He was born in Glasgow on 21 October 1917 the son of Dorothy Grieve (née Crichton).
He never knew his father, Lt William Robertson Grieve, who served in the Highland Light Infantry and was killed in the Battle of Arras on 28 April 1917.
He was from a relatively well off family, his grandfather having created the warehousing company W R Grieve Ltd.[1] He was educated at Glasgow Academy and Sedbergh School then studied Law at Glasgow University graduating MA in 1939.
His career was interrupted by the Second World War during which he served as a Lt Commander in the RNVR.
In June 1972 he was elected a Senator of the College of Justice under the title of Lord Grieve.