News

A Bill of Advocation by the Procurator Fiscal, Glasgow challenging the refusal of a sheriff’s motion to adjourn a trial to secure the attendance of an essential witness has succeeded in the Sheriff Appeal Court (Criminal Division). The respondent, Robert McIntyre, was charg

A series of recommendations to the Hate Crime Bill made by Holyrood's Justice Committee have been accepted by the Scottish government ahead of its stage 1 debate. These include:

A solicitor and part-time sheriff has been found guilty of professional misconduct. Mark Thorley was censured by the Scottish Solicitors' Discipline Tribunal (SSDT) for his behaviour in a dispute between a couple over property.

Regulations to restrict both the sale of fireworks and the times when they can be set off by the general public will be introduced for Parliament to consider in the new year. Community safety minister Ash Denham announced the move as she published the Scottish government’s response to the

A survey carried out by the Law Society of Scotland ahead of the 26th UN Conference on Climate Change (COP26) shows that climate change raises a number of issues for the legal profession. This includes practical issues around the conference itself, which is likely to impact on local businesses and t

Ireland's data protection watchdog has imposed a €450,000 fine on Twitter following a landmark inquiry regarding a data breach. The Data Protection Commission found that the social media giant infringed Article 33(1) and 33(5) of the EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) in terms of a fa

An intellectual property associate at Thorntons has qualified as a chartered trade mark attorney and will now head up the firm’s in-house trade mark agency. Kirsty Stewart joined Thorntons in 2014 following her traineeship and works within the intellectual property, technology and media team.

Lawrie IP is celebrating its tenth anniversary with an increase in turnover to around £2.7 million in the 12 months to June 2020, from £2.2m in the previous 12 months. The Glasgow-headquartered firm has grown from one person in 2010, founder Dr Donald Lawrie, to 28 employees. 

Criminal solicitors Anna MacKay and Lucy McKenna have joined Scullion LAW. Ms MacKay, who joins as an associate, has specialised in criminal defence since qualifying in 2012. She trained as a prosecutor with the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service and also worked for prosecutors at the Intern

Shepherd and Wedderbun has supported Barnardo's #Kidsmas campaign to help vulnerable children this Christmas.

A new social media trend which encourages young people to lie in front of oncoming traffic has been condemned by police in Ireland. The "ghosting" trend sees people challenged to lie on roads with a sheet over them in an attempt to stop oncoming traffic.

The Outer House of the Court of Session has rejected a petition for judicial review by six hospitality businesses and a commercial let operator in Edinburgh challenging the Scottish Ministers’ decision to continue the operation of Level 3 Covid-19 restrictions in the city.&

New legislation which would increase the penalties for dog-owners whose pets chase, attack or kill farmed animals will require significant amendment and clear guidance as to how it will work in practice if it is to meet its aim of reducing incidents of so-called “livestock worrying”, acc

Richard Douglas-Home looks at proposed changes to the capital gains tax regime. The Office of Tax Simplification (OTS) is an independent office of the Treasury, set up in 2010 to provide advice to the government on simplifying the UK tax system. It will produce reports either on its own initiative o

Plans to protect at least 30 per cent of Scotland’s land for nature by 2030 – and to examine options to extend this further – have been announced today by Environment Secretary Roseanna Cunningham. The proposals were published in a new ‘Statement of Intent on Biodiversity&rsq