Opinion

Advocate Michael Upton M.C.I.Arb., of Hastie Stable, summarises a recent judgment from the Sheriff Appeal Court on establishing a duty of care for economic loss in a case against an allegedly negligent search firm being pursued for damages by the holder of an inhibition, which the searchers allegedl

Lesley Gordon reviews the application of Scotland's cohabitation legislation in recent case law.  The number of cohabiting families in the UK has almost doubled in the last 20 years and, in 2006, Scotland led the way by introducing legal protection for cohabitants from unfair situations arising

Olivia Parker, careers development officer at the Law Society, talks about whether employers are really engaged with fair access and highlights some of the pitfalls that are still regularly identified in the traineeship recruitment process. In the three years I’ve been working in our careers t

The effects of a change in the law on workplace regulations introduced some five years ago are still to fully reveal themselves in Scotland, writes Lorna Ferguson. The Brexit story so far has involved fresh consideration of several long-standing legal, social and economic issues; an important one be

Brexit is starting to get real, with the detail of the ‘no deal’ provision being put in place. Continuing on from her earlier two articles on Brexit and family law (Part I, Part II), Rachael Kelsey now looks at what all family lawyers (specialists or those with a more general practice) n

Andrew Foyle considers the significance for the debt purchasing industry of a recent case that cast the spotlight on redacted and certified copy documents. Promontoria (Henrico) Limited v Friel ([2019] CSOH 2 – judgment of Lord Ericht, 8th January 2019)

Once an Employment Tribunal decision (and the reasons for it) have been recorded in writing, they are entered into the public register. Since February 2017, such Tribunal decisions have been available online. This means that all judgments (and reasons) are available for public inspection unless the

Ian Maxwell discusses how parenting coordination can reduce conflict in shared parenting arrangements.  Once an agreement has been reached between parents or a court order made, the arrangements for sharing parenting time with children in a separated family are settled. Right?

Sean Duffy highlights new research showing how criminal record declarations undermine the concept of rehabilitation. Recent research from the Scottish Centre for Crime and Justice (SCCJ) called into further question the value of criminal record declarations on job application forms. Indeed, the rese

Brenda Mitchell analyses a recent case in which the sheriff found in favour of an injured motorcyclist. I have represented injured motorcyclists for over 30 years as a specialist personal injury lawyer. I ride a motorcycle, am an advanced rider and a member of IAM RoadSmart. What saddens me is motor

In a time of significant change to the civil litigation system, the approach to fraudulent exaggeration of insurance claims is diverging North and South of the border. This combination of developments may lead to a perfect storm for fraudulent claims in Scotland, writes Kate Donachie. In England and

Fiona Buchanan extols the benefits of mentoring and looks at how it has been implemented at Shepherd and Wedderburn. Shepherd and Wedderburn, as a collection of individuals and as a business, has put diversity and inclusivity at the heart its organisational culture and values. The business case for

Suzy Thomson, investment manager at Brewin Dolphin in Dundee, suggests five things lawyers should consider in managing trusts. Trusts are increasing in popularity as an investment vehicle. That’s good news for lawyers, who tend to deal with them on behalf of clients, but they inevitably c

Defence solicitor Ian Smart comments on the sexual misconduct allegations that have been made against Alex Salmond, encouraging all concerned to respect the presumption of innocence. I have tried to avoid commenting on the Salmond matter for the very good reason that I have no idea if there is a sub

Balfour+Manson was the first law firm to assume a female partner in Scotland in 1949, and it continues to promote women on merit, says Elaine Motion. As a lawyer specialising in human rights and civil liberties, I have stood up for equality throughout my career