Features

Louise Heren reviews a new book on the headline-grabbing trial of Gayle Newland.

There are many and various routes into the legal profession. For some, the law is a family tradition, inherited across generations. For others, it comes from an interest in debate discovered in lecture halls and university societies, where they first honed their skills in developing persuasive argum

Professor Kieran McEvoy rubbishes claims of a "witch hunt" against former British soldiers who served in Northern Ireland. In recent months, there has been a renewed push by British army veterans and their supporters for a return to some variant of the Boris Johnson-era amnesty and for drawing a lin

The UK government faces mounting pressure to fulfil its pledge to regulate non-surgical cosmetic procedures (NSCPs) – including “Brazilian butt lifts”, Botox and dermal fillers – that have left people maimed, injured and requiring hospital treatment, write Jacqueline Harris a

The Scottish Parliament’s decision to reject the Assisted Dying for Terminally Ill Adults (Scotland) Bill marked a significant moment in the long running debate over assisted dying. Following a deeply impassioned debate on Tuesday 17 March 2026, the bill was defeated by 69 votes to 57, with on

Without money laundering, it appears, few major crimes of acquisition would be worth the trouble. In the old days, in other words, shops, post offices and banks were robbed for their cash, and very possibly not very much of it given the effort and risks then required. The nature of successful top-en

President of the Scottish Law Agents Society (SLAS), Darren Murdoch, details issues the organisation has with the Scottish Legal Complaints Commission's (SLCC) proposed budget and operating plan – and its fear that the SLCC is losing focus of its core mission. The crucial role of the SLCC is i

Energy businesses are facing a sharper, faster‑moving risk landscape, writes Stuart Clubb. Geopolitical tension, cyber disruption and supply chain fragility are no longer background noise – they’re active drivers of disputes and strategic pressure. Forward‑thinking organisations are

Legislation regulating assisted dying raises profound ethical, legal, and clinical questions, writes James Bundy.

Antoine de Vallombrosa, Marquis de Morès, was the first late modern politician in the West to emerge politically as a populist, an antisemite, and what might now be called a fascist militiaman. That unattractive curriculum vitae reflects the rise politically of Morès by incendiary rhet

Stephen McGee, the chief executive of Scottish Friendly, is steering one of the UK’s oldest mutuals into its most transformative chapter in decades. To say that recent and planned developments are seismic would be to state – or rather understate – the obvious. To say that recent an

Last March, I wrote about how AI was reshaping the legal profession and warned firms who failed to embrace it risked being left behind. Today, that warning has become a reality as a new wave of agentic AI moves beyond simple tools to systems that can think, plan and execute multi-step legal work aut

Sir Keir Starmer's warning about the lessons of Iraq reflects a central principle of the UN Charter – that the use of force must rest on clear legal grounds rather than strategic convenience, writes Andrew Stevenson. The British Prime Minister is to be commended for his reaction to the latest

The Scottish government recently confirmed that there will be a statutory public inquiry to investigate Scotland’s grooming gangs. The inquiry will be led by child sexual abuse expert, Professor Alexis Jay. But what does this mean? Christie Allan explains. Barrister Jason Beer KC, a specialist

This is a serious, well-researched consideration of how the prosecution of violent crime in Scotland has developed and of society’s changing attitudes to it. Some of the fifteen cases carefully selected by Dr Louise Heren are well-known landmark cases like those of Burke and Hare, Madeleine Sm