News

The government of Honduras is to build a “mega-prison” to deal with gang violence in a move similar to its neighbour El Salvador. President Xiomara Castro announced the new project along with other emergency measures such as giving the military a greater role in tackling organised crime

Secondary school pupils had the opportunity to practise their advocacy skills by taking part in a mock trial at the University of the West of Scotland using materials from the MiniTrials initiative. The fifth and sixth year pupils from St Andrews Academy, Clydebank High School and Lesmahagow High Sc

Lord Chancellor Alex Chalk is being taken to the High Court by lawyers who say legal aid fees are so low they cannot provide representation to thousands of people. The case revolves around access to legal aid for immigration and asylum lawyers and is being brought by Duncan Lewis solicitors.

The taxpayer has footed a legal bill of £400,000 for the case of former sheriff Jack Brown, who was sacked over alleged sexual misconduct. It was announced last month that the 64-year-old would be removed from office after an independent tribunal report found that his misbehaviour rendered him

Digby Brown associate Megan McGuire has been recognised as an accredited specialist in clinical negligence by the Law Society of Scotland. Ms McGuire graduated from the University of Strathclyde with an LLB in 2010 and thereafter with a diploma in legal practice in 2011.

On 12 June, Clan Childlaw celebrated 16 years of delivering its child-centred legal outreach services for children and young people with an event held at the Scottish Storytelling Centre.

The Scottish Parliament’s Delegated Powers and Law Reform Committee has welcomed the proposals in the Judicial Factors (Scotland) Bill, which aims to consolidate and update laws related to judicial factors. However, the opportunity for the bill to clarify how judicial factors can work with the

Money Laundering Regulations need greater clarity for the legal sector and a re-focus on key ways to mitigate underlying risk in order to strengthen the UK’s anti-money laundering (AML) system, the Law Society of Scotland has said. Responding to proposals in the HM Treasury consultation on imp

CMS is to host a free-to-attend event focused on one of the key challenges facing the UK renewable energy industry: how to solve the issue of grid connections. The seminar, being held in Aberdeen on 19 June, includes contributions from Calum Watt, grid technical authority at Flotation Energy, who wi

The University of Aberdeen's School of Law has been recognised for its commitment to progressing gender equality with the renewal of its Athena SWAN Bronze Award. Advance HE’s Athena Swan Charter recognises commitment to the advancement of gender equality in academic, professional and support

A round-up of human rights stories from around the world. How a teenager’s death sparked human rights concerns in Ecuador

Two men have been arrested for beating a stranger they accused of making their penises magically disappear. Tayabu Eliazu, 35, and Assan Gariba, 24, allegedly dispensed mob justice after a brief interaction with another man, Abubakr Tanko, in Kasseh, Ghana.

Sub-postmasters in Scotland who were wrongly convicted as a result of the Post Office Horizon scandal have now been exonerated. The Post Office (Horizon System) Offences (Scotland) Act received royal assent yesterday and came into force today. The legislation was passed in the Scottish Parliament on

There is no right to assisted dying under European human rights law, the European Court of Human Rights has ruled by a 6-1 majority. Dániel Karsai, a prominent human rights lawyer in Budapest, Hungary, unsuccessfully argued that the criminalisation of physician-assisted dying (PAD) violated h

Wright, Johnston & Mackenzie LLP (WJM) has announced a legal director promotion and made four new appointments. Private client specialist Beth Fleming steps up from associate to legal director working out of WJM’s Glasgow base.