News

Alleged victims of rape and sexual assault across Scotland are a step closer to being able to use forensic medical examination services without first having to report a crime. The Forensic Medical Services Bill will enable people to access healthcare and refer themselves for a forensic medical exami

Solicitor, chartered accountant and property entrepreneur David Lockhart has died. Mr Lockhart led Scottish company Halladale to the stock market before selling it and setting up real estate investment trust NewRiver REIT.

Fourteen devils have been welcomed by the Faculty of Advocates to a greatly-adapted training programme.

From July 1 to September 30, the average selling price in Edinburgh, the Lothians, Fife and the Borders was £266,149, up 5.2 per cent compared to the same period last year, according to property consultant ESPC.

Construction companies, engineering firms and other businesses active in the infrastructure sector stand to lose out on funding, investment and major government contracts around the world unless they take a more active role in the fight against climate change. A growing imperative for infrastructure

The Citizens Rights Project will brief local authority and third sector staff working with vulnerable EU nationals about the EU Settlement Scheme in a free webinar. The webinar is aimed at professionals working with vulnerable EU citizens in local authorities and third sector organisations, in colla

Judges are to be trained to spot the signs of dementia in defendants amid an increase in the number of citizens finding themselves in court for the first time over petty crimes. Solicitor Mark Hatzer, 53, who is also a deputy district judge, has created a course for judges to aid them in identifying

A prisoner who complained of intolerable pain was found to have four phones lodged in his rectum. The man, imprisoned in the Indian city of Jodhpur in Rajasthan, who had been jailed in a case of an 'unnatural offence', was rushed to hospital, where the discovery was made.

A subcontractor involved in the Aberdeen Harbour Expansion Project has succeeded in establishing that the main contractor of the project breached the terms of their contract by omitting work within the scope of the subcontract and transferring it to other companies.  The pursuer, Van Oord UK Lt

Sheriff Court jury trials delayed as a result of Covid-19 are set to resume in remote jury centres across Scotland following new government funding. The Scottish government has provided £6.5 million to enable the new remote jury centres to deliver capacity for 18 jury trial courts to operate.

Some emergency measures in the criminal justice system, including the use of electronic signatures and electronic transmission of documents, should continue after the Covid-19 crisis, inspectors have said. In a new joint report, HM Inspectorate of Constabulary in Scotland and HM Inspectorate of Pros

A planned redress scheme for survivors of historical child abuse in care needs to be redrafted to remove an “inherently unfair” restriction, the Faculty of Advocates has suggested. Under the current blueprint, applicants to the scheme must sign a waiver abandoning civil proceedings, and

Scottish specialist criminal law firm MTM Defence Lawyers has reported a 10 per cent increase in revenue since opening an office in London last year. The firm, led by Neil Hay, opened an office in Chancery Lane last October following increasing demand from London-based clients and law firms referrin

A full obituary of long-standing Scottish legislative drafter John McCluskie QC has been published by The Times. Mr McCluskie was the first solicitor employed by the Lord Advocate's department in London in 1972. Later, as an advocate, he became head of the department.

Gillian Maclellan discusses the use of tracking technology to monitor employees working from home. As employers across the UK now look at another sustained period of their workforce working from home, we are hearing tales of some using tracking technology to keep tabs on their employees.