Case Reports

A judge in the Outer House of the Court of Session has reduced a decision not to progress a prisoner serving a life sentence in closed conditions at HMP Edinburgh to the open estate after he petitioned for a judicial review of the decision. George Smith was jailed for the murder of hi

A judge in the Outer House of the Court of Session has permitted a petition by a US-based non-profit organisation for judicial review of the approach taken by the Scottish Ministers in applying for Unexplained Wealth Orders to proceed. The Avaaz Foundation also sought a determina

A Nigerian woman who claimed to be at risk of trafficking if she was returned to her home country has had her appeal against the refusal of her judicial review petition refused by the Inner House of the Court of Session. The appellant, OA, argued that the Upper Tribunal had made an error o

A judge in the Outer House of the Court of Session has refused to recall an interlocutor relating to a motion for interim damages in a personal injury case after the defender’s legal team failed to intimate opposition to the motion in time. Wojciech Kosno sought damages from&nbs

The Sheriff Appeal Court has upheld the decision of a commercial sheriff in a contractual dispute between a housebuilder and a client in Aberdeen who held that the client was required to make an interim payment following the resignation of the firm to which payment applications required to

A man who suffered from a mental health condition and was charged with rape has failed in his challenge of a decision to desert the indictment against him under section 56(5) of the Criminal Procedure (Scotland) Act 1995 with a view to the Crown immediately serving a new one. Counsel for&n

A sheriff in Airdrie Sheriff Court has refused to dismiss a crave by a divorcing husband for the sum of £100,000 based on the inclusion of a joint liferent interest among the couple’s matrimonial assets. Andrew Kelly, who initiated a divorce action against his wife Linda K

A cyclist who was injured in a road accident near the Old Course at St Andrews has failed in his appeal against a decree of absolvitor pronounced in favour of the motorist involved in the crash in the Sheriff Appeal Court. Gordon Wallace sought damages from David Roache and his i

A sheriff in Edinburgh Sheriff Court has found that the mother of an eight-year-old child acted in contempt of court in wilfully refusing to comply with a contact order awarded to the child’s father. The pursuer and minuter, B, argued that the defender, A, had along with he

A reclaiming motion by two siblings who occupied a castle in Helensburgh against a decree ordering them to vacate the subjects following sequestration has been refused by the Inner House of the Court of Session. George Amil and MV Overwaele, the defenders to an action by the second de

The English Court of Appeal has allowed part of an appeal by the broadcaster and broadband provider Sky after it had the use of its trade marks restricted following an infringement action against a cloud storage business with a similar name founded by former Microsoft employees. Sky Ltd and other me

A sheriff in Peterhead has found that the death of a north-east prisoner from possible drug and alcohol-related conditions the day after he was admitted to prison was not the result of an accident or any failure on the part of prison staff. Sean Taggart, a prisoner at HMP Grampian, died on the morni

The owner of a cottage in Ayrshire has failed to reduce a decree allowing a bank to take possession of his home under the terms of a standard security granted over it and prevent the bank from enforcing it. Stewart McLeod sought to interdict Bank of Scotland Plc from enforcing a decre

The relatives of a young man who was killed when he was knocked out of a cherry picket by a tour bus have been awarded £315,000 in damages for loss of society after their success in an action against the operators of the coach and their insurers in the Outer House of the Court of Session.

The makers of Hendrick’s Gin have succeeded in extending the range of an interdict preventing a discount supermarket chain from selling a product that infringes on their trade mark to the whole of the UK after the chain brought a reclaiming motion to the Inner House of the Court of Sessio