A Dundee lawyer is leaving behind the Scottish courtrooms and heading for a new life in a South Atlantic ”tropical paradise” after being appointed the first ever chief magistrate of St Helena.
John MacRitchie, who lives with his wife and two children in Broughty Ferry, will take up his new appointment on June 24. His family will fly in to spend their summer holiday with him on the exotic island once its airport is built in a £200 million project financed by the UK Government.
His new appointments also include that of chief coroner, registrar of lands, employment tribunal judge, president of the Land Planning and Development Appeals Tribunal, president of the Media Standards Commission and trustee of the Legal Assistance Fund.
Mr MacRitchie, who was born in Stornoway, has been approved for the posts by the governor of St Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha.
He said: ”It is a challenging role and a great honour to the Scottish legal profession for me to be appointed the first ever chief magistrate and to hold such other important offices in St Helena.
”An airport is in the process of being built and with the increase in resident workers and then tourists it is likely that St Helena has a great deal to look forward to in the next few years and I am excited to be part of that.”
The island of St Helena, an overseas territory of the UK, is of volcanic origin and covers 47 square miles in the South Atlantic Ocean.
It is over 4,000 miles from the UK and 700 miles south-east of Ascension Island and 1,700 miles from South Africa.
The island’s total population is around 4,000 about 25% of whom live in the capital Jamestown.
It is most famous for being the exiled home of Emperor Napoleon after his defeat at the Battle of Waterloo.