News

The Law Society of Scotland has joined a new legal aid Fee Review Mechanism Group to help push for changes that ensure the system’s long-term viability. Law Society president, Patricia Thom, attended the first meeting of the new group on Wednesday, alongside Ian Moir, co-convener of the societ

The Scottish Solicitors Discipline Tribunal has lowered the standard of proof in professional misconduct cases. Following a period of debate and consultation, the SSDT voted to apply the civil standard of proof (balance of probabilities) in all hearings of professional misconduct cases.

A lawsuit concerning a woman who was struck in the face by a bird while riding a rollercoaster turns on whether the bird was a duck or a snowy egret. Hillary Martin is seeking $500,000 in damages from SeaWorld after she says she was knocked unconscious while riding the Mako rollercoaster at the Flor

The property market across Edinburgh, the Lothians, Fife, and the Borders saw average selling price rise by 5.1 per cent year-on-year to £299,050, between September and November 2025, according to the latest figures from ESPC.

In memory of Neil Beynon, advocate, who died at the end of October, Ross Macfarlane KC has arranged a memorial mass for Mr Beynon at St Mary’s Catholic Cathedral in Edinburgh – to which all friends, colleagues and instructing agents are invited. The mass will be held on Saturday 13 Decem

Our weekly round-up of human rights stories from around the world. UN rights chief says Pakistan constitutional amendments undermine judiciary, rule of law

A man who repeatedly sent abusive messages which included references to ‘killing Jews’ to a prominent Jewish MP’s constituency office has been sentenced at Leeds Magistrates’ Court. Kevin Smith, 61 and of Leeds, sent around 300 text messages and three voicemails of an abusive

Blackadders LLP has announced a raft of promotions in its Glasgow office. Taylor Henry has been promoted from senior solicitor to associate in the private client team and both Ethan Laing in the commercial real estate team and Natasha Connelly in residential property have been promoted from solicito

Northern Ireland's equality watchdog has formally lodged court proceedings seeking clarification on the implications of a landmark Supreme Court ruling on transgender rights. The Equality Commission previously said it would ask the Northern Ireland courts to clarify areas of "significant legal uncer

Police have arrested a man on suspicion of theft after he allegedly swallowed a diamond-encrusted Fabergé egg – which has yet to be recovered. Officers were called to a jewellery store in Auckland, New Zealand last Friday, where store staff accused the 32-year-old of swallowing the item

Scullion LAW has been awarded the Ministry of Defence Employer Recognition Scheme (ERS) Gold Award. The award recognises employers that demonstrate exemplary advocacy for the defence community, including through flexible working arrangements, supportive employment policies, and public commitment to

A national review of the evidence on the operation of grooming gangs in Scotland has been announced by the Scottish government.

Macdonald Henderson has announced the appointment of Douglas Telfer as director to lead the firm’s residential conveyancing team, based from the firm's office in the west end of Glasgow, formerly Ferguson Whyte. The appointment follows Macdonald Henderson's acquisition of Ferguson Whyte in Oct

Digby Brown Solicitors has retained the platinum accreditation from Investors in People (IiP) for the fourth time. The award, which independently evaluates workplace culture every three years, was delivered after assessors found Digby Brown operated at an exceptional level while being “deeply

The Scottish Sentencing Council’s new sentencing guidelines on rape offences have been approved by the High Court. The two new guidelines, which cover offences of rape and rape of a young child under the age of 13, were approved at a hearing of the High Court in Edinburgh yesterday. They will