News

An employer was entitled to sack a man who spent up to six hours of his daily eight-hour shift in the bathroom, a court has ruled. In one week, company records showed that the employee took 22 bathroom breaks ranging in length from 47 to 196 minutes.

Clifford Chance has become the first Magic Circle law firm to open in Texas, with an outpost in Houston aimed at the energy market. The office is expected to grow in the coming months as the firm further strengthens its capabilities in the US and global energy markets to meet client demand.

The European Commission has confirmed that it will bring legal proceedings against the Polish government over a controversial new law ostensibly aimed at curbing Russian influence in the country. The decision comes two days after Poland's justice minister condemned the Court of Justice of the Europe

Morgiane Noel explores the ethical issues arising from the use of artificial intelligence in the criminal justice system. Artificial intelligence (AI) has become such a part of our daily lives that it’s hard to avoid – even if we might not recognise it. While ChatGPT and the use of algor

Proposed new laws intended to strengthen public confidence in standards of police conduct have been published. The Scottish government’s Police (Ethics, Conduct and Scrutiny) (Scotland) Bill has been introduced to Holyrood with the aim of ensuring allegations of misconduct are dealt with more

The Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service (COPFS) has lodged first notices with the Sheriff Court to begin the court process for conjoined fatal accident inquiry into the deaths of James Garscadden, Thomas Thompson and Marius Bauba. All three men died while in legal custody at HMP Shotts. Their

Gavin Pearson, managing director and head of Quantuma’s forensic accounting & investigations team, sets out a number of areas that may assist lawyers in the drafting of expert determination clauses. There will be contrasting views as to how effective Expert Determination is as a form of di

Teams from across Aberdein Considine have raised more than £50,000 as part of their charity fundraising programme during the last 12 months.

Douglas Strang and Kate Ross explain the protections the Equality Act 2010 provides for non-binary people. The Act provides protection to transgender people against discrimination, harassment, and victimisation in the workplace. Until the decision of the Employment Tribunal in Taylor v Jaguar L

The High Court of Justiciary has ruled that the Crown unequivocally renounced its right to prosecute an individual for six alleged assaults after an appeal was brought against a sheriff’s decision to accept a plea in bar of trial based on an email sent by Crown Office staff to the would-be acc

The Bible has been banned from schools in one of the most religious parts of the US following complaints from parents about its sexual and violent content. A school district in Salt Lake City, Utah enacted the ban under a state law introduced at the behest of Christian legislators and used to ban a

Sheila Webster is in chipper mood when we catch up on Teams. Though she recently broke her shoulder tripping over a desk in the office, she has just had her sling removed and, while she is still in some pain and reliant on her husband – Themis Advocates KC Andrew Webster – for lifts, she

A new report sets out a plan to transform "Violence Against Women and Girls work in Scotland". The report of the Independent Strategic Review of Funding and Commissioning of Violence Against Women and Girls (VAWG) Services in Scotland  details the legal right to, and guaranteed funding for

Speakers from across politics, journalism, academia, legal practice and civil society came together at the University of Aberdeen on Friday to discuss the protection of free speech in the media. The roundtable event, hosted by the Anti-SLAPP Research Hub at the School of Law, was focused on experien

Artificial intelligence is changing how we live and work. Generative AI is able to produce written texts and many other types of content, including soon perhaps legal documents. Could such AI be used to deliver justice more quickly and cheaply than lawyers and judges? What safeguards should there be