News

The Scottish Sentencing Council has detailed amendments to its draft sentencing guidelines for rape offences in a response to a public consultation. The response, set out in a report published today, "focuses on addressing those matters of most interest to respondents and explains how the guidelines

Harper Macleod has welcomed 23 new trainee solicitors, a record intake for the firm, making it one of the largest employers of legal graduates in Scotland.

A solicitor’s failure to comply with regulators and court orders “undermines the status of the profession” according to the Court of Session. At a hearing this week the court stopped short of finding a solicitor in contempt of court for failure to comply with a court order to deliv

The Access to Justice Foundation (ATJF) has set out how it will spend millions of pounds in undistributed damages from opt-out collective action cases in the UK's Competition Appeal Tribunal (CAT). Around £3.8 million was awarded to the charity in September 2025 in undistributed damages from t

Charities should support anti-SLAPP reforms in Scotland to promote transparency and accountability in the sector, campaigners have said. Powerful individuals and businesses are normally those accused of using so-called strategic lawsuits against public participation (SLAPPs) to avoid scrutiny.

The head of a committee dealing with delays in drunk driving prosecutions has been charged with drunk driving – and has seen her own case delayed. Linsey LaMontagne is director of the Clark County Criminal Justice Coordinating Council (CJCC) in southern Nevada, covering an area including Las V

Balfour and Manson has strengthened its family law and personal injury teams with the promotions of Katie Albiston, Iona Campbell, Emily Deans and Alannah Jones to associate. In Aberdeen, Ms Albiston has become an associate in the family law team while Ms Campbell has been promoted to associate in p

A formal investigation into the risks and challenges faced by consumers in Scotland in the used car market has been launched by Consumer Scotland. Complaints about used car sales are consistently high and the investigation will seek to identify the most harmful issues and propose recommendations to

Dunblane legal firm Bartys, a branch of Wright, Johnston & Mackenzie LLP (WJM), is preparing to take part in Will Aid again, having raised over £66,000 to date. The firm has been a part of the Will Aid scheme since 1996, helping raise vital donations every November by writing basic Wills a

A gang who sexually exploited vulnerable women after plying them with drugs at brothels in Dundee have been jailed. Mircea Marian Cumpanasoiu, Cristian Urlateanu, Remus Stan, Catalin Dobre and Alexandra Bugonea were found guilty on 9 January 2025 following a trial at the High Court in Glasgow.

Britain’s equality regulator has concluded a legal agreement with IKEA UK, after the retailer improved its policies and practices on workplace sexual harassment. The Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) entered the Section 23 agreement with IKEA UK in March 2023.

The latest members' meeting of Edinburgh Conveyancers Forum (ECF) is taking place today, Tuesday 28 October, at 5.30pm. The meeting in Thorntons' Edinburgh office, at Citypoint 3rd Floor, 65 Haymarket Square EH12 5HD, will count for two hours' CPD.

Homicide numbers in Scotland have fallen to their lowest level since comparable records began in 1976, according to official figures. Cases recorded by Police Scotland fell to 45 homicides in 2024-25, down 12 on the previous year.

Albania's AI minister is "pregnant" with 83 children, the Albanian prime minister has announced. Edi Rama appeared on stage with "Diella", the AI chatbot appointed as Albania's minister of state for artificial intelligence, at the Berlin Global Dialogue on Saturday.

The average length of criminal trials in the High Court is set to skyrocket to more than two-and-a-half years by 2030 without significant additional funding, a report has warned. The Scottish Courts and Tribunals Service (SCTS) last month set out projected criminal business levels across the High Co