News

Former Justice Secretary Kenny MacAskill has called for the office of Lord Advocate to be divided. The Lord Advocate, whose role in other jurisdictions is split, for example, between an attorney general and director of public prosecutions, is both chief prosecutor and chief lawyer to the Scottish go

A ban on local government pension schemes (LGPSs) pursuing "policies that are contrary to UK foreign policy or UK defence policy" is unlawful, the Supreme Court has ruled in a win for Palestine solidarity campaigners. The Palestine Solidarity Campaign (PSC), which encourages councils to withdra

Trainees' CPD requirements have been reduced by the Law Society of Scotland in light of the coronavirus pandemic. The Admissions Sub-Committee has reduced its trainee continuing professional development (TCPD) requirements for those qualifying before end of June 2020.

Nearly six in ten businesses have had to walk away from cross-industry environmental initiatives because the legal risk was too high, according to new research by Linklaters. This is despite an overwhelming number of businesses (93 per cent) expressing a desire to work closely with peers in respondi

The European Union has begun legal proceedings against Poland for undermining the rule of law as it expressed “serious concern” the country will not host "free and fair" elections next month. Mateusz Morawiecki, the prime minister of Poland, has said a postal ballot will take place next

Earlier this month, Professor Sharon Cowan and Dr Chloë Kennedy were announced as winners of a teaching award at Edinburgh University. Their success in the category of 'Outstanding Commitment to Liberation in the Curriculum' at the 2020 EUSA Teaching Awards was announced in a virtual ceremony h

Lawyers at MBM Commercial are participating in a series of “24-related” challenge to raise funds for the Samaritans, whose service is available 24 hours a day. The firm has already received donations totalling over £700 within 24 hours of launching its JustGiving page. For every ad

A man has been fined after flouting coronavirus restrictions to take his pet fish on a walk. He is one of a number of people in Spain who have allegedly abused rules allowing pet owners to go outside more often, CNN reports.

A renewable energy firm that was held to be in breach of planning control in respect of a wind farm development has had its appeals to the Inner House of the Court of Session refused. Community Windpower Ltd originally acquired permission to build the development in Moscow, East Ayrshire at a s

The Law Society of Scotland has announced cuts to the practising certificate fee and other charges made to solicitors in order to save the profession £2.2 million in response to the coronavirus crisis. The professional body’s governing Council has agreed that for the 2020/21 pr

Lockdown and social distancing measures may exacerbate the difficulties with corroborating domestic abuse, academics at the University of Aberdeen’s School of Law have warned. Dr Ilona Cairns and Dr Isla Callander – both of whom teach and research in the areas of crim

The Scottish Legal Complaints Commission (SLCC) has welcomed a recent Court of Session decision on an appeal case regarding an eligibility determination. The lawyer was appealing against the SLCC’s decision to accept issues of complaint against him for investigation. The appellant submitted th

A new piece of legislation opens up a range of new funding options to clients looking to raise (or defend) actions in Scotland in the form of the Civil Litigation (Expenses and Group Proceedings) (Scotland) Act 2018. Over the course of the last decade, the law has been updated to provide parties wit

Judicial review proceedings have been brought against the UK government for failing to have a British Sign Language (BSL) interpreter on stage at its daily coronavirus briefings. Sheffield lawyer Chris Fry sent a pre-action protocol letter to the government at the end of March on behalf of an 85-yea

The makers of Ardbeg whisky have fended off an attempt to register a similar name, The Times reports. Businessman Norbert Rom, based in Liechtenstein, attempted to register "Arlberg Whisky" as a trademark.