Those who knew him may jolt at the comparison but Muhammad Ali springs to mind when thinking of Sheriff Alastair Carmichael.

Only one of them possessed larger-than-life flamboyance and a penchant for braggadocious poetry that matched pugilistic powers.

The other was more adept in the art of dishing out wry one-liners in the legal arena but with humility that would put the Dalai Lama to shame.

Both men were afflicted by a neurodegenerative disorder – the sheriff with motor neurone disease (MND) and Ali, notably, with Parkinson’s after years of absorbing pounding blows to the head.

It is not solely their merciless afflictions that unite them but instead, the colossal stoicism they displayed in the fights that claimed their lives.

Shock reverberated around the corridors of Dundee Sheriff Court when news spread in early 2024 of the sheriff’s diagnosis.

Many expected him to quietly exit stage left in the hope his remaining years would be spent sipping tropical fluorescent drinks as his toes tickled turquoise waters.

A miracle would be required to keep him on the bench.

To steal a quip from Hugh McIlvanney after witnessing Ali’s Rumble in the Jungle knockout of George Foreman, Sheriff Carmichael rolled away the rock and hit MND over the head with it.

What he achieved while the cruellest of ailments eroded his body – but never his mind – was herculean.

This tribute is not intended to be a detailed biography of his life and times but to provide a mere flavour of a man who was revered by his friends and colleagues.

I first came across the sheriff in early 2017 as a reporter who was new to the city but not to a courtroom.

His communication style was statesmanlike; clear and effective, always affable, never brusque or patronising to those who addressed him even during arduous days in the unforgiving court one which has occasionally masqueraded as a Roman amphitheatre.

The sheriff’s congeniality often lulled people into........

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