Obituary: Bill Liddell

Bill Liddell arrived in Oban in 1946 having graduated BL at Glasgow University ten years earlier after education at Albert Road Academy. He served with gallantry during the war being awarded a Military Cross for bravery but with a modesty that was entirely typical of him he always managed to divert any questioning about its circumstances. In a moving tribute from a former Army colleague which appeared in the newsletter of the 15th Scottish Reconnaisance Regimental Association it was recalled that when Bill was forced to wear his medals they were arranged in such a way that the MC slipped behind his lapel to be seen no more. Respect and affection for someone do not always go together but that tribute made clear the genuinely high regard which Bill’s men had for him.

On his arrival in Oban, Bill joined Hosack & Sutherland, one of the oldest and most respected legal practices in the western highlands. He was an outstanding solicitor – not necessarily in the academic sense although he had far more than a basic knowledge of the law to see him through. He was not the sort of man who would spend time in long-winded scholarly legal arguments. He was a man for the people. He was trusted and vast numbers of people chose him as the person to consult on whatever it was they needed help with. But it was not just the trust that attracted clients to Bill. It was the fact that he could talk to everyone at their own level, whatever that might be and they were wholly at ease with him. Although Bill was correct and proper he put on no airs and graces and seemed to have no difficulty in getting over the problem that some incomers can have. These characteristics of Bill’s became very apparent to me soon after I joined him in the practice in 1960. An incomer myself, I was keen to acquire my own clients and make my own contribution. I was therefore more than a little jealous when a lady of my vintage – 20 years younger than Bill – said to me that if ever she had a problem of any kind, Bill Liddell was the person she would go to “I could trust him and I could talk to him”.

Bill’s staff thought very highly of him – a fact that only became really clear to me as the years ahead unfolded. I gave up counting the number of times former staff members and clients would meet me in the street and ask “How’s Mr Liddell?. He was always such a gentleman”.

Certainly, while Bill had strong enough views of his own – sometimes, inevitably views I did not share – he was always calm and polite and I do not ever recall him losing his temper or raising his voice, despite the day to day pressures and worries of business. They say that the best partnerships are those where the individuals are very different!

Despite being conscientious – for example Bill hardly ever played golf during working times in case his clients felt he was neglecting their business – Bill was sensible enough not to allow the law to dominate his life. He had many other interests including a dedication to his church to which he willingly devoted a huge amount of his spare time. Not just the congregation but organisations like Christian Aid benefited. Clearly the influence of his father who had been a minister in East Kilbride lived on in him. It was there that he was born and brought up and Bill appears to have been a typically lively son of the manse.

Sport was Bill’s main recreation and he was more than just good at rugby, football, badminton, squash and, of course, especially golf. He began playing at five being taught by his own mother who was herself a West of Scotland Ladies Golf Champion. He also showed a great interest in cricket but I am not sure if he ever played. What I do know is that one summer an elderly lady client asked him to receive into safe custody her transistor radio while she holidayed for a few weeks on the Island of Mull. I used to collide with Bill as we ran in and out of the large storage room to get the latest test score.

I was, by my own stupidity, a victim of Bill’s inherent sporting talents. Thinking at 20 that 40 was old, I challenged him to a game of squash and was soundly beaten despite running around flat out for well over an hour. Bill hardly moved. I decided that two decades later I would be able to get my revenge but no one who witnessed Bill’s sporting prowess will be at all surprised that the result was exactly the same. The fact was that despite Bill’s 87 years of life, he never became old except within the last year when, with typical fortitude and concern only for others, he had to fight against a nasty illness.

Bill was appointed an Honorary Sheriff at Oban in 1980. He finally retired from legal practice in 1984 and his 18 years of retirement were well used with seemingly little change in his energy levels. Fortunately we were also allowed the benefit of his memory and we frequently saw him in the office. He therefore continued as a guide to me whenever he was needed. 42 years is a long time to be associated with a working colleague. I am grateful to them and especially for Bill’s tolerance. Like very many others, I shall miss him.

Our sympathy and our memories are passed on to his widow, Isobel, whom he married in 1942 and to Ian and Maureen and their families.

Graeme Pagan, Hosack & Sutherland