Elish Angiolini

Lady Elish Frances Angiolini (McPhilomy; born 24 June 1960 ) is a Scottish lawyer who currently serves as Lord Clerk Register.

Angiolini currently works at the University of Oxford and is a candidate in the 2024 University of Oxford Chancellor election.

Angiolini was born into a family of Irish Catholic descent on 24 June 1960, her parents being Mary (née Magill) and James McPhilomy.

She grew up in Govan, Glasgow; her father was a coal merchant and later worked for Rolls-Royce and then as a commercial driver.

As a child she wanted to be a ballet dancer.

One of her first summer jobs was working on a checkout at Marks & Spencer.

She was educated at Notre Dame High School for Girls in the West End of the city, and studied at the School of Law of the University of Strathclyde, obtaining an LL.B. (Hons) degree in 1982 and a Diploma in Legal Practice in 1983.

Angiolini's first encounter with the legal profession came when, as a teenager, she was asked to give evidence in a burglary trial.

Later, she recalled: "I was not terribly impressed. There were a lot of important people in gowns and witnesses were left a very long time in the witness room and not given any information... All the attention was focused on the permanent figures of the court, while ... witnesses, and those in the dock, seemed irrelevant".

The experience inspired Angiolini to pursue a career in law.

Later as Regional Procurator Fiscal, Angiolini piloted a victim liaison scheme which was subsequently extended throughout Scotland.

Upon completing her legal studies, she joined the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service to train as a Procurator Fiscal (public prosecutor).

Whilst a trainee, she survived the Polmont rail accident; two passengers sitting next to her were killed.

Following her training, Angiolini spent eight years as a Depute Procurator Fiscal in Airdrie, prosecuting in Airdrie Sheriff Court.

In 1992, she was seconded to the Crown Office where she worked in the Lord Advocate's Secretariat.

During her secondment, she developed an interest in improving the support offered to vulnerable victims and witnesses, and in particular to children.

She was then appointed Senior Depute Procurator Fiscal at Glasgow, taking operational responsibility for Sheriff and Jury prosecutions.

In 1995, she was promoted to Assistant Procurator Fiscal at Glasgow.

In 1997, Angiolini returned to the Crown Office as Head of Policy, with responsibility for the development of policy across all functions of the department.

In particular, she helped the department prepare for devolution and was involved in the preparation of the Scotland Act 1998.

At the same time, Angiolini was responsible for the department's preparations for the introduction of the Human Rights Act 1998.

She was then appointed Regional Procurator Fiscal for Grampian, Highland and Islands (based at Aberdeen) on 27 July 2000 – the first woman to hold such a post.

In this role she piloted a victim liaison scheme which was subsequently extended across the country.

Angiolini was appointed Solicitor General for Scotland by First Minister Jack McConnell in 2001.

Angiolini was the first solicitor, as opposed to advocate, to be appointed Solicitor General; this was not received favourably amongst all members of the legal profession.

She was the Lord Advocate of Scotland from 2006 until 2011, having previously been Solicitor General since 2001.

She was the first woman, the first procurator fiscal, and the first solicitor to hold either post.

Since leaving office she has led several investigations and inquiries, including a review of deaths in police custody commissioned by the then-Home Secretary Theresa May and the Angiolini Inquiry into the Murder of Sarah Everard, which reported in February 2024.

In 2006, McConnell praised Angiolini's work as Solicitor General, saying the decision to appoint her had been one of the best he had ever made.

Following the resignation of Lord Boyd, McConnell nominated Angiolini for the post of Lord Advocate.

Her nomination was passed by Parliament on 5 October 2006, with 99 in favour, 0 against and 15 abstentions.

She was sworn in at the Court of Session on 12 October 2006 and one month later she was made a member of the Privy Council.

After the 2007 election, there was speculation that the new SNP administration might replace Angiolini.

On the morning after the election, Angiolini had cleared her office and was preparing to leave when she received a phone call from Alex Salmond, the new First Minister.

Angiolini congratulated Salmond on his election, and said that she had packed up her things.

Since September 2012, Angiolini has been the Principal of St Hugh's College, Oxford.

She also served as Chancellor of the University of the West of Scotland from 2013 to 2021.

In June 2022, she was appointed a Lady of the Order of the Thistle by Queen Elizabeth II.

In June 2023, she was appointed to the office of Lord Clerk Register by King Charles III, the first woman to hold the role since its creation in the 13th century.

She has been a pro-vice-chancellor of the University of Oxford since 2017 and is an Honorary Professor of the Chinese University of Hong Kong.