News

The Biden administration has announced plans to sue the state of Texas over an extremely restrictive new law banning abortions after six weeks of pregnancy. The Supreme Court of the United States last week rejected an emergency petition brought by Texas abortion clinics against the law, known as SB8

Police conduct rules in Utah have been revised to explicitly ban sexting or masturbation while on duty. The gap in the rulebook was discovered by the Utah Peace Officer Standards and Training Council in a number of recent cases of officer discipline, FOX13 reports.

An appeal by a man charged with 19 sexual offences against six different complainers challenging a trial judge’s decision to review orders allowing certain evidence to be led by him has been refused by the High Court of Justiciary. The appellant, JW, made the appeal under section 275(9) of the

The publication of a review into how the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service manages criminal allegations against the police has been welcomed by the Lord Advocate. The report, which was compiled by HM Inspectorate of Prosecutions in Scotland, identified that the public should be reassured by

An advisory board to support the development of new human rights legislation will meet for the first time today. Equalities minister Christina McKelvie will chair the group that will play a key role in progressing the Human Rights Bill.

Tributes have been paid to Gordon Nicol, who passed away last week at the age of 68 following a short illness. He practised as a defence agent for 45 years and represented clients in courts across Scotland, the Daily Record reports.

Twelve new Queen’s Counsel have been appointed by Her Majesty The Queen on the recommendation of First Minister Nicola Sturgeon. The new appointees are: Jennifer Bain, advocate; Duncan Hamilton, advocate; Graeme Hawkes, advocate; Robert Hayhow, advocate; Archibald MacSporran, advocate; Kirsty

Cross-justice collaboration has improved the efficiency of summary criminal business in the sheriff courts, a report has shown. The Scottish Courts and Tribunals Service report on pre-intermediate diet meetings (PIDMs) shows that engagement in the procedure increased from a national average of 53 pe

Ampersand’s Graeme Hawkes QC, Archie MacSporran QC and Laura-Anne van der Westhuizen QC have taken silk. The trio are amongst 12 new silks appointed yesterday. Graeme Hawkes QC is an experienced commercial litigator, with a particular emphasis on commercial contracts, property and professional

Five Scottish solicitors have been granted extended rights of audience. The new solicitor advocates will be allowed to exercise their extended rights of audience in the Court of Session, the Supreme Court and the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council.

You visit a website; on the landing page, before you go any further, you are often asked to make decisions about ‘cookies’, quite often a slider to switch on or off. Some websites, however, don’t ask you to make any decisions and some do not even have a cookie policy. Does any of t

TLT has secured new office space in the heart of Glasgow’s commercial district, taking 10,000 sq. ft. in the city’s new flagship Cadworks development. The development is set to be one of the most sustainable in Scotland. The announcement follows the launch of TLT’s progressive full

Susie Mountain, accredited family law specialist at Brodies LLP, has become a solicitor advocate following an introduction to the court ceremony at the Court of Session yesterday. Already a family law specialist and author of the book A Practical Guide to Cohabitation and the Law in Scotland, this n

The Scottish Council for Development and Industry (SCDI) has elected Shepherd and Wedderburn partner Joanna Boag-Thomson as its chair. Ms Boag-Thomson, a media and technology specialist, was first appointed to the SCDI Board in 2019 and was elected vice chair the following year. An acknowledged expe

Crimestoppers Scotland is offering a reward of up to £10,000 for anonymous information in connection with the historic case of the murder of Shona Stevens.