News

Parents are being urged not to turn puppy love at Christmas into a financial pipeline for criminal gangs. Millions of pounds are spent every year on trafficked dogs bought at unauthorised puppy farms or online. Sales are expected to spike in the run-up to  Christmas amid concerns that buyers co

The head of a police watchdog has insisted he can continue to carry out his function remotely after swapping his notoriously cold city for sunny Portugal. John McDougall, chair of the Edmonton Police Commission, has permanently relocated more than 4,600 miles away from the city whose police force he

Following the success of last year's Burns Supper in memory of the late Billy Boyle, Dundee lawyers are organising another event next year to be sponsored by Scottish Legal News. The Dundee Lawyers' Boyle Memorial Burns Supper will take place in Dundee's historic Burns Club on Saturday 18th January

Lawyers are refusing certain cases because they lose money on them due to legal aid rules. Richard Atkinson, president of the Law Society of England and Wales, said members were turning away people charged with certain crimes including burglary.

In January there will be a new season of Thursday evening talks on history at the Signet Library. The talks are free to members and guests and places will be reserved on a first come first served basis. Contact library@wssociety.co.uk if you have any questions.

The Law Society of Scotland has advised that upcoming property settlements may be delayed because of an IT outage with a key Scottish government agency service. The Law Society has been contacted by a number of members about the Register of Insolvencies. The register has been offline since Wednesday

A University of Dundee study will give volunteer jurors from across Scotland the opportunity to deliver their verdict on the future of digital crime fighting. The university’s Leverhulme Research Centre for Forensic Science (LRCFS) is recruiting members of the public as part of research focusi

The number of police officers quitting to follow other careers should be a wake-up call for the Scottish government, Scottish Labour has warned.  Scottish Labour's Pauline McNeill urged the SNP to reverse this trend as soon as possible before burn out creates a "snowball effect". 

A 'special case' between the Faculty of Advocates and the Judicial Appointments Board for Scotland over qualifications for shrieval office is to be heard next week at the Court of Session. The Courts Reform (Scotland) Act 2014 requires anyone applying for shrieval office to have been “legally

A feminist barrister who criticised a judge's ruling in her case as having "echoes of the 'boys' club'" has been cleared of misconduct by an English tribunal. The Bar Standards Board (BSB) brought Dr Charlotte Proudman before its disciplinary tribunal after she posted a series of tweets about the ju

Rapper Ludacris narrowly avoided being recognised after being summoned for jury service in his home town of Atlanta, Georgia. In a video posted to Instagram, the three-time Grammy Award-winning rapper and actor shows off his cunning disguise of a mask, sunglasses and hood as he walks out of the cour

Victims of domestic abuse are among those invited to share their views as part of a Holyrood inquiry into the financial implications of leaving an abusive relationship. The Social Justice and Social Security Committee is running the inquiry to find out what support women leaving abusive relationship

The Campaign for Freedom of Information in Scotland (CFoIS) celebrates its 40th anniversary at a special conference in Glasgow today. Since 1984, CFoIS has been associated with all FOI legal reform in Scotland and continues to focus on the importance of a robust, enforceable access to information la

Jury trials are under threat in England and Wales following the announcement of a review into the criminal courts, to be led by Sir Brian Leveson. Newly released statistics show that the Crown Court backlog has reached a record high. The review will consider the case for new “intermediate cour

New amendments lodged in the Scottish Parliament this week must deliver on a government promise to reverse proposed political controls over the way lawyers work, the Law Society of Scotland has said. The Regulation of Legal Services (Scotland) Bill was lodged in April of last year. While many parts