Obituary: Michael McGinley

Michael McGinley

Born and educated in Helensburgh, Michael attended the University of Aberdeen and took a joint law degree with modern languages. He served his legal apprenticeship with Maclay, Murray & Spens in Glasgow and joined the legal department of Dundee City Council in 1973 where he became a senior solicitor. 

In 1980 he set up his own firm and became one of a group of young working class Catholics to break into Dundee’s legal profession. That group included George Donnelly, Brian Fitzpatrick, William Boyle and the late Frank Doran with whom Michael established the law firm Doran & McGinley. When Frank Doran was elected Labour MP for Aberdeen South in 1987, Michael established a new firm, McGinley, Milne and McDonagh whose partners included the late Charlie Milne.

Michael quickly built up a thriving criminal practice and one of his earliest successes was in the celebrated Rowan Tree case in which the Dundee police dayshift required to be woken up to arrest members of the nightshift who had been caught looting the popular Rowan Tree pub in Lochee.

During his time at Dundee City Council, Michael joined the Labour Party and became the chairman of the council’s branch of the National Association of Local Government Officers which negotiated some of the best terms and conditions in Scotland. He was also a supporter of the work of the Scottish Catholic International Aid Fund. Michael was proud of his Irish roots and was a frequent visitor to his father’s native Donegal. His enthusiasm for the music of the Irish rebel band, The Wolf Tones, made his instruction by the Orange Order to secure permission to parade in Dundee somewhat excruciating but afforded his colleagues the opportunity for much light-hearted ribbing.

Michael’s commitment to social causes had been evident from his student days when he travelled from Helensburgh to Castlemilk in Glasgow to offer free legal advice at the local community centre. In 1984, I asked him to serve as Treasurer of the Dundee Miners’ Relief Committee which was set up to provide humanitarian aid to the families of striking Fife miners. Neither of us expected the strike to last a full year but the response of the Dundee public was amazing. The committee ‘adopted’ nearly 100 babies providing mothers with a complete layette. Food vans were driven to strike centres twice a week by Chilean refugees, the city’s bus drivers ensured that hundreds of Fife children were brought on buses to Dundee’s Camperdown Park for picnics and Michael always remained proud of his involvement.

In 1993, during the bitter Timex dispute, Michael was again on the side of the underdog offering legal advice and support to the strikers while defending pickets arrested during clashes with police.

Michael returned to the West Coast in retirement and spent many happy holidays visiting his brother Neil, a retired depute clerk to the justiciary, at his home in Donegal.

He died peacefully after a short illness and is survived by his sons Kevin and Johnny and daughters Eileen and Kirsteen. 

Michael McGinley. Born Helensburgh 10 June, 1949. Died in Rhu, 1 September 2018.

The funeral arrangements are: Michael’s body will be received into St Joseph’s Church, Helensburgh on Wednesday 5 September at 6 pm with Requiem Mass on Thursday 6 September at 10 am and burial thereafter at Helensburgh Cemetery.

Graham Ogilvy