Case Reports

A sheriff may rely on facts established at a hearing on a ground of referral before a Children’s Hearing when considering an application for a permanence order, appeal judges have ruled. The Inner House of the Court of Session refused a legal challenge by the mother of a child who wa

Prison authorities have successfully challenged a sheriff’s decision to allow a full hearing in a case brought by a former inmate who claimed he was "wrongfully" recalled to custody after being released on home detention curfew. John Paton raised an action for damages for the “wrong

A patient who sued his local health service over alleged failures in diagnosis and treatment of symptoms affecting his right leg and foot has had a damages claim dismissed. Barrie Spark raised a “negligence” action against Western Isles NHS, Benbecula Medical Practice, Uist and

A couple who challenged a Scottish local authority’s decision to refuse their application to redevelop a building for use as a hotel and guesthouse have had their appeal dismissed. The party litigants claimed that the council ought to have referred their application to the Scottish Ministers r

Members of a Christian pro-life campaign group have had a legal challenge against a local authority’s decision to impose a “safe zone” banning protests around an abortion clinic dismissed. It was argued that the council did not have the power to make a “Public Spaces Protecti

A construction company which is being sued for £3.8 million by a hotelier following a contractual dispute has successfully challenged a court ruling preventing it from having the case resolved by adjudication. A judge in the Court of Session recalled the interim orders interdicting t

A party to an arbitration which was seeking to challenge an arbitrator’s award on the basis of an alleged “legal error” has had an application for leave to appeal against the decision refused. A judge in the Court of Session refused the application after ruling that the t

A motorist found guilty of “dangerous driving” after overtaking a camper van before slamming on the brakes and forcing the other driver to perform an “emergency stop” has failed in an appeal against his conviction. Mark McLaughlin claimed that the sheriff had erred in ho

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