Sir James William Montgomery, 1st Baronet (1721 – 2 April 1803) was a Scottish politician and judge.
Called to the bar in 1743, he was sheriff of Peeblesshire from 1748 and joint Solicitor General for Scotland from 1760, holding the office solely from 1764. He was promoted to Lord Advocate in 1766. He was created Lord Chief Baron of the Scottish Exchequer in 1775. He resigned from the bench and was created a Baronet in 1801.
He was Member of Parliament for Dumfries Burghs in 1766, and for Peeblesshire in 1768. He introduced measures for the reform of the law of entail in the Entail Improvement Act 1770.
Sir James and his wife, Margaret Scott, are buried in a walled-off part of the cemetery at Stobo Kirk near Peebles, with an unusual wall lining of yew hedge. His home had been the nearby Stobo Castle, which he purchased in 1767 for the sum of £40,500.[1]
| Academic offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by The Lord Cathcart |
Rector of the University of Glasgow 1775—1777 |
Succeeded by Andrew Stewart of Torrance |
| Peerage of Scotland | ||
| New creation | Baronet ( of Stanhope) 1801—1803 |
Succeeded by James Montgomery |