News

The Law Society of Scotland has been shortlisted for a national award for its work to support its members during the pandemic. The professional body for Scottish solicitors is one of seven finalists in the Best Covid-19 Response in Associations category. Organised by GCN Events, the Covid Response A

Champagne producers have given in to a new Russian law that will see genuine French Champagne labelled as "sparkling wine" – while Russian-made sparkling wine is labelled "champagne". The Champagne Interprofessional Committee had launched a boycott of Russia following a government decree allow

A judge in the Outer House of the Court of Session has declared that a purported planning grant for an e-bike docking station outside a Category B listed tenement building in Dundee is ultra vires and of no effect after the decision was challenged by locals. Westend Residents CIC, a commun

A new guideline on the sentencing of young people has been finalised by the Scottish Sentencing Council. The ‘Sentencing young people’ guideline, which will be submitted to the High Court for approval this month, requires courts to have regard to rehabilitation as a primary consideration

Sheriffs made no recommendations for improvement in almost 200 fatal accident inquiries into deaths in custody, a new study has found. Academics at Glasgow University looked at 196 deaths in prison between 2005 and 2019.

A group of social justice lawyers based in Glasgow have secured on behalf of asylum seekers in Scotland the right to access legal aid for representation in tribunal appeals, where they face eviction from housing provided by the Home Office. The Glasgow Social Justice Lawyers came together in summer

Alison McKay has joined Lindsays' private client team in Glasgow. She is experienced across the full range of private client work, including wills and powers of attorney, setting up trusts and providing estate planning advice.

The Scottish Climate Emergency Legal Network (SCELN) has had success in its “Seventh Gas Campaign”, after the UK government recently pledged to bring forward amendments to the UK’s Climate Change Act 2008 (CCA 2008) within the year in response to pressure from the group. SCELN was

Euan Pirie looks at a solution to price uncertainty for construction materials when tendering big contracts. Prices for construction materials have gone haywire in a perfect storm of conditions which have pushed demand up and supply down. So how do the parties to a construction contract deal wi

A publication of statistics on the number of suspected drug deaths during the first half of 2021 shows a small decrease (one per cent) on the same period last year. The report covers January to June this year.

Shepherd and Wedderburn acted for Clydeport Operations Limited (COL) in concluding an option agreement with the sustainable energy company XLCC to construct a facility at Hunterston Port to produce high voltage sub-sea cables for the transmission of renewable energy. If planning permission is approv

CMS has advised Smart Metering Systems Plc (SMS) on its latest equity placing. The transaction involved an accelerated bookbuild process, managed by Cenkos Securities plc, Investec Bank plc and RBC Capital Markets, to raise around £175 million investment through a share placing. SMS is a fully

A new plan aims to positively impact the lives of people from minority ethnic communities, as part of Scotland’s recovery from the pandemic. The Immediate Priorities Plan for race equality focuses on the roots of inequalities which disproportionately impact minority ethnic communities.

Shadow Justice Secretary Jamie Greene MSP has met with three of the top UK government and Scottish government justice officials to discuss a range of issues affecting the portfolio. Mr Greene met the Lord Advocate, Dorothy Bain QC and Solicitor General, Ruth Charteris QC, at the Crown Office to disc

Law firms across the UK are being encouraged to take part in a cycling challenge to raise money for Breast Cancer Now. Tour de Law takes place over a week, from Monday 11th October – Sunday 17th October 2021, bringing together employees across the UK legal sector to get moving, get fundraising