The Scottish Liberal Democrats have written to Justice Secretary Angela Constance seeking an update on when jury trials will return to various rural and island courts, including Kirkwall Sheriff Court. It follows an order in July that prohibited new jury trials in island courts as a result of failur
Search: Me/cfs
The Aberdeen Law Project has appointed two new deputy student directors, Soma Mehmood and Hope Laing. Anna Robertson, chair of the ALP board said: “We are thrilled to have appointed Soma and Hope to step up into their new roles. The beauty of ALP is that each year we get to have members step u
Stephen Goldie will succeed Nick Scott as Brodies' managing partner, commencing 1 May 2024. Louise Shiels and Marion MacInnes have also been promoted as new practice area leaders for the firm's disputes and banking and finance practices respectively.
Lindsay Jack, director of student experience at the Edinburgh Law School, has received the principal’s medal. The medals are one of the ways in which the university recognises professional services, academic staff, or students who have made outstanding contributions to the University and wider
A former lawyer who claimed he was suffering from “sexsomnia” when he molested two schoolchildren and raped their older sister has been jailed for seven years. Andrew Lingard, who was convicted earlier this year, had denied the historical offences at trial, claiming that he had a conditi
The Scottish government’s proposals to reform freedom of information (FOI) are “weak, timid and far from what the public is calling for”, Scottish Labour MSP Katy Clark has said. Publishing its response to last year’s consultation yesterday, the Scottish government has ruled
There is no better way to demonstrate a firm's dedication to 'understanding' their clients' business than to literally walk in their shoes. Here, Gemma Hills, a legal director in the corporate team at Addleshaw Goddard, shares her experience of going on secondment with a key client of the firm, and
Ann Logan of Balfour and Manson has been named Insurance Lawyer of the Year in the Legal 500 Scotland Awards. She was described by Legal 500 as "an exceptional solicitor – she is thorough and careful in her preparation, has vast experience which means her advice is always astute and tactically
A Glasgow man who was given a penalty notice after driving through a bus lane has been allowed a limited appeal to the Upper Tribunal for Scotland after arguing that the markings were not sufficiently clear until the area he had been photographed in. It was argued by John Hazard that the bus lane he
A watered-down bill to protect children's rights has been passed by the Scottish Parliament more than two years after the original version was ruled by the Supreme Court to be beyond the devolved chamber's powers. The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (Incorporation) Bill requires
Should we be seeking to remove a significant number of disputes from the courts altogether, asks John Sturrock. Recently in these pages, I mentioned a talk I’d given to a Worldwide Advocacy Conference in July 1998. Then, I’d identified two related developments with implications for civil
Scotland’s best known (fictional) advocate is back in action this month in The Scotsman with this year’s month-long Christmas serial Edward Kane and the Supernal Sisters. The story focuses on the popularity of seances and other spirited events in the mid 1900s. Ross Macfarlane KC’s
Spiking will be clearly defined in English law under UK government plans to protect women and girls from violence and abuse. The forthcoming Criminal Justice Bill will put beyond doubt that spiking is illegal and will be backed with separate guidance, set in law, to provide a clear, unequivocal defi
CMS has announced it will offer scholarships to support three Scottish pupils in pursuing their dream of a legal career. As part of an annual UK-wide initiative, the CMS Law Scholarships Scheme for Scotland awards £2,500 each year to high-performing state school students from economically chal
The Sheriff Appeal Court has allowed an appeal by the purported owner of a disputed piece of scrubland on the Ardnamuchan peninsula against a sheriff’s determination that the owners of adjoining land had in fact acquired it in 1992 when they purchased a farm there.