Born in East Anglia and brought up and educated in the north of England, Dr Stannard read law at the University of Oxford and subsequently taught Roman law at the University of Aberdeen from 1974 to 1976. He joined QUB in 1977.

Dr Stannard said: “I am an Englishman, born and brought up in England, and had never visited any part of Ireland until the day before the interview for my present post in May 1977. When I was offered and accepted the post, I certainly never imagined that I would still be here some 45 years later.

“Yet apart from a couple of occasions in my early years here, I have never had any desire to move. The credit for this must go to my many friends and colleagues, without whom I would be considerably at a loss.

“It is certainly a great privilege to be awarded the OBE, but it is an even greater privilege to have so many good people with whom to share it. All in all, I can no longer imagine living anywhere but Belfast, and I am encouraged to hope that I will still be able to make some contribution to the city, and to Queen’s in particular, over the years ahead.”

Professor Joan Loughrey, head of QUB School of Law, said: “This is such well deserved and well earned tribute to John’s long and dedicated service to legal education.

“John has made a huge contribution over many years and his inspirational teaching has made a difference to and is remembered by generations of students.

“I join with my colleagues, his students and our alumni thanking him for all he has done over a life time of service and in wishing him many congratulations.”

Dame Siobhan Keegan, the Lady Chief Justice of Northern Ireland, added: “I was delighted to learn that John had recently been awarded an OBE. This honour is richly deserved and rightly recognises John’s immense contribution to law at Queen’s University over many years.”