News

In a report published today, the UK parliament’s joint committee on human rights has given a mixed view of the UK government's track record on complying with judgments of the European Court of Human Rights and has expressed concern about delays on implementing judgments in Northern Ireland. The jo

The Scottish Solicitors’ Discipline Tribunal (SSDT) has released its annual report for the year ending 31 October 2014. Alistair Cockburn, chairman of the SSDT, said: “Details of the Tribunal’s workload over the past 12 months are set out in this report.

A diabetic woman of small stature whose son was born with serious disabilities and who claimed she had not been fully informed of the risks of giving birth has won a unanimous appeal against a decision of the Inner House of the Court of Session in the UK Supreme Court. President of the court, Lord N

Journalist John Forsyth examines Scotland's record on deaths in custody My curiosity was prodded into life by an article in the Guardian last autumn about the number of prisoners in England and Wales who had committed suicide in the preceding 20 months. 130 men and 4 women had taken their own lives.

A man who placed staff in a lingerie store in a state of “fear and alarm” after asking “wholly inappropriate” questions and telling a worker he wore fishnet stockings at home has had an appeal against his conviction for breach of the peace refused.  

A diversity steering group has set out proposals to help overcome barriers to a judicial career in a report published today: Diversity Conference Report. The Judicial Appointments Board for Scotland (JABS) , in partnership with the Judicial Office for Scotland, the Law Society of Scotland and Facult

Dr Alan Carson

From left: Brandon Malone, Penelope Warne and Professor Peter Cameron

Glasgow Sheriff Court held a small reception to celebrate the successful first year of a university mediation initiative. Since February 2014 the University of Strathclyde Mediation Clinic has provided a free mediation service to party litigants in the small claims court each Friday afternoon.

The Scottish Young Lawyers' Association (SYLA) held its Civil Day Conference yesterday in Dundee in association with Digby Brown Solicitors LLP.

Arnot Manderson duo Jonathan Mitchell QC (pictured right) and Catherine Smith (pictured below) have been appointed to a new panel of counsel for the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC). The new appointments run from March 2015 for a period of four years.

Two new members have been appointed to the Judicial Appointments Board for Scotland (JABS). Deirdre Fulton is appointed as a lay member and Alistair Morris (pictured) as a legal member. The JABS was established by ministers in 2002 in order to create more open and accessible arrangements for judicia

The Faculty of Advocates has mounted a robust defence of the appeals system for business rates valuation, and urged the Scottish government to leave it well alone. The current system works “very satisfactorily”, said the Faculty, but damage could be done and costs could increase if local valuati

Current proposals to make the Scottish parliament "permanent" represent a political declaration rather than any matter of law, the Law Society of Scotland said today. One of the central recommendations of the Smith Commission on Devolution (paragraph 21) was for new legislation to make the Scottish

A legal challenge may be mounted by privacy campaigners against the Scottish government’s plans to create a “super ID database”. The Open Rights Group (ORG) has voiced concern that plans to open Scotland’s National Health Service Central Register (NHSCR) to hundreds of public bodies, among t