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 listened to the cross-party Criminal Justice Committee and a wide range of other views, a plan to enable a

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 leadership issued a joint statement on the proposed removal of juries for rape and other serious sexual offence trials in Scotland.

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 Bill met with a poorer reception in Holyrood than the Scottish government had hoped, I was at Glasgow University par

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 six SNP members.

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 Reform (Scotland) Bill. The discussion found that while the pilot of juryless trials has the potential to improve the ex

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 the legal profession and MSPs about the proposals contained in the Victims, Witnesses and Justice Reform (Scotland) Bill.

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 solicitors, would remove juries from rape cases due to a perception that conviction rates in such cases are artificially low compared to other

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 on Holyrood's Justice Committee, Simon Brown, vice-president of the Scottish Solicitors Bar Association (SSBA), sai

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 on a proposed pilot that would see judges sit alone in sexual offence cases, the Sheriffs and Summary Sheriffs’ Association pointed

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) Bill after having been initially snubbed. Simon Brown, vice-president of the SSBA, will appear before the committe

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 Parliament’s Criminal Justice Committee to provide evidence on the Victims, Witnesses, and Justice Reform (Scotland) Bill

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 contained in the Victims, Witnesses and Justice Reform (Scotland) Bill.

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 court in Scotland. Speaking to MSPs on Holyrood's Criminal Justice Committee, Ms Bain was giving evidence on the Scottish gov

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 Holyrood that the third verdict is a “safety valve” for jurors.

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 SLN are likely tired of articles from me and my colleagues about the damage removing juries will certainly do to our criminal justice syste