Opinion

Alison Edmondson looks at the issue of credibility and reliability of witnesses over Zoom. As my recent blogging history reveals I’m currently vexed by the question of whether family cases requiring evidence from witnesses should go ahead remotely. If we don’t have evidentiary heari

Benjamin Bestgen explores trust and trustworthiness in his latest jurisprudential primer. See his last post here. Literature and movies are full of stories that have, either at their core or as a necessary ingredient, the topic of trust and trustworthiness. Recently, Marriage Story (2019) dealt with

Amidst the coronavirus pandemic which has temporarily halted normality, one pillar of Scottish society has never been far away from the headlines, writes Bryan O'Donnell. Arrigo Sacchi once proclaimed: “Football is the most important of the least important things in life”. He has cl

Criminal barrister Joanna Hardy shares her experience of remote courts in England. “I haven’t met the defendant, Your Honour,” I tell a screen in my kitchen. Silence. “Can… can you hear me?” My words echo through the judge’s laptop in a courtroom three mile

To mark Star Wars Day, Simon Allison takes Yoda to task over his poor management skills.

Garry Sturrock separates fact from fiction when it comes to surrogacy. Those who watched BBC One’s recent four-part drama, The Nest, will no doubt agree that it made for fantastically gripping viewing. The implausible plot centred around a well-heeled, Glasgow-based couple desperate to start a

In his latest jurisprudential primer, Benjamin Bestgen explains why there is more to the concept of 'hard work' than meets the eye. See his last post here. The legal profession and many others are notorious for being associated with stressful work, tight deadlines and demanding unsociable, even unhe

With the Community Right to Buy for Sustainable Development having come into effect last weekend, land commissioner Megan MacInnes looks at what it means for communities and for land reform. Last weekend marked the launch of the latest in the Scottish government’s land reform toolkit – t

For over two centuries and through two World Wars the Signet Library has never closed its doors, except for Christmas Day, New Year and other holidays. Robert Pirrie WS, chief executive of the WS Society, reflects on the temporary shuttering of this exceptional place in the time of the COVID-19 pan

COVID-19 is presenting challenges for the construction sector in many areas, but the marked differences between the approach in Scotland and England is causing significant confusion amongst UK businesses, write Angela Grahame QC and Murdo MacLeod QC. Businesses are already struggling to comply

Ailie McGowan discusses the need for a digitalised court system. The coronavirus pandemic and current enforcement of ‘lockdown’ measures in Scotland has sharply brought into focus the need for a fully functioning digitalised court system.

You might recall headlines a few years ago, amid political jostling, of £1 million free of inheritance tax? Well, as of 6 April this year, this became true – for a limited number of people in particular circumstances. So who falls into this 'magic million' category? Firstly, it’s i

Dr Kath Murray, Lisa Mackenzie and Lucy Hunter Blackburn highlight some concerns between gender representation legislation and consistency with the Equality Act. In early 2018, with support from most parties, the Scottish Parliament passed the Gender Representation on Public Boards Act, aimed at imp

Douglas Mill looks at some of the opportunities the current lockdown presents. Or perhaps two months. Or longer. Who knows. And that is the worst of it, as business planning and strategy without a timeline is impossible. Part of the difficulty of the current situation is, I think, psychological for

The Competition Appeal Tribunal has issued its judgment following its first sitting in Scotland in 15 years. On 2 March 2020, the Tribunal, chaired by Lord Doherty, heard legal arguments on whether or not Creative Scotland, the public body that supports the arts, screen and creative industries acros