News

David McIndoe The Scottish government’s Help to Buy scheme has reached another milestone with the latest phase enabling more than 30 households a week to purchase a new build home.

Following Prime Minister Theresa May’s comments last week that it was her prerogative to trigger Article 50 and that she would do so without a vote in Parliament, the House of Lords Constitution Committee has said that to trigger Article 50 without parliamentary involvement, whether by legislatio

Cannabis use for medical purposes should be legalised according to a cross-party group at Westminster. Baroness Meacher (pictured), chairman of the group of peers and MPs who undertook an inquiry into the issue, said that to refuse to recognise the medicinal advantages of cannabis was “irrational�

Derek McCombe (pictured), a partner in the corporate department of Maclay Murray & Spens LLP, comes under this week's SLN Spotlight. What has been your best experience as a lawyer?

The president of the Family Division in England and Wales, Sir James Munby (pictured), has said there are “serious lacunae” in the law on cross-border issues between Scotland and England. Sir James’ comments come in the wake of a hearing to determine if two teenagers from northwest England cou

A new initiative to reduce the risk of re-offending atAberdeen Sheriff Court for women has now been extended to include men, the Evening Express reports. The Problem Solving Approach, a pilot project of theScottish government is being trialled at the court over the next year.

Following the news that the effectiveness of the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service (COPFS) as Scotland’s independent prosecutor is to be the subject of a major new inquiry by MSPs on the Scottish Parliament’s Justice Committee, amid worries it is overburdened, the Crown has welcomed the

Douglas Mill (pictured) sounds a note of caution about the increasing number of pupils being admitted to study law with the hopes of entering the profession. Some of you will have noticed a recent article telling us what a wonderful thing it is that students starting a law degree in Scotland are up

European Patent and Trade Mark Attorney practice Murgitroyd Group PLC saw profits increase to £4.29 million in the last year, up from 39.8m in 2015. In its audited results for the year to 31 May 2016, revenue at the company rose from £39.8m to £42.2m while basic earnings per share increased to 35

Brian Inkster (pictured) addresses yesterday’s response from Colin Souter to criticism the latter had received. Colin Souter responded yesterday via Scottish Legal News to my concerns regarding the Crofting Commission investigating the legality of VAT registration of Grazings Committees.

Thorntons is welcoming all budding lawyers to a networking event at its Dundee offices this week. The free event is open to all third and fourth year and Diploma students interested in finding out more about the traineeships on offer at the firm for 2018. Attendees will have the chance to meet some

Ross Jespersen (pictured), the winner of theScottish Legal News / DLA Piper Essay Competition has described his placement at the firm as “invaluable”. Ross, who has a particular interest in the way law intersects with technology, was chosen by a panel of academics from Dundee and Edinburghuniver

The effectiveness of the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service (COPFS) as Scotland’s independent prosecutor is to be the subject of a major new inquiry by MSPs on the Scottish Parliament’s Justice Committee amid worries it is overburdened. The committee has issued a call for views asking or

Holyrood's European and External Relations Committee, which investigates the implications for Scotland of leaving the EU, has published an initial report today, with access to the single market emerging as a key priority area for businesses and industry in Scotland. Today’s report comes as MSPs on

A Scots lawyer has said preserving the “not proven” verdict while abolishing “not guilty” is logical but may not be desirable due to negative associations with Scotland’s unique third verdict. In a response to the Scottish government’s plans to look at how juries come to their decisions