Mitchell Skilling

A judge in the Outer House of the Court of Session has ruled that two children of UK citizens who emigrated to New Zealand acquired habitual residence in Scotland following the couple’s divorce. The petitioner, F, the child’s father, sought orders under the Child Abduction and Custody Ac

A sheriff in Edinburgh Sheriff Court has found that a local authority employee who acted as a whistleblower in its education department is entitled to an unabridged copy of an independent report into the events surrounding his original protected disclosures. John Travers, who had been an employee of

A judge in the Outer House of the Court of Session has rejected three of four contentions by a fabric business that their bank breached a duty to exercise reasonable skill and care in relation to their account after they sent over £500,000 from their account to a fraudster. Sekers Fabrics Ltd

The First-tier Tribunal for Scotland Housing and Property Chamber has awarded £18,000 in damages to a tenant who was unlawfully evicted from his Glasgow flat in 2015, the first decision of its kind to come out of the FtT. Dambaru Baral raised the action in September 2018 against his landl

A woman who appealed a decision of the First-tier Tribunal for Scotland on the basis of her claim she did not have a private residential tenancy (PRT) under the Private Housing (Tenancies) (Scotland) Act 2016 has had her appeal refused by the Upper Tribunal for Scotland. Kate Affleck 

A couple from Falkirk have succeeded in getting a proof before answer in their case against a whisky company. Thomas and Gail Chalmers brought an action against Diageo Scotland Ltd for damages of £40,000 caused by a whisky aging facility that they allege has diminished the value

The Crown has succeeded in challenging a sheriff’s pre-trial ruling that evidence gathered by so-called ‘paedophile hunters’ that the Crown proposed to induce at the trial of an alleged sex offender was inadmissible. The Procurator Fiscal at Dundee brought a Crown bill of

An ex-music teacher who was convicted of historic sex crimes against his former students has had an appeal against conviction and sentence refused. William Wright appealed against a conviction for indecent assault at the Appeal Court of the High Court of Justiciary, sitting in Glasgow.

A short-term prisoner who was refused early release under Home Detention Curfew (HDC) under the Prisoners and Criminal Proceedings (Scotland) Act 1993 has had his petition against the decision rejected. John Paton brought judicial review proceedings against the Scottish Government aft

A man who was found carrying a machete in a Cambuslang woodland has had his appeal against conviction for carrying an offensive weapon in public without a reasonable excuse refused. Christopher McCormick appealed against a conviction of carrying an offensive weapon under the Criminal Law (

A landlord who failed to pay a tenancy deposit into an approved deposit scheme until four years into the tenancy has been unsuccessful in challenging a payment order. Linda Searle appealed against a decision of the First-tier Tribunal for Scotland Housing and Property Chamber (FtT) in which she

A couple who claimed their company’s solicitor had been negligent in his conduct during a purchase transaction have failed to establish negligence. Sajjad and Rumella Soofi brought an action against Jeffrey Martin Dykes for professional negligence in respect of their purchase of

A woman who appealed the granting of a contact order on the grounds that the sheriff had not ascribed appropriate weight to child evidence in light of expert evidence has had her appeal refused. The Sheriff Appeal Court, sitting in Edinburgh, heard an appeal by CM, the defender at first in

The mother of a child with selective mutism has been unsuccessful in establishing that it would be in the child’s best interests to relocate to her native Germany and have that be the child's principal residence. Sheriff Ian Cruickshank heard evidence from MK, the pursuer, who sought a residen

The Upper Tribunal for Scotland has ruled that the existence of a repairing standard enforcement order did not prevent a trust from having the requisite intention to demolish a building as per Schedule 5 of the Housing (Scotland) Act 1988. The Josephine Marshall Trust appealed against a decision of