Rita Rae KC (The Honourable Lady Rae) was educated in Lanarkshire in Scotland and after graduating in 1972 with an honours degree in law from the University of Edinburgh she began her career as a solicitor. She quickly rose to the position of partner in a leading Glasgow firm of solicitors. In 1982 she joined the male-dominated Faculty of Advocates in Edinburgh. Her workload as an advocate varied, including children’s cases, high-profile criminal work and she also appeared in the Court of Human rights in Strasbourg. She worked as a Sheriff across Scotland and a temporary High Court Judge before being appointed as a Senator of the College of Justice in 2014. She also served as an Upper Tribunal Judge in immigration and asylum cases; a member and then vice chair of the Parole Board for Scotland; and a member of the Sentencing Commission for Scotland. She retired from her judicial role in June 2020 but continued to sit part-time thereafter.
In June 2019, she was awarded an Honorary doctorate in Laws from the University of Glasgow in recognition of her career and contribution to the legal world. In November 2022 Lady Rae received a Fellowship from New College Lanarkshire. She was privileged to appear on the BBC programme, “Desert Island Discs” in 2024.
Lady Rae has mentored a number of students throughout her career and has a particular interest in supporting those who are less privileged, whether that be through scholarship funding or supporting other charitable projects.
She served as the University of Glasgow’s first female working rector from 2021-2024.
She is currently the Vice Chair of a Glasgow Adoption and Fostering Society (St Margaret’s) and in January 2022 she became the first chair of the Scottish Catholic Safeguarding Standards Agency. Her interests include a love of theatre, classical music and fast cars!"
