Opinion

To protect customers, the UK government has introduced a new code of practice and ombudsman scheme applying to all private buyers of new homes for owner-occupation anywhere in the UK. Finlay Campbell explains the details. The New Homes Quality Board (NHQB), an independent body established by Westmin

Politics has been a very odd place over the last few weeks and months, where apparently in starting consideration of a policy proposal, the law has not always seemed to be the first point of reference and politics rather than law has been the deciding factor. It is almost a relief to be back looking

Kirsteen Maclean discusses the intricacies of corporate insolvency. Research undertaken by the insolvency and restructuring trade body R3, in Scotland, revealed that the number of insolvency cases (liquidations and receiverships), for the last quarter of 2021, was 164 per cent higher compared to the

Dr Claire Lightowler shares emerging findings and insights from her work on a scoping study to better understand the legal needs of children and young people in conflict with the law. Thanks to funding from The Promise Partnership’s ‘A Good Childhood’ fund, Clan Childlaw is underta

Dr Conor McCormick of Queen's University Belfast examines recent developments concerning the office of attorney general and its equivalents. This month marks the publication of my book on The Constitutional Legitimacy of Law Officers in the United Kingdom, which contains a detailed analysis of the f

The recent case of Free Miles v The Royal Veterinary College, featuring Dorothy the turkey, shares striking similarities to one of my early employment tribunal cases. In that memorable case, the claimant had “rescued” (we said “stolen”) a duck (unnamed) from her employer beca

Nicola Sturgeon has made her grand gambit, presenting a draft bill to the Scottish Parliament to hold a referendum on Scottish independence on October 19, 2023. The draft contained the referendum question, established the modalities for the poll, and even provided for the font of the print on the ba

On 1 June 2022, two changes came into force in Scotland which change the law around when claims expire under a construction contract. The general starting point is the same – if a claim has not been raised within five-years of the loss, injury or damage occurring then (unless one of the except

The UK government’s Business Energy and industrial Strategy (BEIS) Committee is running an inquiry into the UK labour market “post-pandemic”. Part of its remit is seeking to understand whether current employment law is fit for purpose or requires reform. This is interesting because

Last month was a particularly busy period in the Buy-Now Pay-Later (BNPL) sector. On 1 June, Klarna, one of the largest BNPL providers, began reporting its customer data to credit reference agencies in the UK for the popular short-term credit products such as Pay in 3 instalments and Pay in 30 days.

The sun is shining in the Highlands (well, at least it has been intermittently) and farmers are busy making hay and silage. When long grass fields are cut, they often attract walkers and horse riders who fancy taking access across the nice open fields – is it okay for them to do so? In Scotlan

With Scotland’s constitutional issue set to take centre stage once again, many will be fearful that division and rancour may follow. Back in 2014 and in subsequent years, the debate has often generated more heat than light. Arguably, the 2016 Brexit referendum was even more acrimonious.

With our separate legal systems, the Deferred Prosecution Agreement (DPA) regime does not operate in Scotland, and as a result civil recovery remains the only option short of prosecution for Scottish prosecutors to resolve bribery cases. In contrast, in England and Wales, DPAs have effectively displ

An­drew Walker, partner and head of corporate growth at Morton Fraser, discusses the role employee businesses could have in boosting the wider UK economy. The Scottish government’s Programme for Government included a goal to reach 500 employee-owned businesses (EOBs) by 2030. We currently

Solicitor Fiona McPhail writes about the case of Abdelwahab-Kaba Dafaalla v City of Edinburgh Council, which concerned the issue of repeat or subsequent homeless applications where a local authority has already considered an application and acted upon the outcome of that application. In Mr Dafaalla&