News

A legal services contract which sets out no cost details except for an hourly rate does not meet EU rules on drafting contracts in "plain, intelligible language", the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) has ruled. In a ruling handed down yesterday, the CJEU said a contract must allow the c

James Milliken of Northern Ireland law firm Carson McDowell reports that we are beginning to see artificial intelligence take on complex tasks such as assisting lawyers with drafting contracts. Artificial intelligence (AI) plays an ever-increasing role in our everyday lives. It is used in Face ID an

Westwater Advocates' Ian Sharpe has succeeded in in the Sheriff Appeal Court case of East Lothian Council v YL and WBL and ML and RL. This was an appeal against the making of an ancillary order in respect of contact in a permanence order without authority to adopt at Edinburgh Sheriff Court on 28 Ma

Mary Lawlor, the UN special rapporteur on human rights defenders, reviews another difficult year for human rights. I look back on 2022 with a mixture of admiration for those brave human rights defenders who have refused to be silenced, and dismay at the weasel words of politicians and corporate lead

Researchers are to study police files of domestic abuse murders in Scotland in a bid to prevent future deaths. Academics from Glasgow Caledonian University will analyse cases to identify patterns of behaviour and highlight safeguarding opportunities.

A fatal accident inquiry into the deaths of two men at a Scottish hotel has concluded with a recommendation that the Scottish government consider introducing a requirement for historic buildings converted into hotels to have active fire suppression systems installed. Simon Midgley and Richard Dyson

The first casualty of the gender recognition regime is freedom of speech, writes barrister Naomi Cunningham. Section 29(2)(d) of the Scotland Act 1998 provides that an Act of the Scottish Parliament is not law so far is it is incompatible with any of the Convention rights. The UK government may not

Belarus has effectively legalised piracy of copyrighted content from "unfriendly countries", including films, TV shows and music. A new temporary copyright law has been approved by Belarusian dictator Alyaksandr Lukashenka and comes into effect this week, according to the Russian office of Deutsche

Former Dean of Faculty and Advocate General of Scotland, Lord Keen of Elie KC, has suggested that UK ministers should block Scotland's Gender Recognition Reform Bill. The Conservative peer urged the UK government to consider availing itself of section 35 of the Scotland Act 1998.

A 64-year-old-man and a 57-year-old woman have been fined a total of £10,000 for health and safety failings which led to a 23-year-old man's death by drowning. Clifford Davies and Janet Lightbown, who are the joint owners of Loch Awe Boats, were each ordered to pay £5,000 after they pled

New Israeli restrictions on the display of Palestinian flags in public spaces have been condemned by human rights campaigners as an attempt to "legitimise racism and discrimination". The Israeli government directive, issued by Israel’s new minister of national security Itamar Ben-Gvir on Sunda

The Crown Office has welcomed the results of a fatal accident inquiry (FAI) into the tragic deaths of Richard Dyson and Simon Midgley in a fire at Cameron House Hotel in December 2017. The FAI, conducted by Sheriff Thomas McCartney, concluded with a recommendation that the Scottish government consid

Marc Penman comments on two cases that could have serious implications for sport worldwide. Ordinarily, when we discuss competition in the sporting world we are usually focused on individuals and/or teams going toe to toe and battling it out for glory and bragging rights over one another. Recently h

A personal injury sheriff has rejected an expenses motion by a supermarket that successfully defended an action for an award based on the allegedly unreasonable conduct of the pursuer. Decree of absolvitor was granted to Iceland Foods Ltd after pursuer Helen Lennox failed to prove that an injury she

In Spire Property Development LLP & Anor v Withers LLP [2022] EWCA Civ 970, the Court of Appeal (E&W) considered the scope of a solicitor's duty when posed questions by clients where the original retainer had ended, writes Edward Grundy. The developers bought two neighbouring properties