Described by a High Court Judge as “the most respected of his generation” and in the media as “one of the most acclaimed Scottish lawyers”, he was one the most experienced court lawyers of his generation and throughout his career he was associated with headline cases for household names. His client list included Paul McCartney, Billy Connolly, David Soul of Starsky and Hutch fame, Tommy Docherty, Jock Wallace and the legendary Jock Stein.

He was the only surviving Scottish lawyer with personal experience of capital murder cases, having been the junior member of the defence team in two capital murders, one of which resulted in the death penalty being carried out.

He was also involved in what was effectively the only war crimes case in this country when he acted for Scottish Television in successfully defending a libel action brought by Antanas Gecas, whom Scottish Television had named as a war criminal.

In addition, Len made a substantial contribution to the profession outside the courtroom. He was the first ever media spokesman for the Law Society of Scotland and lectured at Glasgow, Strathclyde and Adelaide Universities, as well as at Tulliallan Police College. He served on the Central Committee of the Law Society of Scotland for some eight years and was the committee’s vice-chairman for two. He also had spells as a temporary sheriff and as a part-time chairman of Employment Tribunals, Medical Appeal Tribunals and Social Security Appeal Tribunals. He latterly served as an ambassador for Glasgow Caledonian University.

Len was a much sought-after public speaker and one of the country’s foremost speakers on Robert Burns. Hs Immortal Memory has been described as “legendary” and by the then president of the Burns Federation as the best she had ever heard. He was Dean of the Guild of Robert Burns Speakers and spoke at over 400 Burns Suppers right across the world on five continents from Edmonton and Calgary in North West Canada to Camperdown and Melbourne in South East Australia. He was a member of the Executive Committee of the Burns Federation and an honorary president of Greenock Burns Club, the oldest Burns Club in the world.

David McKie, senior partner at Levy and McRae, paid tribute to his former mentor: “I watched in awe as he commanded a courtroom with his eloquence and persuasive skills.

“He was always at the end of the phone when I had a difficult legal call to make, when I was approving front pages of newspapers or the lead story on the news and his calm authority was a source of great reassurance to me.”

Peter Watson, a former colleague when he was at Levy and McRae added: “Len enjoyed a close working relationship with most senior members of the Scottish Bar who became judges.

“He was respected for his honesty, his integrity and the sense of humour which he used like a rapier to cut through any situation. He attracted clientele like no other lawyer I know.”