News

Judgment in a business interruption insurance case that featured 15 Queen's Counsel and 20 junior counsel has been handed down by the High Court. The court found in favour of the arguments advanced for policyholders by the Financial Conduct Authority on the majority of the key issues.

The Scottish Courts and Tribunals Service (SCTS) has announced that its new Application Programming Interface (API) for the Civil Online service is ready for a wider rollout. Civil Online, which was launched in April 2019, is a fully digital service for simple procedure cases, enabling cases to proc

Terra Firma Chambers has announced that Alasdair Burnet has been appointed to the rank of Queen’s Counsel. Nominated by the Lord Justice General and recommended by the First Minister, Mr Burnet is one of ten new silks approved by Her Majesty The Queen.

The Aberdeen Law Project (ALP) has announced that Anna Robertson has been elected chair of the board. Ms Robertson succeeds Margaret Ross, who retired from the School of Law at Aberdeen University last month.

Noel Ferry looks at the implications of the Children (Scotland) Bill, and where it could have gone further. The Children (Scotland) Bill has been passed by the Scottish Parliament, ushering in a number of significant changes to Scottish family law.

EU net neutrality rules introduced five years ago following sustained campaigning by digital rights groups have been interpreted by the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) for the first time. In a ruling handed down by the Grand Chamber yesterday, judges said Telenor, an internet service p

The Scottish Young Lawyers' Association (SYLA) has created created a survey to understand how COVID-19 has affected young lawyers and their careers. The aim for the survey is that the responses will allow SYLA to identify ways to mitigate the effects of COVID-19 and shine a spotlight within the lega

Benjamin Bestgen takes a timeous look at freedom of expression. See his last primer, on marriage, here. Evelyn Hall, the author of The Life of Voltaire, famously acquainted us with a summary of Voltaire’s belief in freedom of speech: “I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to th

A dentist who extracted a patient's tooth while riding a hoverboard has been sentenced to 12 years' imprisonment on various charges. Alaskan Seth Lookhart was caught on camera using the hoverboard while carrying out the procedure, the Anchorage Daily News reports.

A father whose application under the 1980 Hague Child Abduction Convention was dismissed because the child’s habitual residence was held not to be in France has succeeded in appealing the decision in the English courts.  The father of the child, B, argued that the judge was wrong to

Ten new Queen’s Counsel have been appointed by Her Majesty The Queen on the recommendation of First Minister Nicola Sturgeon. The appointments take the number of practising QCs at the Scottish bar to 133.

The Scottish government has announced that legislation to introduce an opt-out system of organ and tissue donation will come into effect on 26 March 2021, despite delays caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. Under the new system, individuals will be required to actively opt-out of donation if they wish t

Lawyers in Aberdeen have called for temporary courtrooms to be established to help tackle the increasing backlog of cases caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, as sheriff and jury trials have still not resumed. The Scottish Courts and Tribunals Service (SCTS) recently announced plans to restart High

Paul Mason has joined Womble Bond Dickinson as a partner in its real estate practice in Edinburgh. Mr Mason has over 15 years of experience advising household names, landlords, and tenants of retail, office and industrial premises on all areas of real estate law.

A new project will fill an access-to-justice gap and educate the public on the law while giving students hands-on legal experience in order to help boost their employability prospects. The Tayside and Perthshire Law Project (Tayper) is a pro bono organisation due to launch later this year that will