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The legal affairs minister Paul Wheelhouse (pictured) has given his support to proposals for legislation meant to tackle legal highs. Mr Wheelhouse said he would meet UK crime prevention minister Lynne Featherstone MP to talk about legal controls for legal highs, or new psychoactive substances (NPS)

Two accused persons charged with being concerned in the supply of cannabis resin after their car was stopped and “unlawfully” searched by police have had their appeals against a sheriff’s decision to dismiss their challenge to the admissibility of the evidence of the search refused. The Crimin

The president of the UK Supreme Court, Lord Neuberger (pictured) has given the closing address at the Global Law Summit in London. Lord Neuberger spoke about the rule of law in his speech and said anyone with a legal claim must have an “effective way of having that claim considered” and that tha

The Scottish corporate team at DWF has acted on deals totalling over £175m in the first six weeks of 2015 - highlighting a significant uplift in deal activity. The team has advised on a range of high-profile deals, including acting for the sellers and management team on the £20m PDG Helicopters MB

Cold calling companies who make unsolicited phone calls to households and send nuisance texts will face fines of up to £500,000 following UK ministers’announcement the law will be changed to make it easier to prosecute cold callers. The new regulations will remove a clause that requires authoriti

This year's SLN Annual Review highlights the concern among defence solicitors and sheriffs over the lack of flexibility afforded to police and fiscals in the prosecution of alleged domestic abuse cases. Legal researcher Roishe Milne interviewed sheriffs and solicitors unearthing real concern that th

The European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) has ruled covert filming made in the public interest is justified. In a judgment with far-reaching implications for the use of concealed cameras, the court ruled that four Swiss journalists had the right to use covert cameras to obtain a story.

The Crown Office has decided a fatal accident inquiry (FAI) should be held into the Glasgow bin lorry tragedy but that the driver will not face prosecution. Six people died and another 10 were injured when the driver of the lorry fell unconscious and the vehicle crashed into pedestrians on Queen Str

The lord president, Lord Gill (pictured), has suspended a part-time sheriff as it emerged he is linked to a company being investigated over a controversial liquidation. Peter Watson last sat at Perth Sheriff Court on 13 February and was suspended by Lord Gill on February 16.

A Scottish local authority has been granted permanence orders in relation to three sibling children whose mother had a history of alcohol abuse, after a judge in the Court of Session ruled that it would be “better” for each of the three boys that an order be made than not. Lord Brailsford (pictu

In yesterday’s article on Joe Beltrami we mistakenly attributed the article entitled “Beltrami 12, Hangman 0” to the Herald. It in fact appeared in TheScotsman.

Pinsent Masons and the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service (COPFS) have been recognised as two of the top three Scottish employers for lesbian, gay and bisexual staff. The organisations' commitment to workplace diversity has been acknowledged by Stonewall, which also placed Pinsent Masons nin

The number of attacks on Scottish Fire and Rescue Service (SFRS) personnel dropped during 2013-14. The total number of incidents where attacks occurred decreased from 81 in 2012-13 to 69 incidents in 2013-14.

Law students from the universities of Edinburgh and Glasgow debated the question of whether assisted suicide should be legalised in Scotland in the University of Glasgow’s historic Debates Chambers. Edinburgh University’s Mason Institute hosted the second annual intramural student debate between

Catherine Guthrie (pictured) discusses the need to account for digital assets when making a will. It has recently been announced that Facebook is to introduce a “legacy contract”, allowing a friend or relative to access and update a person’s profile when they die. The idea is not without its c