Opinion

Scotland's earnest desire to be noticed by the world has been fulfilled. But, as the adage goes, 'be careful what you wish for'. David J Black reflects on the chaos of the past few weeks, as we put into practice the 'progressive' ideas that others have merely preached. Says Police Scotland: "The Hat

At the end of January 2024, the Intellectual Property Enterprise Court (IPEC) delivered its judgment in the action raised by Thatchers Cider Company Limited against Aldi Stores, finding that Aldi had not infringed Thatchers’ trade mark in relation to its cloudy lemon drink and also that it had

After much delay, the Assisted Dying for Terminally Ill Adults (Scotland) Bill was published on 27 March 2024. Next, it will be scrutinised by a Holyrood committee and voted on by MSPs, probably later this year, writes Dr Mary Neal. Much can (and will) be said about whether this bill is safer for pa

All personal injury actions raised after 30 June 2021 are subject to Qualified One-Way Cost Shifting or QOCS. What are the implications of this for a pursuer’s case? Chloe Neil explains. The law in Scotland was changed following the introduction of the Civil Litigation (Expenses and Group Proc

Jodi Gordon extols the benefits of female leadership. You may be thinking that I'm over a week late with this blog, however in my opinion, discussion around this topic should never just be about one day! To truly inspire women and girls to feel included, this conversation has to extend well beyond 8

Thomas Mitchell takes a look at the statistics around motorcycle casualties, which cast doubt on the claims made by Transport Scotland. Over the five years up to 2022, motorcyclists accounted for 17 per cent of all fatalities but less than one per cent of traffic. In 2022, according to Sco

Naomi Pryde examines the opportunities for Scotland's space sector. Scotland aims to be Europe’s leading space nation, with ambitious plans outlined in the Scottish Government’s Space Strategy. The space industry heralds endless commercial opportunities. According to the Bank of America,

What are we likely to see on employment law if Labour wins the next general election? Nicola Macara lays out her predictions. The next UK general election must be held no later than 28 January 2025. The Prime Minister’s working assumption is that it will take place in the second half of this y

Corey Beaton considers the progress women in law have made and the barriers that still remain for them. When we consider the gender balance of our lecture halls, it is hard to imagine a time when women were not permitted to study the law, nor indeed to go on and practise it, yet it has only been jus

Shelter Scotland, which acted on behalf of the appellants in the case of Manson and Downie v Turner and Turner, highlights the significance of the Upper Tribunal's decision in relation to the correct approach to assessing reasonableness specifically in relation to ground 1 and the wid

Readers may recall an article published on 1 November 2023 summarising a decision of the All-Scotland Sheriff Personal Injury Court regarding QOCS protection in a multi-defender action. That decision has now been overturned – Steven Smart analyses the appeal case. The pursuer argued that QOCS

Dr Larysa Zhdankina, a Ukrainian lawyer exiled in Scotland, writes about the need for justice for child victims of the Russian invasion of Ukraine. It is estimated by the online platform Children of War, that for the period from February 24, 2022 to February 13, 2024, 526 children were killed and a

The UK’s Serious Fraud Office (SFO) has indicated that it intends to utilise existing but less commonly used powers to grant immunity notices to offenders who assist in its cases, and support reduced sentences to defendants who provide evidence to enable other prosecutions, writes Tom Stocker.

John Sturrock looks at how legislative scrutiny at Holyrood might be improved. One of the difficulties which the Scottish Parliament has encountered is that legislation has on occasion been found, after passage through Parliament and in some cases implementation, to be in some way ineffective, inade

Stuart Munro provides an update on the Horizon scandal. Less than a week after the broadcast, on 10 January 2024, Prime Minister Rishi Sunak promised to introduce legislation to overturn all convictions resulting from the Horizon IT scandal – a so-called ‘mass-exoneration’ scheme.