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Shoosmiths has been appointed to Avant Homes’ Scottish legal panel. The appointment sees the firm extend its relationship with the UK housebuilder after securing a place on Avant’s England and Wales legal panel in 2021.

Pride month is about acceptance, equality and celebrating the work of LGBTQ+ people. Employers should take steps to implement LGBTQ+ initiatives all year round and not just one month of the year. However, Pride month is a good time for employers to consider the employment law issues affecting LGBTQ+

Cyber and Fraud Centre – Scotland has announced the appointments of four new trustees.

The Law Society of England and Wales has been granted permission by the High Court to bring a judicial review challenge against the UK government over legal aid. The application for permission was made after the government failed to increase criminal defence solicitors’ legal aid rates by the

Land managers will be given more powers to help control Scotland’s rapidly growing deer population after updated rules were introduced to Holyrood this week. The changes to existing laws aim to make it easier to reduce unsustainable deer numbers in order to protect plant life and boost rewildi

A judge in the Outer House has ruled that the Scottish government acted illegally in granting licences for scallop dredging in a case brought by environmental campaigners last month. Open Seas, a group concerned about the damaging impacts of the fishing method on Scotland’s seabed, accused min

The Sheriff Appeal Court has refused an appeal by a patient of an Ayrshire dentist who was removed from the Dentists Register against a sheriff’s decision that he was not responsible for an acute stress disorder suffered by the patient as a result of learning of a small chance he had contracte

A lawyer who claimed he was suffering from “sexsomnia” when he molested two schoolchildren and raped their older sister has been convicted of sexual abuse. Andrew Lingard had denied the historical offences, claiming that he had a condition that makes sufferers unaware of what they do whi

Two lawyers and a law firm who cited fake court cases generated by ChatGPT have been fined $5,000 (around €4,600 or £3,900). Judge P. Kevin Castel, in Manhattan, said there was nothing "inherently improper" about using AI to help write a legal filing, but lawyers have a responsibility to

The widespread adoption of remote working has increased cyber security risks for law firms, the UK's National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) has warned. NCSC — part of GCHQ — yesterday published its latest Cyber Threat to the Legal Sector report to highlight the potential threats to legal

The feminisation of the Scottish legal profession continues, with almost 57 per cent of solicitors being female compared to 55 per cent two years ago. The Law Society of Scotland has published its latest diversity data, collected as part of the annual practising certificate (PC) renewal process to o

Miller Samuel Hill Brown licensing consultant Peter Lawson has been awarded a CBE in the first Birthday Honours list made by King Charles III. The King's Birthday Honours mark the extraordinary contributions and service of people across the UK. The Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE)

A round-up of human rights stories from around the world. Russian security forces search home of lawyer representing activist who died in prison | Meduza

New laws to change how imprisonment is used in Scotland, while ensuring victims are at the heart of the justice system, have been passed by the Scottish Parliament. The reforms will establish one new bail test and set into law the circumstances in which courts should remand someone in custody or gra

Academics at Abertay University are working with Police Scotland on a research project that aims to help frontline officers improve how they interact with LGBT and care-experienced young people. Led by Professor Jim Moir of Abertay’s School of Business, Law and Social Sciences, the project inv