Lord Mishcon, the former lawyer of Princess Diana, has died at the age of 90, his son has said.
The Labour life peer, best known for his role in Diana's divorce from Prince Charles, died at his home in Bayswater, London, after a long illness.
Lord Mishcon of Lambeth, who also served as shadow lord chancellor from 1990 to 1992, had an active career in local government in London.
He was also Labour home affairs spokesman from 1983 to 1990.
His son Peter Mishcon said: "He died at the end of a long life. He had just been declining for a long time."
'Respected'
Prime Minister Tony Blair was among those to pay tribute to Lord Mishcon, saying he would be greatly missed.
"Victor Mishcon was an outstanding servant to the Labour Party both in local government and as a member of the House of Lords," he said.
"The law, the Labour Party and the Lords have lost a very big man"
"He served for many years on the frontbench and his grasp of complex legal issues made him a formidable, highly persuasive and respected advocate and speaker."
Lord Mishcon, born in 1915 and educated at the City of London School, founded the firm of solicitors Victor Mishcon & Co in Brixton, south London, in 1937.
During his career in local government he served on Lambeth Borough Council, the Greater London Council and its predecessor London County Council.
He was made a life peer in 1978.
In 1988, Victor Mishcon & Co merged with part of Bartletts de Reya, forming the law firm Mishcon de Reya.
And in 1992, Lord Mishcon was the first practising solicitor to be made an honorary Queen's Counsel on the recommendation of the Lord Chancellor.
'Sorely missed'
On hearing the news of his death, the Lord Chancellor Lord Falconer said Lord Mishcon was "a wise and decent man, a great lawyer who founded and led a great law firm.
"He was a man who put every community of which he was a member before himself.
"The law, the Labour Party and the Lords have lost a very big man."
Labour Party chairman Ian McCartney said Lord Mishcon was an "inspirational public servant and also a most eminent lawyer".
"As a long-serving and staunch supporter of the Labour Party he will be sorely missed by us all."
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