News

Michael Matheson Scotland’s policing capability will be highlighted at an international conference in Edinburgh today.

The death has been announced of Ian Simpson QC, who served 18 years as a sheriff and was also a temporary judge before he retired. He was 68. Sheriff Simpson was admitted to the Faculty of Advocates in 1974, and took silk in 2005.

Lord Pentland Today the Scottish Law Commission (SLC) publishes its report recommending reform of defamation law in Scotland. The report includes draft legislation designed to modernise the law for the age of the internet and social media. The draft bill is the most substantial proposed reform of de

Ahead of this week’s Scottish budget tomorrow, the Law Society of Scotland has called for further reforms to the Land and Buildings Transaction Tax (LBTT) and has commented on the impact of the Scottish Rate of Income Tax introduced last year. In its comment paper the Law Society has said some of

The Scottish government will press ahead with preparations for a ‘Continuity Bill’ if significant changes are not made to UK Brexit legislation, Brexit minister Michael Russell has said. Speaking after the Joint Ministerial Committee in London yesterday, Mr Russell set out the need for a “cast

A man convicted of murder and embezzlement has been made the subject of a confiscation order after a High Court judge ruled that he had made almost £120,000 as a result of his “criminal lifestyle”. Colin Coates, who was sentenced to life imprisonment with a punishment part of 33 years after bei

Hazel Coutts Hazel Coutts looks at a case in which the Court of Session refused a motion for interim interdict, leaving an employee free to pursue business in competition with his former employer despite the existence of restrictive covenants.

Neil Benyon (left) and Sheriff Macfarlane

A human rights group has condemned Russian authorities’ blocking of five websites run by the Open Russia movement founded by the former Russian prisoner of conscience and Kremlin critic Mikhail Khodorkovsky. Amnesty International’s deputy director for Europe and Central Asia, Denis Krivosheev, s

Johnston Clark

Paul Motion

A decision may not be adopted to expel a third-country national who is a long-term resident for the sole reason that he or she has been sentenced to a term of imprisonment of more than one year, the Court of Justice of the European Union has ruled. A Colombian national, who was granted a long-term r

Lord Brodie A man who was jailed for 33 months after pleading guilty to being concerned in the supply of cannabis has had his sentence reduced following an appeal.

Changes are needed to ensure the Scottish Parliament can scrutinise the detail of how Scotland’s new social security system will operate, according to a report by the Social Security Committee. The committee’s report follows consideration of the Social Security Bill – one of the biggest transf