Juryless Trials

The Scottish government's proposed pilot of juryless trials has been abandoned following years of opposition from the legal profession. Justice Secretary Angela Constance told MSPs that, having ...

Plans for juryless trials have been condemned by the Scottish, English, Irish and Northern Ireland bars. Following a meeting of the four bars in Belfast recently, their ...

Tony Lenehan KC, president of the Criminal Bar Association, explains how the Scottish government could help complainers right now. On Tuesday afternoon, just as the Victims’ etc ...

MSPs have given their support to the principles of the controversial Victims, Witnesses and Justice (Scotland) Bill – by 60 votes to 0. Sixty-two MSPs abstained, including ...

The Edinburgh Foundation for Women in Law at Edinburgh Law School has published a briefing note from a roundtable it held last year on the Victims, Witnesses and Justice ...

The juryless trials pilot would not take place until late 2028, Justice Secretary Angela Constance has said. Ms Constance said she would listen to the concerns of ...

A Holyrood committee is divided in its support for a pilot of juryless trials in rape cases. The pilot, which cannot take place without the participation of ...

Almost all of Scotland's defence solicitors are prepared to boycott the Scottish government's proposed juryless trials pilot, meaning it will most likely not run. Appearing before MSPs ...

Sheriffs have warned of a danger to judges who preside over juryless trials as their verdicts would come under public scrutiny. In a submission to MSPs commenting ...

The Scottish Solicitors Bar Association (SSBA) has accepted an invitation by the Criminal Justice Committee to give oral evidence on the Victims, Witnesses and Justice Reform (Scotland) ...

Lawyers have warned MSPs of the unacceptable risk posed by the proposal for juryless trials in rape cases. Law Society president Sheila Webster appeared before the Scottish ...

Defence lawyers are preparing to boycott the pilot scheme for juryless rape trials. The Scottish Solicitors Bar Association (SSBA) is to ballot members on the new proposal ...

Lord Advocate Dororthy Bain KC has said that the prosecution of sexual offences “just isn’t good enough” as she called for the creation of a sexual offences ...

The abolition of 'not proven' could endanger the presumption of innocence, ministers have been warned. Stuart Murray, president of the Scottish Solicitors Bar Association, told MSPs at ...

Tony Lenehan KC points out that the purpose of juryless trials, despite protestations to the contrary, is to raise the conviction rate in rape cases. Readers of ...