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Aaliya Seyal has been appointed chief executive of the Legal Services Agency (LSA). Ms Seyal takes from interim chief executive Ronald Franks and brings over 17 years’ experience in leading voluntary sector organisations.

The Scottish Land Commission has called for further reform of land ownership on the centenary of the Land Settlement Act coming into force. The act aimed to resettle populations following the end of the First World War through the creation of smallholdings and crofts.

Morton Fraser has been reappointed to provide legal services to the City of Edinburgh Council (CEC). The contract is for an initial two-year period with two further optional 12-month extensions and follows a competitive tendering process. The reappointment will see the firm provide commercial,

Families who had been dreading Christmas are now looking forward to a special time, thanks to the “absolutely fabulous” Faculty of Advocates Xmas Collection. An appeal for presents, treats and cash struck a chord with members of Faculty, staff, and friends in the wider legal profession a

A teenager who stabbed Newcastle lawyer Peter Duncan to death in August has been jailed for life. Ewan Ireland, who was 17 at the time, attacked Mr Duncan with a shoplifted screwdriver after the solicitor brushed past him outside a shopping centre in Newcastle city centre.

Poland has failed to adequately act on anti-corruption recommendations made by the Council of Europe in respect of the judiciary, prosecutors and members of parliament. In a follow up assessment on corruption, the Council of Europe’s Group of States against Corruption (GRECO) found that Poland

Santa Claus has been found not guilty of various offences by a jury of the International Christmas Court.

A tiny village in Sicily is fighting against depopulation by offering up €1 houses and hefty tax cuts. Bivona, with a population of around 4,000, is one of more than a dozen Italian towns which have slashed house prices to attract incomers.

A Scots lawyer found guilty of “professional misconduct” who was ordered to pay the legal expenses of the proceedings on an “agent and client” scale has had a legal challenge against the decision dismissed. A judge in the Court of Session ruled that the application

The minimum age for an application to obtain legal recognition of gender would be reduced from 18 to 16 and a new offence of false application would be created under proposed legislation. A draft bill reforming the current process for obtaining legal gender recognition has been published by the Scot

NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde has commenced legal action against a contractor involved in building its biggest hospital, the BBC reports. Brookfield Multiplex designed and built the £575m Queen Elizabeth University Hospital complex in Glasgow.

Plexus Law has announced the appointment of Calum Mathieson, who will be based in the firm’s Edinburgh office. Mr Mathieson qualified in 1993 and was a partner with Simpson & Marwick before the firm merged with Clyde & Co in 2014. He has over 25 years’ experience of dea

A Wetherspoons recently failed "test purchases" where police sent cadets into pubs to try and play gaming machines, to see if they would be asked for ID. The venue has had its gaming machine permit revoked as a result. This is the latest in a number of recent developments in this area that clearly p

Raeburn Christie Clark & Wallace (RCC&W) has boosted its residential property team with the promotion of David Smith to associate solicitor. Mr Smith has over 10 years of experience in the property sector and a comprehensive knowledge of the local housing market. He is a graduate of Aberdeen

Julie Scott-Gilroy, an associate at Morton Fraser, has been accredited as a specialist in construction law by the Law Society of Scotland. Ms Scott-Gilroy acts for a variety of clients including employers (private and public), contractors, sub-contractors, consultants and insurers. Her recent w