The Aberdeen Law Project is honoured to announce that The Right Honourable Lady Carmichael will deliver the keynote address at its Annual Lecture, scheduled to take place on 10 April 2026.
Lady Carmichael was appointed as a judge of the Supreme Courts in May 2016 and was elevated to the Inner House of the Court of Session in February 2025.
She is a graduate of the University of Glasgow and became an advocate in 1993. She was appointed as a Queen’s Counsel in 2008. During her time in practice she served as a convenor of the Mental Health Tribunal for Scotland, a part time sheriff and as a deputy judge of the Upper Tribunal (Administrative Appeals Chamber).
Lady Carmichael is a member of the Upper Tribunal for Scotland and has been a member of the Investigatory Powers Tribunal since 2019. In November 2025 she was appointed as President of that tribunal. She sat in family actions in the Court of Session from 2022 to 2025. She is a member of the Civil Justice Council for Scotland and the chair of the council’s Access to Justice Committee.
The Annual Lecture serves as a platform for leading legal figures to share their expertise with students, professionals, and the wider public. This year’s event will undoubtedly benefit from Lady Carmichael’s extensive experience and thought-provoking perspectives in her speech on “Law Clinics: access to justice and legal education”
Lady Carmichael said: “Law clinic work is formative for student lawyers, and potentially transformative for those who receive assistance from them.”
Anna Robertson, Chair of the ALP Board, said: “It is a privilege to welcome the Right Honourable Lady Carmichael to deliver this year’s Annual Lecture. Her engagement and leadership with issues at the heart of our justice system make her a particularly fitting speaker. We are grateful for her support of the work of ALP.”
Co-Student Directors Jonathan Blackwood & Emma Naylor said: “We are delighted to welcome the Right Honourable Lady Carmichael as the keynote speaker at this year’s annual lecture. Her distinguished legal career, together with her continued commitment to upholding the rule of law and advancing access to justice, will undoubtedly inspire all those in attendance.”