Features

Prone to making the facts fit their theories, academics have, for decades, gaslit ME/CFS sufferers by telling them their condition was all in their heads. To compound matters, a pliant British media happily preached the false biopsychosocial gospel and misery ensued. But the pandemic has changed eve

Many years ago, I knew someone who applied for the ‘old style’ Employment Support Allowance (ESA). Let’s call this person Bob. Upon receipt of Bob’s application, the DWP contacted him to schedule an appointment, which he attended and was asked a series of questions about how

June 1 2022 marks a significant date in the development of Scots law with the long-awaited, though still partial, implementation of the Prescription (Scotland) Act 2018. Important changes are being made to the manner of calculating the starting-point of the five-year “time-bar” period fo

Yvonne Dunn, partner and financial services technology expert at Pinsent Masons, discusses the opportunities made available to businesses through open finance. A 10-year road map strategy published for Scotland’s fintech hub has highlighted “open finance” data as a key theme.

I have known my solicitor since 1962. Granted at the time he did not know he was my solicitor because this was in primary one at Paisley Grammar. This is relevant for two related reasons. The first is that was just after the Cuban Missile Crisis when all the world thought it was going to die. Dylan

The Coronavirus (Recovery and Reform) (Scotland) Bill is currently before the Scottish Parliament. The bill seeks to preserve on a permanent basis a number of changes to the law that were introduced temporarily to address the challenges of the pandemic. Many of these changes deal with administrative

David J Black continues to investigate the biggest medical scandal of the 21st century. Read part one here and see also his series from last year for SLN. October the 29th 2021 was something of a red-letter day for those who believed the psychiatric biopsychosocial (BPS) model had, fo

Edinburgh-based solicitor advocate Jim Cormack QC has been appointed global head of Pinsent Masons’ litigation, regulatory and tax (LRT) team. The role involves leading the law firm’s 265-strong LRT offering, which covers common law and civil law jurisdictions, with staff based in seven

In October 2021 the Town and Country Planning (Local Place Plans) (Scotland) Regulations 2021 were laid before the Scottish Parliament. The background to these regulations is found in Section 14 of the Planning (Scotland) Act 2019. This amended the Town and Country Planning (Scotland) Act 1997 to pe

The last rites are being read to the traditional legal firm. While the rise of the nationals and global firms will carry on for a while yet, many small and medium Scottish firms will face their day of reckoning over the coming decade.

Melanie Phillips may not be everyone’s favourite journalist or radio opinion former but who could fail to share her astonishment in The Times at the outcome of one of the greatest corporate injustices of our time? Inexplicably, no-one, it seems, was responsible for the relentless persecution a

For someone who decided to become a lawyer partly because it’s what his parents wanted him to do, John Scott QC has carved out a long and illustrious career in the profession. He has been involved in some of Scotland’s most high-profile inquiries and cases since starting out as a trainee

Craig Kennedy of Dentons examines coming changes to property ownership transparency in the UK. Recent events in Ukraine have resulted in a revival of the UK's Economic Crime Bill, which aims to make it much harder for overseas entities to hide wealth in UK property. The Bill made rapid progress thro

Jenny Dickson of Morton Fraser discusses how the high-profile beaver protection case involved the use of crowdfunding and a protective expenses order to fund the litigation. One Scottish case which captured the headlines in 2021 was the battle to save the beavers. An environmental charity, Trees For

David Conlan Smyth SC, Anna Bazarchina BL, William Morrin BL and Patrick Fitzgerald BL – members of the EU Bar Association of Ireland – unpick the legal hurdles and steps involved in Ukraine becoming a member state of the European Union. On 28 February 2022, just four days after being in