William Milligan, Lord Milligan

William Milligan
William Milligan
	Milligan in 1952, by Walter Stoneman
Born	12 December 1898
Died	28 July 1975 (aged 76)
Nationality	British
Education	Sherborne School; University College, Oxford; University of Glasgow

William Rankine Milligan, Lord Milligan, PC (12 December 1898 – 28 July 1975) was a Scottish judge and Unionist politician. He served as Solicitor General for Scotland and Lord Advocate.

Early life

Milligan was educated at Sherborne School, University College, Oxford, and the University of Glasgow. In the First World War, Milligan served with the Highland Light Infantry from 1917 to 1919. Milligan was a noted athlete and ran for the Achilles Club.^[1] He won the mile relay AAA Championships title at the 1920 AAA Championships, with Philip Noel-Baker, C. F. Wood and Bevil Rudd.^[2]

Milligan was admitted as an advocate in 1925, and appointed a King's Counsel in 1945. He was appointed Solicitor General for Scotland from 1951 to 1954,^[3] and Lord Advocate from 1955^[4] to 1960, and was made a Privy Counsellor in 1955. He was appointed to the College of Justice in 1960, with the judicial title Lord Milligan.

Milligan was an unsuccessful parliamentary candidate at Glasgow St Rollox in 1945^[5] and again at Central Ayrshire in 1950 and 1951, and was elected for Edinburgh North in a 1955 by-election,^[6] where he served until 1960.

^ "The Athletic Championships". Weekly Dispatch (London). 4 July 1920. Retrieved 28 November 2024 – via British Newspaper Archive.
^ "Athletics". Newcastle Journal. 5 July 1920. Retrieved 23 November 2024 – via British Newspaper Archive.
^ "No. 16906". The Edinburgh Gazette. 9 November 1951. p. 565.
^ "No. 17250". The Edinburgh Gazette. 11 January 1955. p. 13.
^ Craig, F. W. S. (1983) [1969]. British parliamentary election results 1918–1949 (3rd ed.). Chichester: Parliamentary Research Services. p. 596. ISBN 0-900178-06-X.
^ "No. 40397". The London Gazette. 1 February 1955. p. 647.

Parliament of the United Kingdom
Preceded by James Latham Clyde	Member of Parliament for Edinburgh North 1955–1960	Succeeded by Earl of Dalkeith
Legal offices
Preceded by Douglas Johnston	Solicitor General for Scotland 1951–1954	Succeeded by William Grant
Preceded by James Latham Clyde	Lord Advocate 1955–1960	Succeeded by William Grant