Opinion

“Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery” or so the saying goes. But ask a brand holder what they think of imitation and I would bet a decent amount of money that “flattering” is not one of the adjectives they use, writes Neeraj Thomas. RedPoint are a US company who have

Jenny Dickson discusses the details of a bill that would give ministers the power to recover certain costs for NHS Scotland that are associated with the treatment of industrial disease-related illnesses. It's an advert we see regularly on daytime TV: “Have you been in an accident or do you hav

Company voluntary arrangements (CVAS) are very much in vogue. Why? Growth of online shopping, Brexit uncertainty, increased export costs, drop in consumer confidence and spend, increases in business rates, rising labour costs and long-term inflexible lease costs. All of these been cited as factors c

John McArthur calls for an overhaul of Britain's creaking inheritance tax regime. The problem with our existing tax system is that it’s now overly complicated and when even HMRC’s own system can’t work out the correct income tax liability that a taxpayer has to pay, that must raise

Lewis Richardson discusses a recent decision from the Sheriff Appeal Court in the case of Cabot Financial UK Ltd v Gardner and Ors, [2018] SAC (Civ) 12. The appeal related to debt recovery cases for assigned credit card debts. The three cases which formed the judgment in Cabot were raised under the

The licensed trade in Scotland is facing an almighty hangover caused by the legal requirement to renew personal licences which are required for pubs, clubs, hotels and restaurants, writes Audrey Ferrie. First introduced by the Scottish government in 2009, a named Premises Manager must hold a pe

Break notices are precarious enough, but some recent cases have suggested that there are occasions when actual receipt of a break notice has to be demonstrated for it to be effective. That can create a significant hurdle for the sender, writes Matt Farrell. In Gateway Assets Limited v C.V. Panels Li

At the same time as Parliament prepares to ‘take back control’ from Brussels, the executive is in fact accruing to itself further control over the legislative process. In this post Professor Stephen Tierney addresses a number of trends – only some of which are a direct consequence

With Scotland’s new tribunals structure now progressively coming into operation, lawyers and other interested parties might do well to start updating their internet browser favourites so as to keep up to date with the latest news, write Mitchell Skilling and Douglas Bain. The First-tier T

Kirsty Glennan, senior solicitor at Burness Paull, writes on impending changes to Scottish land law. Every day on my way to work, I pass a bare and neglected plot of suburban land. It is unremarkable but for one feature: it has a sign bearing the name of a local housebuilder. In 15 years, it has not

Frances Ennis looks at a recently issued judgment of the the Inner House in a case that has been closely followed for some years by many of Scotland’s law firms and has implications for the wider business community. The case concerns the Scottish Solicitors' Staff Pension Fund, and the li

Luxury French shoe designer, Christian Louboutin, appears to be close to winning a five-year legal battle to enforce the trade mark of his brand’s distinctive red soles. Last week, the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU), ruled in favour of the designer after he sought to prevent Dut

Lesley Murphy looks at the law around remote working. Avoid the commute. Keep a cheeky eye on the World Cup matches. Spend the day in your trackies. What is not to love about homeworking?

Graham Horn recounts the latest legal episode in the battle against Brexit. In December 2017, a judicial review was raised at the Court of Session by Andy Wightman, MSP & Ors, seeking an answer to the question of whether the UK government’s notice of intention to withdraw from the European

Katy Wedderburn and Rhea McKenzie analyse yesterday's employment judgment from the Supreme Court. The UK’s highest court has handed down its judgment in the Pimlico Plumbers case, ruling that Gary Smith was a worker despite being VAT-registered, paying self-employed tax and working under a con