News

Police Scotland is investigating potential fraud at a failed law firm. McClure Solicitors, which was founded in Greenock in 1853, went into administration about three years ago. The work of the firm, which also operated in the north of England, was taken on by Jones Whyte.

The average price of a property in Scotland in December 2023 reached £190,000, a 3.3 per cent year-on-year increase, according to the latest figures from the UK HPI.

Police have arrested a Methodist pastor who allegedly sold crystal meth from his church's rectory. Herbert Miller, the pastor of Woodbury United Methodist Church in Connecticut, was arrested in a sting operation following a tip-off, according to local paper the Republican-American.

Moray Council’s chief executive Roddy Burns is to step down from his role later this year. The local authority’s top official told the council leader of his intention to retire at a date to be confirmed in 2024, after 42 years of public service, 12 of those as chief executive.

The University of Aberdeen Law School has paid tribute to its former vice principal and head of faculty, the late Professor Philip Love CBE. Professor Love became a solicitor in 1963 before joining the university as professor of conveyancing and professional practice of law, during which time he ear

The Edinburgh Law School's Centre for Legal History will host a talk with Xavier Prévost, Professor of Legal History at the University of Bordeaux, on 10 May. Professor Prévost is an associate of the faculties of law, associate of economics and management, paleographic archivist (gradu

In advance of Julian Assange’s next hearing ahead of his possible extradition to the US, Amnesty International has reiterated concerns that Mr Assange faces the risk of serious human rights violations if extradited and warns of a profound ‘chilling effect’ on global media freedom.

A judgment of the European Court of Human Rights this month found that the Slovak justice system had taken too long to enforce an order for contact between a mother and her son and had breached their rights in terms of Article 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights. The mother who brought the

Nearly two-thirds of specially-trained rape barristers in England and Wales say they will quit because of poor pay, according to a landmark new survey. A survey by the Criminal Bar Association (CBA) found that 64 per cent of prosecutors and 66 per cent of defence counsel on the rape and serious sexu

The Safety of Rwanda (Asylum and Immigration) Bill is fundamentally incompatible with the UK’s human rights obligations, Westminster's Joint Committee on Human Rights has warned. Following scrutiny of the bill to assess its human rights implications, the committee has published a report highli

A judge in the Netherlands has blocked the export of F-35 fighter jet parts to Israel because of the risk they could be used in war crimes in Gaza. The appeal court ruling, in a case brought by three NGOs against the Dutch government, will prevent the US-owned parts from being transported directly t

A father and son who, over a number of years, illegally possessed and sold wild peregrine falcon chicks for large sums of money, have been ordered to carry out periods of unpaid work. Both men are also prohibited from possessing or having under their control any bird of prey for a period of five yea

Armed police officers stormed a hotel after a Harry Potter fan with a wand was mistaken for a knife-wielding lunatic. Police were despatched to the hotel in Enderby, near Leicester, after a member of the public reported seeing a man carrying "a large knife", The Guardian reports.

The Trusts and Succession (Scotland) Bill was passed at the Scottish Parliament on 20 December 2023 and received Royal Assent on 30 January. Stewart Dunbar looks at two aspects of the Act that impact the individual who created (or plans to create) the trust, known as the truster. It is essential tha

The Scottish Housing Regulator (SHR) has emphasised the importance of social landlords listening to tenants and service users in its new regulatory framework and statutory guidance. Published today, the new framework, which will go live from 1 April, sets out how SHR will regulate social landlo