News

A prison officer at HMP Barlinnie who claimed to have been injured during an attempt to return a difficult prisoner to his cell has failed in an action against his employers. Alexander Gemmell, who had worked as a prison officer since 1991, alleged that his employers, the Scottish Ministers, owed hi

A move by the Scottish government to introduce a requirement for consumers to have a licence to buy certain categories of fireworks will need to be clearly communicated to the public, according to the Faculty of Advocates. The Faculty was responding to the Scottish government’s consultation on

A recent drug bust saw a sheriff arrest his own daughter for alleged possession of methamphetamine. “Methamphetamine does not discriminate and neither do we,” said Florida's Franklin County Sheriff A.J. Smith in a Facebook post.

A black man who spent 30 years in jail for a murder in Miami has been freed after prosecutors concluded there had been a case of mistaken identity. Thomas Raynard James was 23 when he was convicted of murdering Francis McKinnon, who was shot dead on January 17, 1990 in front of his family after two

Terra Firma Chambers' Robert Skinner is to retire after a career spanning five decades at the Scottish bar. Today marks his last official day in practice before retiring with effect from 1 May. 

New legislation to ensure that all youngsters have the opportunity to experience at least one week of residential outdoor education will move a step closer today as Liz Smith MSP launches the formal consultation period on her member’s bill. The Scottish Conservative MSP believes that outdoor e

Businesses that breach UK consumer protection laws will be subject to fines of up to 10 per cent of their annual global turnover under proposed changes to UK legislation. The plans are part of a broader suit of legislative changes which will bolster the UK’s consumer law enforcement regime. Ou

A 56-year-old fishing boat skipper has been fined £3,211 after being found guilty of illegal fishing in a marine protected area off Scotland’s northwest coast. Alex Murray, of the Isle of Lewis, was in charge of the FV Star of Annan while it was operating with its fishing gear deployed w

A solicitor has detailed the significant volume of work involved in domestic abuse cases following an announcement by defence lawyers that they are boycotting them. The Scottish Solicitors Bar Association (SSBA) said this week that is members would no longer accept new instructions in summary cases

Italian children will no longer be compelled by law to take their fathers' surnames following a ruling of the country's Constitutional Court this week. The decision states that parents should be permitted to give their children either or both parents' surnames. In Italy, women keep their maiden name

A round-up of human rights stories from around the world. Ukraine names 10 Russian soldiers in alleged human rights abuses in Bucha

The Law Society of Scotland is working in collaboration with the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators (CIArb) to help promote the use of arbitration and other forms of alternative dispute resolution (ADR) which is an attractive option for many legal clients. Solicitors are well-placed to advise on ADR

Partners at law firms in England and Wales saw their pay increase by nearly 40 per cent in the first full year of the pandemic, according to new figures. A survey conducted for the Law Society found that median net profits per equity partner increased by 39 per cent from £146,417 in 2020 to &p

The Scottish Parliament’s Criminal Justice Committee has backed the general principles of the Fireworks and Pyrotechnics Bill “on balance”. This support was agreed with a warning that the Scottish government must make changes to ensure that the measures introduced by the bill will

An action for damages raised against a care home that allowed a high-risk teen under its care to have unsupervised leave, during which time he raped a child, has been dismissed by a judge in the Outer House of the Court of Session. The action was raised by the child’s grandmother, A, against c