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Moir and Sweeney Litigation partner Ian Moir is well known as a vociferous defender of legal aid, with his role as co-convenor of the Law Society of Scotland’s legal aid committee seeing him lobby hard on behalf of colleagues who make a living doing publicly funded work. As part of that he hel

A £30 million pledge to support Scottish charities through the coronavirus crisis is welcome but will not tackle the immediate cash flow problems leaving many in a fight for survival, lawyers have warned. Alastair Keatinge and David Dunsire, of Lindsays, are advising a string of organisations

Former justice secretary Kenny MacAskill has called for a prisoner release programme to be established by the Scottish government in light of the pandemic. Under the Coronavirus (Scotland) Act, only those convicted of sexual or terror offences or who pose a threat to an identified person will be req

Michael Howlin QC, chairman of Terra Firma Chambers, considers the wider impact of coronavirus and the importance of continued access to specialist legal services in these challenging times for the legal profession. The social and economic upheaval caused by the COVID-19 crisis continues to unfold d

A national campaign is being relaunched to reassure anyone experiencing domestic abuse that support is available to them during these difficult times. Social isolation measures put in place to tackle coronavirus (COVID-19) may be adding pressure to those in abusive domestic situations.

A journey of a thousand miles is said to begin with a single step. I suggest a journey needs a destination. Without this the traveller is lost. COVID-19 has paralysed this country and indeed the world. It threatens our economy, collective life, family life and how we as human beings exist and intera

The charities team at Gillespie Macandrew, with support from charity regulator OSCR, has advised on the creation of a new charitable body providing much-needed support to hospital patients who are suffering from the restrictions imposed due to COVID-19. The Rainbow Boxes Foundation provides ess

Justice First Fellow Louise Herd discusses her experience as a trainee at Clan Childlaw. Clan Childlaw was founded in 2008 by Alison Reid and Fiona Jones after they recognised a need for a specialist outreach legal representation service for children and young people in Scotland.

A man was caught impersonating a police officer after attempting to pull over undercover officers, gardaí in Ireland have said. The man, who has not been arrested, had blue lights on his vehicle and signalled another car to pull over without realising it was an unmarked patrol car, the Irish

Court administrators have been urged to reconsider the “mothballing” of civil business, amid fears that the financial futures of some law firms and advocates are being jeopardised. Roddy Dunlop QC, Vice-Dean of the Faculty of Advocates, said that – as is happening in England &ndash

Two men who had been remanded in custody since July 2019 charged with assault and robbery and whose trial had been postponed due to the suspension of jury trials have had their appeal against refusal of bail refused. The accused persons, JD and BK, moved for bail on the basis tha

Four new salaried employment judges have been appointed to the panel of judges of Employment Tribunals (Scotland). The Lord President, Lord Carloway, appointed David Hoey, Michelle Sutherland, Peter O’Donnell and Amanda Jones as salaried employment judges.

Police have increased their use of stop and search following a rethink of the policy, The Times reports. The number of stop and searches rose by 25 per cent last year, resulting in a jump in knife and drug seizures.

The Coronavirus (Scotland) Act 2020 came into force on 6 April 2020. In relation to commercial leases, the act gives tenants under commercial leases in Scotland additional protection from irritancy (i.e. forfeiture or termination). This protection is similar (although not identical) to the protectio

The Court of Justice of the European Union has ordered Poland to suspend the disciplinary chamber of the Supreme Court.