News

The Scottish Government has published new legislation on the development of heat networks to help meet climate change targets and tackle fuel poverty. The Heat Networks (Scotland) Bill will introduce regulation and a licensing system for district and communal heating to accelerate use of the network

Dear Editor, I see that the Sheriff Principal of Glasgow and Strathkelvin has decided that, for most civil court hearings, court dress will no longer be worn. In my view this is regrettable.

Scotland’s most senior judge is set to deliver his judgment on who is top of the legal pops at a charity talent show in March. Lord Carloway will head up a panel of judges at the inaugural LexFactor battle of the bands, helping to raise vital funds for the Lawscot Foundation, which supports yo

David Hewitson, executry partner at Munro & Noble, has retired after almost 40 years at the firm.

The team behind the First 100 Years has launched its latest project, The Next 100 Years, dedicated to achieving equality for women in law. Over the next decade, the project will be taking action to accelerate the pace of change in the legal profession, encouraging collaboration to tackle the inequal

DLA Piper Scotland is marking International Women’s Day by bringing together leading female entrepreneurs to discuss their experiences in running their own businesses, at an evening event in Edinburgh. A panel of experienced legal advisors from DLA Piper will join four entrepreneurs from Edinb

Judicial assistants from the Supreme Court will be visiting Edinburgh this month to talk about the coveted role to prospective applicants. The Scottish Young Lawyers' Association (SYLA) will be welcoming Chris Maile, head of HR at the court; current Scottish JA, Francesca Ruddy; and former JA, barri

A man who was sacked after using a scene from a film about Hitler to parody his employers has been reinstated by a tribunal. The scene in question, from 2004 film Downfall, shows the Nazi leader berate senior military officials for failing in their final bid to defend Berlin.

A Scots lawyer who claimed that the Scottish Legal Complaints Commission acted “ultra vires” in unilaterally raising a complaint against him for has successfully challenged the decision. A judge in the Court of Session ruled that the watchdog, which decided ex proprio motu to make a comp

A court ruling has created uncertainty over how serious allegations of misconduct against lawyers can be considered if no individual or organisation is prepared to make a complaint, the Scottish Legal Complaints Commission (SLCC) has said. Glasgow lawyer Francis Cannon, a solicitor for over 50 years

Lawyer Mike Radford has been appointed to Scotland's first independent Animal Welfare Commission. Mr Radford, who was awarded an OBE in 2008 for services to animal welfare law, is a reader at Aberdeen University School of Law.

Complainers in rape cases should have independent legal representation where defence lawyers are seeking the admission of sexual history evidence, a new report suggests. Scottish lawyers Eamon Keane and Tony Convery spent time in Ireland last year to research how that jurisdiction deals with the adm

The UK will not seek to become a member of the proposed Unified Patent Court (UPC) despite earlier suggestions that it would, government officials have confirmed. An international agreement to establish the court was signed by most EU member states in 2013, but it is not an EU institution and the pr

Glasgow lawyer Mike Dailly has quit the Social Justice Commission set up by the SNP to consider how an independent Scotland could tackle poverty and inequality. Mr Dailly, principal solicitor at Govan Law Centre, was appointed late last year to the body, which was established to build upon the earli

Duncan Batchelor, partner at Clyde & Co, examines how environmental activists have advanced their goals through the courts. In November, the eyes of the world will be on Scotland as Glasgow plays host to the 2020 UN Climate Change Conference (COP 26). Recent events like the Australian bush fires