News

Mike Tyson paid out $8 million to a fan who he cracked on the jaw for requesting his autograph, the famous US boxer has said. Speaking on his podcast, Tyson said he fell into a habit of "hitting people because they're f***ing with me too much for autographs".

A woman who sought to undergo in vitro fertilisation (IVF) treatment using her late husband’s sperm has succeeded in obtaining an order allowing its use for that purpose despite his not signing the relevant forms.  The petitioner, SB, wished to pursue IVF as it was the most likely method

It will take up to a decade to get the courts backlog back to pre-pandemic measures unless more measures are taken to increase or speed up court business, MSPs have warned. Holyrood's Justice Committee has called for a "basket of measures" to help clear the backlog exacerbated by the Covid-19 pandem

Commercial law firm Burness Paull LLP has reported a 14 per cent increase in profits to £25 million in its latest financial year, which includes almost five months of working in lockdown. In the financial year ending 31 July 2020, the firm posted an annual income of £60.5m, up three per

Advocate John Campbell has joined the board of trustees of Berwickshire Housing Association (BHA). Mr Campbell, who lives in the Borders, has been an advocate since 1981 and qualified as a barrister in England and Wales in 1990. He is a member of the Faculty of Advocates and of Trinity Chambers

As we move past the six-month mark with Covid-19 and with further business restriction pending, SLN asked Douglas Mill, who in the last 12 years has consulted with over 130 firms throughout the country, how things were going for High Street solicitors and how he saw matters playing out. How is the p

A postgraduate research scholarship launched to celebrate the bicentenary of the first publication of Session Cases in May 1821 has been awarded to Shona Warwick of the University of Edinburgh. Regular readers of SLN may recall reading about the scholarship offered by the Trustees of the Scottish Co

Glasgow firm Livingstone Brown has celebrated raising over £13,000 for charity in its tenth year of participation in the annual Will Aid campaign. The firm has written more than 250 wills for people in exchange for a voluntary donation since it first signed up to the scheme.

Peter Shand explores the latest trend of the super-wealthy setting up finance and legal offices to deal with their affairs. Scotland’s financial ecosystem is changing and one of the latest drivers could be the increase in the number of official ‘family offices’ being set up.

Alistair Robertson encourages fellow patent attorneys to "stay ahead of the curve" on emerging technology. Artificial Intelligence is all around us, from recommending what you should purchase next online, to understanding frustrated commands yelled at virtual assistants. It now affects our daily liv

Schools in El Salvador, South Africa, Bulgaria, England and Germany have joined together to compete with Scotland in the School Mock Court’s first-ever international programme. The project has turned the restrictions of Covid-19 into a positive opportunity for primary and secondary pupils worl

The Scottish government has recognised the early success of its First Home Fund with a pledge to reopen the scheme for applications in the new year. The fund, which offers first-time buyers loans of up to £25,000 for their deposit, was launched in December 2019 with an initial budget of &

A grown woman brought her father to court to break all ties after he cheated in a family game of Ludo. The 24-year-old woman told Bhopal Family Court in the Madhya Pradesh state of India that her father's cheating had broken her trust.

A local authority that claimed it was entitled to a percentage of a termination fee paid by a sub-lessee to the head tenant of a shopping centre it leased out has succeeded in establishing its entitlement to the monies.  The pursuer, 3639 Ltd, was the head tenant under the lease, and origi

Undercover police and MI5 agents will be given explicit permission in law to commit criminal offences under new legislation introduced by the UK government. The Covert Human Intelligence Sources (CHIS) Bill has been introduced to provide a "clear and consistent statutory basis for a limited number o