Features

The sadistic murders of Ian Brady and Myra Hindley are sadly too familiar: following on from the criminal trial in 1966 there has been an endless stream of literature. The Lost Boy is hardly a new book: originally published in 2007, it was republished in 2008; a second edition appeared in 2013; and

The first refusal of group proceedings in Scotland sheds light on how courts will assess commonality, efficiency and group size in future applications, write Julie Hamilton and Josh Chambers. Group proceedings were introduced in Scotland in 2018 to allow similar civil claims to be brought together a

Don Macleod critiques the Land Reform (Scotland) Bill. Lawyers choose their words carefully, and my title is no exception. Nor is the reason I consider the bill to be junk, and that reason is because the proposed law around large land holdings (so called) is an appalling mess that deserves no place

Nicole McQuilken reflects on the work of the All-Scotland Sheriff Personal Injury Court as it celebrates its 10th anniversary. 2015 seems like a long time ago. David Cameron was prime minister, the UK remained in the European Union, and artificial intelligence seemed like something from science fict

One of the tensions which arises in any legal system is balancing the competing principles of offering a right to appeal with the necessity of judgments to be final, in order to provide certainty. In the recent Sheriff Appeal Court decision of Downie v NHS Fife, this issue was considered against a s

In the third interview undertaken by SEMLA for Black History Month, SLN spotlights Glenn Agutu, whose unique journey from legal training to AI entrepreneurship exemplifies the diverse career paths available to legal professionals in Scotland today. As the first person in his family to attend univers

Ronnie Clancy KC continues to analyse the politico-legal fallout of a spy prosecution that went awry. See part one here. In round two of their public relations bout with the director of public prosecutions (DPP) the UK government (HMG) has come out swinging. It has published the three witness statem

The Battle of George Square which took place on January 31, 1919 has entered the mythology of the Left and, indeed, the mainstream of Sottish history as Bloody Friday when thuggish Glasgow police baton-charged thousands of peaceful but revolutionary-minded workers striking for a shorter working week

In the second of four interviews undertaken by SEMLA for Black History Month, SLN spotlights Shepherd and Wedderburn trainee Vambo Maswiswi. Can you tell us a little about your journey into law and what inspired you to pursue this career?

The Scottish government declared a housing emergency in May 2024, acknowledging that Scotland lacked sufficient housing supply to meet demand. This was partly self-inflicted, with the government cutting its affordable housing building supply programme and imposing rent controls without exemption, wh

In 2020, PPE Medpro entered into a lucrative contract with the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) to supply 25 million sterile surgical gowns and other personal protective equipment. The company gained widespread recognition for its association with Michelle Mone and her husband, write Pame

When making orders in terms of s.11 of the Children (Scotland) Act 1995 the court requires to give children the opportunity to express their views and to take those views into account. In the recently published decision of PSC v NS Lady Tait considers how to do so where the strongly expressed views

In To See Ourselves; A Personal History of Scotland Since 1950 Alistair Moffat assists those baby boomers among us who could never quite persuade our sceptical children how very different our cod liver oil and orange juice childhoods were from theirs.  The lost years 1945 to 1965 were a never-n

Ronnie Clancy KC analyses the collapse of a prosecution in England brought against two men accused of spying for China. The recently abandoned case against two individuals who were due to stand trial on charges of spying for China is by no means the first prosecution to hit the buffers because of na

A third of Scotland's school roll has parents who live separately. Some, by agreement or by court order, share the parenting of the children on an equal, 50:50 basis. For others, the children will reside exclusively with one parent and may have little or no contact with the other. The likelihood is