Sir Vivian Ramsey was educated in the UK and the USA. He studied engineering science and economics at Oxford before working for Ove Arup and Partners for eight years, qualifying as a chartered civil engineer. He is a Fellow of the Institution of Civil Engineers and was elected a Fellow of the Royal Academy of Engineering in 2013.
He studied law at the City University and qualified as a barrister, commencing practice in 1981. He became a QC in 1992 and was head of Keating Chambers in London.
He became a Bencher of Middle Temple in 2002. Sir Ramsey was appointed a High Court judge in 2005 and became judge in charge of the Technology and Construction Court from 2007 to 2010. Following his retirement in 2014, he became an International Judge in the Singapore International Commercial Court. He also acts as an arbitrator, mediator, expert and dispute board member around the world.
In 2018 he was awarded the Society of Construction Law inaugural International Medal in Chicago. He was Master of the Worshipful Company of Constructors in 2019-2020. He was awarded an Honorary DSc Degree by the University of Westminster in 2021.