News

The Council of Europe’s Committee for the Prevention of Torture (CPT) has raised concerns about the treatment of people deprived of their liberty by the police, as well as prison overcrowding in a new report. The report (French only) follows a visit by the CPT from 19-28 March 2024, which focu

The Commons' Scottish Affairs Committee has launched an inquiry examining the pilot Safer Drug Consumption Facility (SDCF) which opened yesterday in Glasgow. The facility, on Hunter Street, is the UK’s first official consumption room for illegal drugs. Known as The Thistle, the facility will e

Passengers should not have to provide their gender identity in order to buy a train ticket, the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) has ruled in a case concerning the French rail network. The case arose from a complaint made by a group called Mousse to the French data protection authority

Wright, Johnston & Mackenzie LLP (WJM) has recently welcomed two new hires at its Glasgow base in St Vincent Plaza. Michelle Young has joined its private client team in the role of senior solicitor, while solicitor Ellidh Clark has joined the renewables team.

Burges Salmon has advised real estate and leisure investment firm London and Regional Properties (L+R) on its acquisition of Holiday Inn Express Folkestone for its Atlas Hotels brand. Located near the Eurotunnel, the Folkestone acquisition supports Atlas Hotels’ vision to grow in key locations

A police officer has admitted he crashed into another motorist because he was watching porn on his phone. Tristan Macomber, an officer in Lake County, Florida, initially lied about what he was doing when he rear-ended another vehicle while on duty in early November 2024, local TV channel WESH r

Thorntons has appointed two new partners, one an internal promotion and the other a lateral hire. Rachel Anderson, based in St Andrews, is promoted to private client partner and Jennifer Gallagher joins the firm’s Dundee team as a family law partner.

Lindsays has appointed Michael Kitson as a director in its commercial property team in Edinburgh. With 14 years of experience, most recently with BTO, Mr Kitson has considerable experience in advising a range of clients across the private and public sectors, supporting developers, contractors,

Thorntons has gifted office space in Dundee to the Archie Foundation. The charity will also continue using its current office in Ninewells Hospital, enabling the fundraising and bereavement teams to manage operations across Tayside. 

Government proposals for extensive new levels of direct government control and involvement in how Scottish solicitors work are to be removed from the Legal Services Regulation Bill, preserving supremacy of the rule of law, the Law Society of Scotland has said. The Regulation of Legal Services (Scotl

Jaime Carey has become the first Chilean lawyer to serve as president of the International Bar Association (IBA). Mr Carey, senior partner of Carey, Chile's largest law firm, succeeded Spain's Almudena Arpón de Mendívil y Aldama at the start of the year.

Lord Ericht and Lady Carmichael have been appointed to the First Division and Second Division of the Court of Session respectively, effective from 3 February 2025. The Lord President, Lord Carloway, and the Lord Justice Clerk, Lady Dorrian, recommended the appointments to allow court business to con

Dr Rozemarijn Roland Holst has been awarded over £128,000 by the Leverhulme Trust for a three-year project entitled ‘The Making and Unmaking of Global Commons by International Organisations’. Global commons, areas outside national jurisdiction of states such as the high seas, Antar

Thorntons has advised on a community buyout that will safeguard the future of a Cairngorms visitor attraction and help boost the local economy.

A judge has annulled a marriage where the bride was tricked into going along with what she believed was a fake wedding organised as a social media prank. The woman said she was invited to what she was told was a "white party" – where everyone is expected to wear white – by a man she had