News

Pictured front row (L-R): Lady Carmichael, Lord Doherty, Archbishop Leo Cushley, Lord Matthews, Lord Drummond Young and Lord Uist

The Law Society of Scotland has launched a series of free events for trainee solicitors across Scotland to hear from an expert panel and meet other trainees in their area.The trainee roadshow will travel to Aberdeen, Dundee, Glasgow and Edinburgh and bring together representatives from the Law Socie

The recently released rankings from legal directory Legal 500 make excellent reading for Harper Macleod. The firm saw its number of recommended lawyers almost double to 43, while a 30 per cent increase in the number of specialist areas the firm is ranked in took this figure to 34. Harper Macleod als

Terra Firma Chambers’ David Bartos is running the Glen Nevis 10K on Sunday 2nd October to raise money for the Cystic Fibrosis Trust. The Glen Nevis 10K is part of the "Glencoe Marathon Gathering", the pinnacle of the trail running calendar in 2016. The route circumnavigates and summits Cow Hill be

Lady Dorrian The Rt Hon Lady Dorrian, who made history this year on her appointment as the first female Lord Justice Clerk of Scotland, will give the opening keynote speech at the Law Society of Scotland’s annual conference this month.

MacRoberts and Morton Fraser are in late stage merger talks, The Lawyer reports. A merger would establish a new firm with a turnover of £38 million, making it the sixth largest by revenue in Scotland.

A new statutory instrument mandating that solicitors must ascertain the availability of a suitable QC, advocate or solicitor advocate comes into force on Monday 3 October. The Act of Adjournal (Criminal Procedure Rules 1996 Amendment) (No. 3) (Instruction of Representation in the High Court) 2016 (S

An owner of land on which electricity pylons have been installed by another party is not entitled to receive a payout for any period when the apparatus was on the land before the date of the grant of the necessary wayleave, a judge has ruled. Lord Glennie in the Court of Session refused a petition b

A major change to the timetable of the Court of Session, allowing it to sit throughout the year, has been announced by the Scottish Courts and Tribunals Service (SCTS). Under a Direction issued by the Lord President, Lord Carloway, the traditional three court terms of the legal year will effectively

Michael Matheson Recorded crime in Scotland is at its lowest level since 1974 according to figures released today.

Lord Carloway The focus of court reforms must now shift from structure to function, without losing sight of the goal of a justice system which works efficiently, the Lord President, Lord Carloway, said in an address at the opening of the legal year.

The head of Police Scotland has said he wants to re-empower regional commanders in a move that will curb centralisation. Phil Gormley conceded that some good practices of local forces had been “lost in transition” but added he would “release the thinking” of the single force’s chief inspec

Andrew Mackenzie The International Bar Association’s access to justice and legal committee, working with the Bingham Centre for the Rule of Law, has launched a draft report titled “Children and Access to Justice: National Practices, International Challenges.” The report was launched and the IB

A man has been jailed for nine years by the International Criminal Court in its first sentence based on cultural destruction as a war crime. Islamist Ahmad al-Faqi al-Mahdi made history by pleading guilty to charges of destroying 14 of the 16 mausoleums in the ancient city of Timbuktu, regarding the

Katie Jukes Katie Jukes discusses the Strasbourg ruling that allowed gay people to serve in the armed forces.