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Death and taxes are inevitable, and following the former kindly obituaries may and often do follow but a recitation of platitudes was not always certain in earlier times, writes Robert Shiels. The death of Sir Archibald Alison in 1867 produced an obituary that must, surely, be seen as being not

Justice Secretary Keith Brown has announced the introduction of measures to ensure the on-going safety of prisoners while the Scottish Prison Service undertakes a review of the management of trans prisoners. The measures will be in place until the reviews are completed and will mean that no newly co

A laughing emoji may be construed as defamation if it follows a post mocking a person's physical disability, Italy's Supreme Court has ruled. The case revolves around a dispute on Facebook involving traffic problems in the northern town of Luino.

Most of the public would prefer to be represented by a barrister with a posh accent, research has found. Academics at Nottingham Trent and De Montfort universities also found that lawyers from beyond the home counties faced obstacles to progressing in their careers due to their accents.

Nearly a quarter (22 per cent) of people contacting LawCare for support were primarily concerned about their career in the law, the charity said in a new report. For the first time, the number of people with career concerns equalled the number of legal professionals seeking help because of stress, a

A 31-year-old man has been sentenced after admitting a salmon poaching offence in Moray. Joel Julienne, from Glasgow, was sentenced at Elgin Sheriff Court on Thursday 26 January having previously pled guilty to fishing for salmon on the River Spey.

A new bill to prevent members of the US Congress from trading and owning stocks has been introduced – and is entitled the Pelosi Act. Senator Josh Hawley introduced the Preventing Elected Leaders from Owning Securities and Investments Act in an effort to once again stop lawmakers from trading

To mark International Holocaust Remembrance Day, Tom O’Connor considers the courageous conduct of two German judges who remained true to their principles and stood up to the Nazis. The shameful conduct of German judges under the Hitler regime was symbolised by the appalling behaviour of the fa

Scotland's child abuse inquiry has cost the taxpayer almost £65 million, new figures show. The probe cost more than £3.7m between October 1 and December 31 last year, bringing the total to around £64.65m.

Burges Salmon, which has an office in Edinburgh, has been named the RollOnFriday ‘Best Law Firm to Work at 2023’, an accolade that the firm has achieved for the second year in a row. Burges Salmon’s managing partner, Roger Bull, said: “To be named the inaugural RollOnFriday &

The legal market is a highly competitive environment. Everyone in our beloved sector can witness it and the heat is constantly dialling up. A recent LexisNexis business development survey indicated that competition for new clients is the greatest concern that solicitors have. One of the most, if not

President of the European Court of Human Rights, Síofra O’Leary, has encouraged Council of Europe member states to use the forthcoming Summit of Heads of State and Government in Reykjavik to commit further resources to the court. Speaking at the court’s annual press conference in

Sheriff Alexander B Wilkinson KC passed away on 17 January at the age of 90. He was a former president of the Sheriffs Association in Scotland and was co-author of the first edition of The Law Relating to Parent & Child in Scotland and acted as a consultant on the second edition. "His influence

The UK government has launched a consultation on proposed changes to the way holiday entitlements are calculated for part-year workers, addressing employers’ concerns following a recent landmark ruling on the issue by the Supreme Court, writes Helen Cordon. The public consultation focuses

A man who alleged that a Jaguar he obtained by a hire purchase agreement was defective but continued to drive it following rejection has lost an appeal before the Sheriff Appeal Court against a sheriff’s finding that he could not rely on his rescission of the contract. Appellant Alan King argu