Independent Law journalists report on legal news for consumers, litigants & Scotland's legal community including features on justice, access to justice, law reform, the judiciary, politics & in-depth investigations, analysis and commentaries on legal related issues.
Royal Bank of Scotland faced Class Action from UK investors in US Courts. The Royal Bank of Scotland, and perhaps numerous members of Scotland’s legal profession (even those such as the current Dean of Faculty, Richard Keen QC), can, as the Herald newspaper reported earlier this week, breathe a sigh of relief as the Class Action case which was raised by UK investors in the American courts, failed after a New York district judge threw out the main claims of the action, which were based around the bank’s semi-nationalisation in 2008. After taking into account a similar ruling in the Supreme Court in June, relating to National Australia Bank, this week’s decision in New York effectively means UK ordinary shareholders cannot pursue claims against RBS in the US courts.
The Class Action suit raised in the US, involved a number of investors who had acquired shares in the bank between 1 March 2007 and 19 January 2009, during which time their value dropped 98% amid fears over the bank’s potential exposure to sub-prime lending losses which crippled many banks across the globe. A number of those involved in bringing the suit participated in RBS’s £12bn rights issue just months before the bank was effectively nationalised. The RBS of course, welcomed the collapse of the case, and said it would defend the remaining claims vigorously” although given the state of the UK’s justice system when it comes to Class Actions (otherwise known as Multi-Party actions) the RBS or indeed any other institution which in any other country might find itself a target of a Class Action wont need to worry too much …
Class Actions, as most readers will be well aware, are largely non existent in UK Courts or the Scottish justice system, the latter where reforms which take place south of the border can take up to 40 years to cross the green hills of the Scottish Borders to reach Scotland’s supreme court, the Court of Session in Edinburgh. Indeed, with the pace of change so slow in Scotland, one may almost be forgiven for thinking big business and vested interests have a greater say, and representation in the justice system and how it is gummed up to prevent access to justice, than ordinary members of the public who mostly fund the courts system through taxes.
It is true the Scottish Government have ‘proposed’ the introduction of Class Actions to Scotland in their response to the Lord Justice Clerk, Lord Gill’s Civil Courts Review. However, as I reported in early November 2010, the Scottish Government’s ‘proposal’ may well take years to implement, and in the current climate of consumers ever eager to take on the banks and other powerful or influential institutions and even, professions, it wouldn’t come as much of a surprise for any introduction of Class Actions to come after the old trick of ‘time bar’ would ensure any further litigation against such fine upstanding financial institutions which have crippled the entire country and affected everyone would not be able to proceed.
While the Scottish Government, the legal profession and other vested interests play with the idea of introducing Class Actions to Scotland’s Courts, let us remind ourselves of at least one MSP’s views on the issue, those of Shirley Anne Somerville (SNP), who spoke in the Scottish Parliament’s debate on Lord Gill’s Civil Courts Review in October 2009.
Shirley Anne Somerville speaks on Class Actions & Lord Gill Civil Courts Review(Click image to view video)
Lord Gill’s Civil Courts Review published in 2009 recommended significant reforms to Scots justice system.THECIVIL COURTS REVIEW, the two year review undertaken by Scotland’s Lord Justice Clerk, Lord Gill which recommended significant, wide ranging reforms to Scotland’s antiquated Civil Justice system, is about to face its first anniversary since publication. However, a year on since the report was launched amid a blaze of publicity, there is little to show by way of reforms to the justice system, which Lord Gill himself branded “Victorian”, failing to deliver efficiency of justice or Scots accessibility of justice.
Lord Gill, in his speech to the Law Society of Scotland’s 60 year anniversary conference last year, said : “The civil justice system in Scotland is a Victorian model that had survived by means of periodic piecemeal reforms. But in substance its structure and procedures are those of a century and a half ago. It is failing the litigant and it is failing society.”
He continued : “It is essential that we should have a system that has disputes resolved at a judicial level that is appropriate to their degree of importance and that disputes should be dealt with expeditiously and efficiently and without unnecessary or unreasonable cost. That means that the judicial structure should be based on a proper hierarchy of courts and that the procedures should be appropriate to the nature and the importance of the case, in terms of time and cost.”
“Scottish civil justice fails on all of these counts. Its delays are notorious. It costs deter litigants whose claims may be well-founded. Its procedures cause frustration and obstruct rather than facilitate the achievement of justice.”
“Unless there is major reform and soon, individual litigants will be prevented from securing their rights, commercial litigants will continue to look elsewhere for a forum for their claims, public confidence in the judicial system will be further eroded, Scotland’s economic development will be hindered, and Scots law will atrophy as an independent legal system.”
Here we are at the end of August 2010, and sadly little has changed.
Lord Gill’s definition of “major reform and soon” must have translated badly to the Scottish Government & Parliament, falling on the traditionally deaf ears of Scots politicians and the legal establishment, ever keen to ensure ‘access to justice’ remains a money making empire for the legal profession, rather than actually affording the right of access to justice to all Scots in our own country.
Readers can download the Civil Courts Review report in pdf format, from the Scottish Courts Website at the following links :
Of course, it must be pointed out one notable success since the Civil Courts Review was published last September, is the partial implementation of McKenzie Friends for Scotland, so far introduced to the Court of Session and soon to be introduced to all Sheriff Courts in Scotland.
McKenzie Friends for Scotland were only forced through to implementation after Holyrood Petition & November 2009 court ruling. However, the introduction of McKenzie Friends would probably not even have occurred had it not been for two key developments since Lord Gill made his recommendation to introduce the internationally acclaimed lay courtroom helper, where Petition 1247 filed at the Scottish Parliament by Stewart MacKenzie gained significant support & public exposure, effectively forcing the entire issue of lay assistance into the public spotlight, aided by Lord Woolman’s November 2009 ruling in the case of M.Wilson v North Lanarkshire Council & Others (A1628/01), which overtook the slow pace of events at Holyrood and introduced Scotland’s first civil law McKenzie Friend in the Court of Session.
We are now left with the majority of Lord Gill’s recommendations still to be implemented, as the likes of the Law Society of Scotland & Faculty of Advocates seek ways to ensure implementation of the Civil Courts Review’s aim of ‘wider, more efficient access to justice for all Scots’ also equates to pounds in the pockets of solicitors & advocates, rather than heaven forbid, reforming the justice system to the point that most people do not need to run up huge bills with law firms for litigation which could be heard and judged upon in a much speedier, consumer friendly updated civil justice system which the Civil Courts Review recommended.
Dean of Faculty supported calls for Class Actions in early 2009, yet over a year on nothing has happened. One example of the malaise which has hit the Civil Courts Review is that of the introduction of Class Actions to the Scottish justice system, an idea once supported by the Dean of the Faculty of Advocates Richard Keen QC, as an idea to take on the big banks. However, since Mr Keen’s call to allow class actions against banks was featured in the Scotsman newspaper in January 2009, the banks have of course, recovered somewhat from their weak bargaining positions of early 2009, and, with a little cash injection of extra sponsorship of events held by the Scottish legal profession, calls for the introduction of class actions since early 2009 have been all but silenced by, what many would term ‘hush money’.
October 2009 : Shirley Anne Somerville MSP speaks on the merits of introducing Class Actions to Scotland, yet one year on, not a hint anything on Class Actions will happen soon.
Holyrood goes slow on justice reforms, so Scots must give their views, campaign for wider access to justice to be implemented sooner rather than later. While Scots wait, and wait, and wait, and wait for the Scottish Government & Parliament to actually do something and ensure the many reforms of the Civil Courts Review are implemented, hopefully sometime before the next election, instead of sometime in the next 500 years, readers can also give their input into the Civil Justice Advisory Group, who have launched their own consultation on the best way forward for implementing the many recommendations made by Lord Gill’s report, an issue I reported on in early August, here : Consumers urged to give their views as Civil Justice Advisory Group launches consultation on key proposals of Lord Gill’s Civil Courts Review
The consultation and seminar feedback will help the Group in formulating a detailed report to the Scottish Government on how it should take forward some of the recommendations of the Scottish civil courts review report.
By post to : Civil Justice Advisory Group Consultation
Consumer Focus Scotland
Royal Exchange House
100 Queen Street
Glasgow
G1 3DN
I would urge as many readers as possible to take part in this consultation, for the benefit of yourself and all Scots who need access to a fairer, much improved Civil Justice system in our own land. Access to justice for one, access to justice for all !
Scottish Parliament debated Lord Gill’s Civil Courts Review. Last Thursday’s Scottish Parliamentary debate on the Civil Courts Review recommendations made by Scotland’s Lord Justice Clerk, Lord Gill has left most onlookers and legal insiders with a worry that many of the reforms proposed in the two year review on Scotland’s Civil Justice system, including the implementation of McKenzie Friends & Class Actions, will suffer long delays and in some cases, may almost certainly never be implemented in ways which would help ordinary Scots gain significant improvements in using Scotland’s “Victorian” justice system.
Justice Secretary Kenny MacAskill spoke of Lord Gill’s criticisms of Scotland’s Civil Justice System. The tone of the debate, opened by Justice Secretary Kenny MacAskill, began on a ‘positive’ note, where high hopes for improvements to Scotland’s Civil Justice system were aired by Mr MacAskill, along with the usual compliments for the legal system as it currently stands (in failure). Mr MacAskill said : “Scots law and the Scottish courts have served us well in civil matters for many years but, last Wednesday, the Lord Justice Clerk, Lord Gill, presented me with the “Report of the Scottish Civil Courts Review”, which is a hard-hitting report and the first system-wide review in modern times.”
Mr MacAskill went on to say : “In his opening paragraphs Lord Gill pulls no punches. He says: “The basic structure of civil jurisdictions in the Scottish courts remains much as it was in the late nineteenth century”.He continues:”changes in the social and economic life of Scotland … have left us with a structure of civil justice that is seriously failing the nation. Reform is long overdue.”
“Those conclusions are unavoidable. Our civil courts now operate in a rights-based, property-owning, consumer-oriented, insurance-reliant society of a sort that would have been unrecognisable a century ago. A reliance on ad hoc reforms has delivered a system of civil justice that is unfit for today’s purposes. Lord Gill states: “The practitioners of 100 years ago would have little difficulty in picking up the threads of today’s courts. The severe summary is that the structure is “seriously failing the nation.”
Margo MacDonald MSP asked Kenny MacAskill when justice reforms would begin. Early intervention from independent MSP Margo MacDonald on the question of which areas had been identified by the Justice Secretary for a start, along with comments from the Liberal Democrat Justice Spokesman Robert Brown on points made by Lord Gill that his report ‘was not to be cherry picked and should be dealt with as a whole’, appeared to leave Mr MacAskill grasping for explanations as to what could and could not be done by the current Scottish Government.
Further hints at delays to Lord Gill’s proposals were compounded by questions from Scottish Labour MSP David Whitton, on the subject of McKenzie Friends, which also left Mr MacAskill struggling for an immediate solution to the forty year old McKenzie Friend ‘Scottish problem’ , the blame of which sits squarely with the Courts and Scotland’s legal establishment.
Strathkelvin and Bearsden MSP David Whitton asked for introduction of McKenzie Friends in Scotland. David Whitton intervened early on in Mr MacAskill’s opening speech, asking asked the Justice Secretary about the issue of McKenzie Friends in Scotland. Mr Whitton said : “Is one of the issues on which the cabinet secretary thinks we can all reach agreement the introduction of the McKenzie friend process?”
Justice Secretary MacAskill replied with a less than immediately hopeful statement : “I am more than happy to consider it. Lord Gill commented on that process, as did those involved in providing support through citizens advice bureaux and others. I am more than happy to meet Mr Whitton or his front-bench colleagues to discuss it because we are genuinely open to ideas. We do not insist on any formula. As I said, if we can agree on changes that are within our control, we will seek to do so. If changes are within the domain of others we will encourage them to act, if that is Parliament’s view. Other matters will require to await the outcome of an election and, presumably, the availability of legislative time. The shape of reform will require endorsement and, in some cases, enactment by this Parliament. There will be those in the chamber and beyond with particular interests in the course of reform, whether that involves McKenzie friends or other ideas. They will want to ensure that their interests are protected, be they of the cause or constituency type. That is to be expected and welcomed”
Strathkelvin and Bearsden MSP David Whitton spoke further on the issue of McKenzie Friends for Scotland :
David Whitton MSP said during his speech : “My colleague Cathie Craigie and several other members touched on the need for the introduction of McKenzie friends in Scottish courts. The cabinet secretary knows about my interest in third-party rights of representation. Indeed, only a couple of months ago, the Association of Commercial Attorneys finally earned the right for its members to appear in court, but only after a lengthy process, which at times seemed to involve an obstructive approach from the Scottish legal establishment. It is to be hoped that the recommendation on the introduction of McKenzie friends does not suffer similar delays. That is why I welcome the cabinet secretary’s earlier remarks in response to my intervention.”
He continued : “We must make expeditious progress on Lord Gill’s enlightened recommendation on McKenzie friends. The first thing that can be done is for the courts to grant McKenzie friend rights with immediate effect. There is no need for legislation from the Parliament, as it is within the powers of the courts to grant those rights. That would demonstrate the intent that things are going to change. The public want that change, Lord Gill has recommended it, the consumer associations support it, and it is an equitable and compassionate remedy for some of the access-to-justice restrictions in Scotland.
Mr Whitton’s references to the Association of Commercial Attorneys application for third party rights of representation refers to a long battle by the ACA’s Chairman, Mr Bill Alexander, seeking rights of audience under Sections 25-29 of the Law Reform (Miscellaneous Provisions) Scotland Act 1990, which I have reported on previously, here : Association of Commercial Attorneys Rights of Audience in Scotland
The outcome for the ACA was less than fair, due to the fact they were given a heavily restrictive practicing certificate for construction law only, with their application apparently being fought & lobbied against by the legal establishment at every stage. The ACA’s battle to gain rights of audience may also indicate a long struggle ahead on the issue of McKenzie Friends and other access to justice reforms proposed by Lord Gill.
Fergus Ewing caught out on McKenzie Friends issue. While the debate began on a somewhat positive note, the debate certainly ended on a significant stumble by the Communities Safety Minister Fergus Ewing over the question of McKenzie Friends, who indicated in his replies to questions from David Whitton MSP that a quick implementation of even the basic proposals in Lord Gill’s Civil Courts Review such as allowing McKenzie Friends in Scotland’s courts, was not going to be ‘all that quick’ …
Community Safety Minister Fergus Ewing stumbles over McKenzie Friends for Scotland after 40 years of existence in England & Wales.
David Whitton intervened once more on the McKenzie Friends question. During the debate’s closing speech by Community Safety Minister Fergus Ewing, Strathkelvin and Bearsden MSP David Whitton again raised the subject of McKenzie Friends and their sooner rather than later implementation in Scotland. Mr Whitton said : “I bring the minister back to my comments about McKenzie friends. He mentioned that there was wide consultation on their use and varying reports about their effectiveness, but I am sure that he acknowledges that Lord Gill recommends firmly that they should be introduced. Indeed, they already work in jurisdictions south of the border, so I do not understand why we need to delay too long before we implement that recommendation.”
Fergus Ewing replied ‘its not an easy matter to be a McKenzie Friend’. Community Safety Minister Fergus Ewing replied with a less than clear cut answer, leaving many to suspect the battle to implement McKenzie Friends in Scotland is far from over. Mr Ewing said :“David Whitton is right that the recommendation is that McKenzie friends should play a role in Court of Session actions. However, my understanding—my recollection of reading that part of the report—is that there is the caveat that it should be at the discretion of the judge who is handling the case to ensure that McKenzie friends are used appropriately for each case. It is not an easy matter to be a McKenzie friend and, particularly if the case is complex, there could be issues with the appropriateness of using one. I think that Lord Gill also states that, in family actions, it may not always be appropriate for a family member to act as a McKenzie friend because of the potential conflicts of interest.”
By clicking the following You Tube links, you can watch the reaction from Scotland’s political parties and several MSPs to Lord Gill’s recommendations, which for the main offered a broad approval of Lord Gill’s report and hopes that many of the issues raised in the two year appraisal of Scotland’s Civil Justice system can be implemented. The test of course will be whether the Civil Justice reforms proposed in the review will be implemented, and how long implementation will take …
On the whole I would say the debate was positive, albeit there are obvious indicators the implementation of Lord Gill’s recommendations will take time, and will be met with obvious & stiff resistance from the legal establishment. Several solicitors and legal insiders I have spoken to since the debate point to many uncertainties over Lord Gill’s proposals, resistance from the legal establishment over changes that many within its ranks do not want, and the inevitable arm twisting of politicians by the likes of the Law Society of Scotland, who although have welcomed Lord Gill’s report, are actually fuming over many of the proposals to give the public greater access to justice, and the chance to bypass Scotland’s hugely expensive solicitors to do it.
I honestly feel that as far as McKenzie Friends go, there will have to be some kind of legislation to ensure that having a McKenzie Friend is a Human Right, and not something at the whim or discretion of the court. The court has after all, kept out McKenzie Friends from Scotland for some forty years, and both the governing bodies of Scotland’s legal profession – the Law Society of Scotland and the Faculty of Advocates, do not even recognise the fact that McKenzie Friends are treated as Human Rights issue in England & Wales, and in many jurisdictions around the world.
If we are to have certainty over the McKenzie Friends question, and many other recommendations of Lord Gill, I foresee the legislative route must be used to force the courts to ensure access to justice for all, rather than access to justice only for those the court feels should have it.
The legal establishment and the courts, will again no doubt argue that we are special in Scotland, and have a peculiarly special legal services market which may be damaged by some of Lord Gill’s proposals including McKenzie Friends. However, the truth is, we are only special in Scotland because the legal establishment actively denies access to justice to those it does not want to achieve access to justice.
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Exclusive Report: Documents obtained by the Scottish Sun newspaper reveal Prosecutors based at Scotland’s Crown Office & Procurator Fiscal Service (COPFS) have been charged with a string of criminal offences over crimes ranging from violence to misuse of drugs, making threats and offences against Police Officers.
The top judge claimed justice could grind to a halt in a constitutional calamity if judges were forced to declare their vast wealth, property owning interests, professional links and other financial affairs – just like politicians, members of public bodies, local councillors are required to reveal. Read more here:LORD NO-WAY: Top judge Lord Carloway hits out at judicial interests register proposal
Crime Flies Crown
Exclusive Report Exclusive Report: Prosecutors based in Edinburgh at the Crown Office & Procurator Fiscal Service (COPFS) - are now spending as much time in the air jetting between international destinations than chasing some of Scotland’s biggest crooks, tax dodgers, gangsters & serial offenders.
Documents obtained by the Scottish Sun newspaper show Lord Advocate, Frank Mulholland and his team of staff jetting off to 39 international destinations including Hong Kong, Mauritius, Taiwan South Africa, Australia, Malta, San Francisco, and New York – all visited by Crown Office employees on taxpayer funded air junkets. Read more here: CRIME FLIES: Crown Office jet set junket racket
The proposals, backed by cross party MSPs during a debate in the Parliament’s main chamber on 9 October 2014 - Debating the Judges - call for the creation of a publicly available register of judicial interests containing information on judges backgrounds, their personal wealth, undeclared earnings, business & family connections inside & outside of the legal profession, offshore investments, hospitality, details on recusals and other information routinely lodged in registers of interest across all walks of public life in the UK and around the world.
The documents, released to Justice Diary – reveal the latest lists of shareholdings & interests of Scotland’s top judges - who are fighting to prevent the public from scrutinising their hidden wealth.
Need a Lawyer?
Yes, sometimes we all need a lawyer. Whether the reason is criminal defence or civil law & litigation, or help against injustice, an unaccountable judiciary, adversarial institutions & public bodies or challenging poor legislation, there are always some things which can be done much better with a lawyer, than without.
But, be careful where you tread. Think first, before you spend your assets on the legal profession, unless you have clear goals, a time line to stick to, and make sure your solicitor plays by the rules as much as you should adhere to in your dealings with the justice system and your legal representatives.
With no gain or favour in mind, and under strict rules of no interference with solicitor-client relationships once established, Diary of Injustice & Scottish Law Reporters can occasionally recommend legal representatives to those in need of assistance with the law, legal aid, and defence in times of justice & injustice.
To find out more, or to state your case, provide details in confidence and ask for a legal agent, email scottishlawreporters@gmail.com
Trust a Lawyer?
Media Report: RESEARCH conducted by the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) – the body charged with investigating solicitors in England & Wales, shows there is strong support in the rest of the UK for a move to make the SRA fully independent of the Law Society of England & Wales. Unlike Scotland, where the Law Society of Scotland ‘fronted’ regulation model – the Scottish Legal Complaints Commission (SLCC) – continues to be driven by former Law Society staff - the English based Solicitors Regulation Authority wants a complete break from the over arching power & influence of the legal profession’s representative body – to enable it to conduct fully independent regulation of legal practitioners. Read More here:A QUESTION OF TRUST: Should solicitors be independently regulated? UK public say “Yes”.
Crime Society
Crime Society: The powerful Law Society of Scotland – the lawyer’s trade union body which controls self regulation of Scottish solicitors – is facing calls to be stripped of any role in regulating the legal profession.
The Scottish Sun’s The Big Read: Law and disorder reports: CRITICS are calling for an end to the secretive “old boys’ club” which sees Scots lawyers police themselves. It took the Law Society of Scotland four years to give police details of its probe into an alleged mortgage fraud linked to solicitor Christopher Hales and MP Michelle Thomson. But legal experts insist this would not have happened if we had the same system of outside supervision that operates down south.
To be the Judge
The Big Read:The Scottish Sun investigatesthe selection of Scotland’s most senior judge. The position of Lord President – with a salary of £220,655 a year, including perks, international travel and unrivalled power to challenge even the Scottish Parliament - is responsible for leadership of the entire Scottish judiciary in addition to chairing the Board of the Scottish Courts and Tribunals Service. The Lord President is the most senior judge in Scotland, with authority over any court established under Scots law, apart from the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom.
In response to questions from MSPs, JCR Gillian Thompson said: “I do not see that there is a reasonable argument to be made against people who are in public service—I might go further and say, in particular, people who are paid by the public pound—providing information, within reason, about their other activities.” Facing further detailed questions from the committee, JCR Gillian Thompson remained of the view judges should declare their interests including business activities, shareholdings and more – in a publicly available register of judicial interests.
The top judge came unstuck after he opposed the declaration of judicial interests, wealth & connections to big business. Prior to retirement, Gill waged a bitter two year battle with Scottish Parliament MSPs who are investigating proposals to create a register of judicial interests.
Media Report: Aninvestigation has revealedParliament House – the seat of power for Scotland’s judiciary and the nation’s highest, most expensive, elusive and pro-big business courts – has been lost to Edinburgh City Council after it was revealed Scottish Ministers gifted the land titles to the Faculty of Advocates after a £58m public funded refit of the sprawling court complex. Media attention to the land grab and questions in the Scottish Parliament have prompted Edinburgh City Council to demand the courts be returned to public ownership.
In a speech to the Commonwealth Law Conference 2015 in Glasgow, Lord Gill went on to joke about protesters being lucky they are not dragged away by Police. Gill took further shots at politics, judicial independence and democracy before fleeing the legal gathering with Lord Neuberger and other judges after they learned Wikileaks founder Julian Assange was booked to speak at the event.
Judging the Judges
Media report: Scotland’s first Judicial Complaints Reviewer (JCR), Moi Ali has published her final and highly critical Report of the Judicial Complaints Reviewer 2013-2014 on how judges handle complaints against other judges. The stinging attack on Scotland’s judiciary, reported here: Judging the Judges reveals details of allegations against judges including alleged racial bigotry, bullying, lying, omitting details from records, conflicts of interest, and even making secret recordings of meetings.
Register for Judges
Media ReportMSPs overwhelmingly supported a petition urging the Scottish Government to give further consideration to a register of interests for judges. The 90 minute debate, held on Thursday 09 October 2014 in the Scottish Parliament’s main chamber saw msps round on secretive judges who refuse to disclose their hidden wealth, secret links to big business & even criminal records. Read more about the proposals for judicial transparency put forward in Petition PE1458: Register of Interests for members of Scotland's judiciary and watch video clips of MSPs debating a judicial interests register at InjusticeTV
Bank of Legal Aid
Revealed: TIMES ARE TOUGH but not for Scotland’s legal profession as it was revealed the Scottish Legal Aid Board handed over more than One Billion Pounds of public money to lawyers since the 2008 financial market crash. The Billion pound Bank of Scottish Legal Aid is there to help out Scotland’s ‘struggling’ lawyers looking for a second car, fishing rights, sending kids to posh private schools, or a third buy-to-let property.
Judge Air Miles
Exclusive Report: JET-SETTING judges spent £26,000 of taxpayers' cash on overseas trips last year, a Scottish Sun on Sunday investigation can reveal. Top beaks flew out to destinations including Russia, Israel, Switzerland, Germany, France, Bulgaria, Lithuania and Qatar. The most expensive was a £5,800 trip to Canada by Scotland's second most senior judge, Lord Carloway. Lord Gill - who is the Lord President - also spent five days on a £2,800 trip to Doha, Qatar, where he gave speech on judicial ethics.
Judge Rich List
Exclusive Report: DISCLOSURES of judges personal shareholdings obtained under Freedom of Information legislation from the Scottish Court Service reveal a startling snapshot of the wealth of several key members of Scotland’s judiciary who sit on a powerful quango which controls Scotland’s courts. The declarations of the seven judicial members of the Scottish Court Service Board – including Scotland's top judge, the Lord President & Lord Justice General Brian Gill who earns £220K a year - reveal judges benefit financially from shareholdings in companies who provide services to the courts & justice system, companies convicted of criminal offences & involvement in ‘industrial’ espionage against China, banks fined for international financial market manipulation, and companies involved in bribes, bid rigging, and tax dodging.
Judge Recused
Exclusive Report: SCOTLAND’S top judge, the Lord President Lord Brian Gill has been forced to stand aside from hearing an unidentified case in the Court of Session because a relative who turned out to be Brian Gill jr, one of Lord Gill’s sons, represented a party involved in the court action which court officials are keeping secret.
Investing Judges
Exclusive Report: An investigation by the Scottish Sun on Sunday newspaper has revealed a top judge holds shares in a firm hit with a £13.9million proceeds-of-crime bill for bribing Saddam Hussein's regime,The Scottish Sun on Sunday can reveal. Sheriff Principal Alastair Dunlop 62, has a stake in Glasgow based Weir Group, hammered in 2011 for paying kickbacks to land contracts in Iraq. He also has shares in mining giant Rio Tinto, whose executives admitted bribery in China four years ago. A Holyrood committee is considering proposals that would require judges and sheriffs to publish their outside interests, including details of their finances, reported here: A Register of Interests for Scotland's Judiciary
Benched Judges
Exclusive Report: The Sunday Mail newspaper reports Scotland's judges are coming clean when they have to step away from court cases because of a conflict of interests. Scotland’s top judge has decided that for the first time the public can see online why judges and sheriffs have stood down from hearing criminal trials and civil actions. It comes after the Sunday Mail told of MSPs' anger that the Lord President Lord Gill had dismissed calls for a judicial register of interests and snubbed invitations to discuss his position at a Holyrood committee, reported in previous coverage here: A Register of Interests for Scotland's Judiciary
Judges Revealed
Exclusive Report: An investigation by the Sunday Herald newspaper reveals a senior sheriff presided over a court hearing involving Tesco at the same time as he held shares in the multi-national supermarket giant. Sheriff Principal Dunlop QC did not absent himself because having shares in a company that is party to a court action does not require a member of the judiciary to step down from a case. A Holyrood committee is considering proposals that would require judges and sheriffs to publish their outside interests, including details of their finances, reported in previous coverage here: A Register of Interests for Scotland's Judiciary
Private Judge
Media Report: Top judge Lord Gill met petitions committee members behind closed doors to discuss Petition PE1458: Register of Interests for members of Scotland's judiciary and conflict of interests, but no minutes were taken. The Sunday Mail reports Scotland’s top judge met two MSPs in private after twice snubbing requests to give evidence in front of their committee. The judge is opposed to the transparency call and has previously refused invitations to attend the Scottish Parliament and face questions in public on his opposition to judicial transparency and the creation of a register of judicial interests. More on the debate on judge’s interests can be viewed here : A Register of Interests for Scotland's Judiciary
Media Editorial: The Sunday Herald newspaper says in an editorial Judges should not be above scrutiny. The Lord President, who is the country's top judge, is against requiring his colleagues to list their financial interests (as called for in Petition PE1458: Register of Interests for members of Scotland's judiciary) but he seems to have recognised political concerns about a lack of transparency.To this end, he is investigating the possibility of compiling a register of "recusals", which means examples of judges ceasing an interest in a court case due to a perceived conflict. More on the debate on judge’s interests can be viewed here : A Register of Interests for Scotland's Judiciary
Judge fears register
EXCLUSIVE REPORT: Scotland’s top judge Lord Brian Gill has twice refused to attend the Scottish Parliament to answer questions on Petition PE1458: Register of Interests for members of Scotland's judiciary. Fearing transparency, Lord Gill is hostile to plans to ask judges to declare their interests in a statutory register of interests, fearing openness will reveal judges who own hidden undeclared wealth, offshore investments, have undeclared paid relationships with law firms & big business, and also reveal judges who have criminal records. More on the debate on judge’s interests can be viewed here : A Register of Interests for Scotland's Judiciary
No Justice unseen
Media Editorial: The Sunday Mail newspaper says Senior judge's refusal to give evidence to MSPs shows a lack of transparency, says Mail Opinion on calls for judicial transparency in Petition PE1458: Register of Interests for members of Scotland's judiciary. It was an opportunity for Scotland’s top judge to go to Parliament and talk about how our legal system works and might work better. It would have added, as the public relations executives and politicians like to say, a little transparency. Instead, his refusal has only hardened the suspicion that our judges live and work in a bubble smelling of horse hair wigs, vintage port and even more vintage attitudes. More on the debate on judge’s interests can be viewed here : A Register of Interests for Scotland's Judiciary
Guilty Judges
NEWS SPECIAL: Coverage of the Annual Report 2012-2013 of Scotland’s Judicial Complaints Reviewer reveals Scottish judges are slammed for secrecy, anti-transparency views & how they investigate complaints against other judges.Moi Ali, appointed by the SNP’s Justice Secretary as Scotland’s first Judicial Complaints Reviewersaid: “I think fundamentally the problem is the legislation. “The way it’s created, it’s about self- regulation so you have judges judging judges’ conduct. There isn’t really an independent element.”. Read more HERE
Judicial Snub
Exclusive Report : Scotland’s top judge Lord Gill refuses to attend Scottish Parliament to give evidence and explain his opposition to Petition PE1458: A Register of Interests for members of Scotland's judiciary. MSPs expected the £214,000-a-year judge to appear in person to explain why he was opposed to the transparency motion. But the 71 year-old rejected their request, insisting he had given a full written response and had nothing more to add
Judicial Complaints
REVEALED : Scotland’s Judicial Complaints Reviewer gave evidence to MSPs at the Scottish Parliament stating her office has no powers to properly investigate complaints against Scottish judges and that the judicial office regularly block access to files and information relating to complaints. In England & Wales, it is done very differently. Read more HERE
Investigate Judges
EXCLUSIVE REPORT: Scotland’s judiciary are refusing to cooperate with the independently appointed Judicial Complaints Reviewer over complaints made against Scottish judges. Scotland’s top judge also stands accused of regularly blocking independent access to key documents relating to allegations made against judges. Read more HERE
Pleading Judge
Exclusive Report : Scotland’s top judge Lord Gill claims judges are exempt from declaring their full financial & other interests as called for in Petition PE1458: Register of Interests for members of Scotland's judiciary A register could be created by the Scottish Parliament or by the Judicial Office for Scotland, which incorporates the Lord President’s office. Typically, such registers reveal details of hospitality, gifts, property ownership, shareholdings and personal or financial connections to outside organisations.
Criminal Judges
If you think Scotland's judges are honest, think again. An investigation reveals the true extent of their undeclared finances & interests. Read more HERE. Investigations have revealed Scotland's Judges have secret criminal records, massive wealth, unchecked influence, & murky investments along with connections to offshore tax havens, all of which go undeclared as there is no register of interests for the judiciary.
Travelling Judges
Exclusive Report: Scotland's judges have racked up thousands of air miles on overseas trips, including jaunts to the US, India, Morocco and Malaysia. Taxpayers paid £83,644 to send judges and sheriffs and their partners around the world in the past three years revealed in this document. The Lord President also travels to Taiwan, South Africa & other countries yet refuses to travel 700m to the Scottish Parliament to face MSPs questions about judges’ secret undeclared interests.
EU Justice Report
A MUST READ REPORT by the European Commission for the Efficiency of Justice reveals the Scottish justice system as the most unproductive, yet most expensive in the entire European Union. Scottish lawyers take tens of millions more in legal aid representing a population of 5 million than Italian lawyers who serve a population of 60 million. The report also reveals Scots judges are paid the highest in Europe, Scottish Sheriffs taking home an average taxpayer funded salary of £120K plus, while others in Scotland’s judiciary are paid £200K plus expenses.
Justice in Dock
Exclusive Report : A report published by the European Commission for the Efficiency of Justice reveals Scottish lawyers take home a lavish £161million in legal aid payments on a tiny client base compared to other EU countries’ lawyers. The EU REPORT also shows that Scotland disciplines a tiny number of lawyers compared to countries of similar size, and that Scotland’s sheriffs & judges top the EU pay league. A large proportion of alleged criminals reported to prosecutors in Scotland are also escaping justice while lawyers scoop up legal aid fees for dealing with cases which never make it to court.
Civil Courts Review
The Scottish Civil Courts Review of 2009 authored by the then Lord Justice Clerk, now Lord President Lord Brian Gill, castigated Scotland’s Civil Justice System as being Victorian, costly, and unfit for purpose, yet years on from the review, little of the proposed reforms have been implemented due to pressure from vested interests in the legal world, and a lack of political will to deliver access to justice to all Scots.
The ‘independent’ lawyer run Scottish Legal Complaints Commission has lurched from scandal to scandal, and proved to be even worse at regulating complaints against Scottish solicitors than the Law Society of Scotland. Clients of Scottish solicitors who are forced to make complaints to the SLCC should read our previous reports on how the anti-client regulator may treat their case.
MasterPolicy Report
Exclusive Report: A Research Report from the University of Manchester School of Law, commissioned by the SLCC on the Law Society of Scotland’s two discredited client compensation schemes, the Master Insurance Policy & Scottish Solicitors Guarantee Fund reveals the extent of suicides, illness, broken families and financial ruin among clients who fall victim to rogue solicitors and attempt financial claims in order to recover funds & assets embezzled or stolen by their lawyers. The research report concludes the Law Society's Master Policy is set up “to allow solicitors to sleep at night”, so they can go on to ruin other unsuspecting clients. Read the full shocking story HERE
Name & Shame
If you are making a complaint to the Scottish Legal Complaints Commission (SLCC), Law Society of Scotland or Faculty of Advocates about your solicitor or legal representatives, one of the best things you can do is tell the media about it & name your crooked lawyer.
Send your complaint details to scottishlawreporters@gmail.com and get some publicity on your side to protect you and others from rogue lawyers.
Suspended at large
Exclusive Report: An investigation has revealed twice suspended but still working as a solicitor John G O'Donnell has impersonated a deceased lawyer as part of an elaborate fraud, while staff at the law firm he worked at said nothing to clients. The Law Society of Scotland did nothing to prevent O’Donnell continuing his reign of scams against clients even after he was twice suspended & made bankrupt. O’Donnell was only found out after one of his clients, saw his photograph in an earlier Sunday Mail newspaper investigation..
Citizens Advice ?
Exclusive Report: An investigation has revealed a lawyer who works for the Citizens Advice Bureau is being probed after it’s claimed he targeted vulnerable clients for a crooked legal firm. A client involved in a rent dispute turned to CAB lawyer Gilbert Anderson, who is based at Hamilton Sheriff Court on a taxpayer funded salary. But the ex-Royal Marine sent the client and a friend into the clutches of twice suspended solicitor John G O'Donnell , who does not have a practicing certificate.
If YOU believe YOUR LAWYER is committing legal aid fraud or is breaking the law, read more HERE and tell your story to us at scottishlawreporters@gmail.com
Legal Aid Claims
Read more about how one Kilmarnock lawyer Niels S Lockhart walked off with well over HALF A MILLIONPOUNDS of YOURLEGAL AID MONEY in TWO YEARS and escaped prosecution after an investigation by the Scottish Legal Aid Board found evidence of dodgy claims. Dirty deals between the Law Society of Scotland and the secretive Legal Defence Union let him off the hook while his clients ended up ruined.
If YOU suspect YOUR lawyer is doing the same to you and your legal aid case is going nowhere, tell us at scottishlawreporters@gmail.com
Crown Office
An investigation reveals Scotland’s Prosecutors have been caught up in their own BONUS CULTURE where fat cash hand-outs at the end of the year worth tens of thousands of pounds and sly Press Releases short on facts seem to be more important than catching real crooks and delivering on protecting the Scots public.
One of Scotland’s most famous Crooked Lawyers, Andrew Penman of Stormonth Darling Solicitors, Kelso in the Scottish Borders. Read the MEDIA COVERAGE of the case, details which the Law Society of Scotland and several Edinburgh law firms tried to bury.
If you have a similar experience with Stormonth Darling Solicitors, or any other corrupt law firm, we want to hear about it at scottishlawreporters@gmail.com
Royal Bank of Scotland faced Class Action from UK investors in US Courts. The Royal Bank of Scotland, and perhaps numerous members of Scotland’s legal profession (even those such as the current Dean of Faculty, Richard Keen QC), can, as the Herald newspaper reported earlier this week, breathe a sigh of relief as the Class Action case which was raised by UK investors in the American courts, failed after a New York district judge threw out the main claims of the action, which were based around the bank’s semi-nationalisation in 2008. After taking into account a similar ruling in the Supreme Court in June, relating to National Australia Bank, this week’s decision in New York effectively means UK ordinary shareholders cannot pursue claims against RBS in the US courts.
The Justice Diaries 