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New legislation to make sure next year’s Scottish parliamentary election can take place fairly and safely during the coronavirus pandemic has been backed by MSPs. The poll is expected to go ahead as planned on 6 May and the Scottish General Election (Coronavirus) Bill – which has passed

Changes to the law to enhance and protect the welfare of animals have been introduced. If approved, the new legislation laid before the Scottish Parliament will update existing laws covering dog breeding and pet selling as well as introduce licensing for cat and rabbit breeders, animal rescue centre

Seven members of staff at Kilmarnock Sheriff Court are self-isolating after testing positive for Covid-19. The Scottish Courts and Tribunal Service (SCTS) said it was working with NHS Test and Protect and that those required to isolate are doing so.

US President Donald Trump has drawn international condemnation after granting pardons to four security guards who were tried and convicted for their role in the 2007 Nisour Square massacre. Paul Slough, Evan Liberty, Dustin Heard and Nicholas Slatten, who worked for government contractor Blackwater,

This week Benjamin Bestgen looks at the legalities surrounding certain extracurricular activities. See last week's here. Every law student in the UK has probably heard of R v Brown [1993] UKHL 19 during their studies. The case concerned a group of men who had occasionally gathered for consensual, bu

Octopuses are thugs that will punch fish for no reason other than "spite", new research has found. A team led by Eduardo Sampaio, of the Marine and Environmental Sciences Centre in Lisbon, found that the cephalopods would punch fish while they were working together to find food, The Times reports.

A woman who was injured during a two-week holiday to Turkey has successfully established that consumer regulations on the provision of package holidays applied to the booking she made with an ‘online travel agent’ for flights, accommodation, and hotel transfer.  Rosemary O’Don

The Scottish government's announcement that legal aid solicitors will benefit from a 10 per cent uplift in legal aid fees and access to a £9 million fund to help those experiencing hardship as a result of Covid-19 has received a cautious response. Following meetings with the Law Society of Sco

New powers and measures to align devolved Scottish law with European Union (EU) legislation after the end of the Brexit transition period have been backed by MSPs. The UK Withdrawal from the European Union (Continuity) (Scotland) Bill – which has passed its final stage in the Scottish Par

The Scottish government has launched a consultation seeking views on potential improvements to the legal complaints system, within the current legislative framework of the Legal Profession and Legal Aid (Scotland) Act 2007. The government said there is a compelling case for the consideration of amen

Prime Minister Boris Johnson's appointment of 16 new peers runs contrary to his predecessors' promises to limit numbers in the House of Lords, Conservative peer Lord Fowler has said. Membership in the house now stands at 830, a move that the Lord Speaker said runs "smack against" the recommendations

First Minister Nicola Sturgeon has announced that the Stone of Destiny is to be relocated to Perth. The announcement to the Scottish Parliament was made on behalf of the Commissioners for the Safeguarding of the Regalia, who advise Her Majesty The Queen about all matters relating to the Stone.

A judge will hear evidence over whether a bus company failed to provide Glasgow City Council with an accurate reference for the driver of a lorry whose collapse at the wheel resulted in six deaths. Lord Ericht in the Outer House arranged for a new four-day hearing to take place next month.

Dr Thomas Muinzer of Aberdeen University writes about a complaint lodged with the European Commission over the climate emergency following the UK government's failure to respond to a request for the expansion of "greenhouse gas" in law. It has been outlined recently in SLN that the Scottish Climate

Author Alexander McCall Smith CBE has been chosen as this year's recipient of the Edinburgh Award. In recognition of his writing success, legal career and work within academia, Mr McCall Smith will be presented with an engraved Loving Cup from the Lord Provost and have his handprints set in stone at