Making Justice Work: Courts Reform (Scotland) Bill

June 11, 2013

The Making Justice Work: Courts Reform (Scotland) Bill Consultation ran from February to May 2013. It contained proposals to restructure the way civil cases and summary criminal cases are dealt with by the courts in Scotland. The proposals suggest a legal framework for implementing the majority of recommendations of the Scottish Civil Courts Review. The […]

Scotland Bill

January 8, 2012

Following agreement of both Houses on the text of this Bill it achieved Royal Assent on 1 May 2012. The Bill is now an Act of Parliament.  The Bill will implement recommendations of the Final Report of the Commission on Scottish Devolution (the Calman Commission). It would make a number of adjustments to the boundary […]

Reforming Scots Criminal Law and Practice

December 18, 2011

The Scottish government set up a review of criminal justice following the decision in Cadder v HMA in October 2010, which held that suspects detained in police custody should be afforded access to legal advice and assistance, otherwise use of interview evidence in the course of a prosecution could breach their right to a fair […]

The Supreme Court Review

August 10, 2011

The Scottish Government has set up a review group chaired by Lord McCluskey to consider what ongoing role the UK Supreme Court should have in considering criminal cases under its devolution jurisdiction. JUSTICE and its Scottish Advisory Group have responded to the consultation. Downloads JUSTICE response to Supreme Court Review– August, 2011    

Criminal Procedure (Legal Assistance, Detention and Appeals) (Scotland) Bill

November 11, 2010

This bill was presented as emergency legislation in response to the Cadder judgment handed down on 26 October 2010 by the UK Supreme Court. The legislation came into force as the Criminal Procedure (Legal Assistance, Detention and Appeals) (Scotland) Act 2010 on 29 October 2010. The Act made significant amendments to the Criminal Procedure (Scotland) […]