House The Inner House is the senior part of the Court of Session, the supreme civil court in Scotland; the Outer House forms the junior part of the Court of Session. It is a court of appeal and a court of first instance. The chief justice is th ...

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 ...

Education

Mackay was educated at

Berwickshire High School Berwickshire High School is a six-year comprehensive school located west of Duns, Scotland. History It was first opened in 1896, by Walter John Mabbott, who was the first Rector of the school. It started out with accommodation for 80 pupils in ...

Duns Duns may refer to: * Duns, Scottish Borders, a town in Berwickshire, Scotland ** Duns railway station ** Duns F.C., a football club ** Duns RFC, a rugby football club ** Battle of Duns, an engagement fought in 1372 * Duns Scotus ( 1265/66–1308 ...

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...

, and studied 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 ...

( M.A. Hons.) and the

School of Law A law school (also known as a law centre or college of law) is an institution specializing in legal education, usually involved as part of a process for becoming a lawyer within a given jurisdiction. Law degrees Argentina In Argentina, ...

of 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 ...

(

LL.B. Bachelor of Laws ( la, Legum Baccalaureus; LL.B.) is an undergraduate law degree in the United Kingdom and most common law jurisdictions. Bachelor of Laws is also the name of the law degree awarded by universities in the People's Republic of Chi ...

Career

Mackay 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 constitu ...

(the Scottish Bar) in 1972. From 1979 to 1982, he worked in

Luxembourg Luxembourg ( ; lb, Lëtzebuerg ; french: link=no, Luxembourg; german: link=no, Luxemburg), officially the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, ; french: link=no, Grand-Duché de Luxembourg ; german: link=no, Großherzogtum Luxemburg is a small lan ...

for the

Court of Justice of the European Communities The Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) (french: Cour de justice de l'Union européenne or "''CJUE''"; Latin: Curia) is the judicial branch of the European Union (EU). Seated in the Kirchberg quarter of Luxembourg City, Luxembourg ...

.''The Right Hon Lord Eassie (Ronald David Mackay)''
Biography, University of Edinburgh, retrieved 01-06-2009 Mackay was appointed

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 1986, serving as a prosecutor in the

Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service The Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service is the independent public prosecution service for Scotland, and is a Ministerial Department of the Scottish Government. The department is headed by His Majesty's Lord Advocate, who under the S ...

until 1990. In 1997, Mackay was appointed a

Senator of the College of Justice The senators of the College of Justice 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 of Session); ...

and assumed the judicial title of Lord Eassie. On 15 July 2002 Lord Eassie succeeded Lord Gill as chairman of the

Scottish Law Commission The Scottish Law Commission is an advisory non-departmental public body of the Scottish Government. It was established in 1965 to keep Scots law under review and recommend necessary reforms to improve, simplify and update the country's legal sy ...

. He was a reappointed to a second three-year term in August 2005. Lord Eassie resigned his position on the Law Commission in order to serve on the

of the

. He was appointed to the

Privy Council A privy council is a body that advises the head of state of a state, typically, but not always, in the context of a monarchic government. The word "privy" means "private" or "secret"; thus, a privy council was originally a committee of the mon ...

on 19 October 2006."Privy Council Appointment of Lord Eassie"
Press Release, Office of the Prime Minter, No10.gov.uk, 20 October 2006, retrieved 01-06-2009 He retired from the bench in 2015, and in 2016 became a trustee of the Carnegie Trust for the Universities of Scotland."Nominated Members of the Carnegie Trust"
/ref>

Selected publications

*''Discussion paper on rape and other sexual Offences'', Scottish Law Commission Discussion Paper, Stationery Office, *''Discussion Paper On Land Registration Void And Voidable Titles'', Scottish Law Commission Discussion Paper, Stationery Office, 16 February 2004, *''Report On Registration Of Rights In Security By Companies'', Scottish Law Commission Report #197, Stationery Office, September 8, 2004,

Personal life

In 1988, he married Annette Frenkel, with whom he has one son, Colin. He is a member of the

New Club The New Club is a private social club in the New Town area of Edinburgh, Scotland. Founded in 1787, it is Scotland's oldest club. The club occupied premises on St Andrew Square from 1809 until 1837, when it moved to purpose-built rooms on ...

References

External links

Lord Eassie case reports
a listing of written opinions 2008/2009 for Lord Eassie {{DEFAULTSORT:Mackay, Ronald Living people 1945 births Alumni of the University of St Andrews Alumni of the University of Edinburgh 20th-century King's Counsel

Eassie Eassie is a village located along the A94 road in Angus, Scotland. The church in Eassie is dedicated to Saint Fergus, a monk who worked at nearby Glamis. Eassie is noted for the presence of the Eassie Stone, a carved Pictish stone. Other notable ...

Members of the Faculty of Advocates Members of the Privy Council of the United Kingdom People from the Scottish Borders People educated at Berwickshire High School Scottish King's Counsel