Opinion

25 November 2019 might later be judged a significant date for supporting victims of crime in Scotland. Nobody would dispute that victims of crime should receive support, but opinion may be divided on the fairest way to fund that. Scottish judges and sheriffs will soon have no option but to impose an

Briton Steve Easterbrook, credited with adding huge value to the McDonald’s fast food business during his tenure as US chief executive, has lost the top job he has held since 2015. Easterbrook worked his way up through the UK business, starting in 1993 and became its head of operations in this

The BackTo60 campaign group has lost a significant case against the government regarding its decision to raise the state pension age of women. The High Court disagreed with the campaigners that the pension changes discriminated against women. Instead the court took the view that the changes were mad

It is certainly an interesting time for the renewables industry in Scotland. Despite ongoing political (and consequent economic) uncertainty, the revival of the on-shore wind sector following the post Renewables Obligation Certificates (ROCs) downturn continues apace, and shows no sign of slowing do

There are two new cases, both of which develop the jurisprudence on the use of the inherent jurisdiction of the courts in child law matters, and both matters in which SKO has acted. Judgment in NY (A Child) was handed down by the Supreme Court yesterday with SKO acting pro bono for one the intervene

The infamous ‘backstop’ is gone, but the new Irish Protocol could lead to the indefinite jurisdiction of the Court of Justice of the European Union within the United Kingdom, writes Oliver Garner of the British Institute of International and Comparative Law. The new Protocol on Ireland/N

The issue of whether foster carers are to be regarded as local authority employees and therefore be accorded rights associated with such a position is emotive, but is also extremely important to see resolved, writes Alasdair Docwra. Foster carers are volunteers, who play an absolutely vital rol

Johan Findlay JP OBE looks at the history of women on the JP bench. It is 100 years since the death of Sir Hugh Munro, the Scottish mountaineer best known for listing and climbing mountains in Scotland over 3,000 feet, known now as Munros.

The decision to jail the Catalan leaders has caused widespread outrage. Is the outrage justified? When regional nationalist leaders openly defy the law, what is the proper response of central government? These are questions with which the Spanish Supreme Court has had to grapple. They may yet come t

Danielle Stevenson, senior solicitor at Jones Whyte Law, looks at the collaborative approach to divorce. Often when couples are facing separation and divorce, the immediate thought is the rush to court, opposing sides and a battle. However, the reality is more often than not far from that, particula

Lord Kinclaven shares insights from the MiniTrial legal education scheme, teaching thousands of Scottish pupils about the justice system. Turn back the clock to 2001, when the book Paths to Justice Scotland was published. It was a survey which examined, among other things, the public’s perspec

Solicitor Graeme Di Rollo of Burness Paull examines the Supreme Court's ruling in Shanks v Unilever. This week, the Supreme Court handed down its much anticipated judgment in a long-running legal saga between Unilever and a now former employee called Professor Shanks. The case concerned Prof. Shanks

Alasdair Docwra, family law partner at Thorntons, examines the reaction to proposed surrogacy law reform. The Catholic Church has given its views, some may disagree. Here is the position and here are the benefits of surrogacy in our opinion.

Ewan McIntyre, partner at Burness Paull and expert in professional negligence and financial services litigation with over 25 years’ experience, is currently enjoying a secondment with Racine, one of the main independent French law firms, in its Lyon office. That something might be mo

Public procurement policy and practice, when it comes to facilitating SME involvement, seems to be focused solely upon ensuring there are opportunities at a sub-contract level. But, asks Wright, Johnston & Mackenzie legal director Roddy Cormack, does this focus miss the sweet spot in terms of ac