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People Onthemove ANDERSONS Solicitors LLP, Glasgow and Edinburgh, are delighted to announce a number of promotions within their Insurance Litigation and Dispute Resolution Department with effect from 1 October 2009. Graham Laughton and Mary-Jo McKenna have been promoted to associates and Stephanie Wright has been promoted to senior solicitor. BRECHIN TINDAL OATTS, 48 St Vincent Street, Glasgow and Hanover House, 45/51 Hanover Street, Edinburgh, intimate that on 16 November 2009 Jane Anne Steel was assumed as a partner of the firm. DAVIDSON CHALMERS LLP, Edinburgh, are delighted to announce the arrival of Sheila Webster, formerly of BELL & SCOTT, and Douglas Taylor, previously at DLA PIPER, to the firm as partners. Both Sheila and Douglas started with the firm on 2 November 2009. DICKSON MINTO, Edinburgh and London, intimate that with effect from 15 November 2009, Ewan Andrew John Sherriff ceased to be a partner of the firm. GRAY & KELLAS, Aberdeen and Ballater, intimate that they ceased trading on 31 October 2009. On that date the private client side of the business transferred to LAURIE Private Law consultant, Shield & Kyd 8 / theJournal December 09 & CO, LLP, Aberdeen, Peter Gray joined LAURIE & CO as a consultant and Caroline Davies and Fiona Barker retired from legal practice. Also on that date the legal aid side of the business and the criminal defence work transferred to GAVIN BAIN & CO, Aberdeen and Graham Morrison and John Hardie joined that firm as partners. HARPER ROBERTSON & SHANNON, 100 High Street, Annan, intimate the retiral of Michael Johnstone Shannon from the firm with effect from 30 October 2009. The business will be carried on by Alan Brian Robertson and his associates. HBM SAYERS, Glasgow are delighted to announce that their associate Rachel Rough has been assumed as a partner with effect from 1 December 2009. Lili Hunter is pleased to announce the formation of her new employment law practice, LILI HUNTER LEGAL LIMITED and the appointment of Louise Spark as an associate with effect from 16 November 2009. Contact details: lili@lhlaw.co.uk and louise@lhlaw.co.uk . ALEX HUTCHEON + COMPANY, Aberdeen and Banchory, are pleased to announce the appointment of Stuart Ogilvie as a partner and Fayona Gordon as an The Edinburgh partners of Shield & Kyd who offer advice to clients in the residential, commercial and corporate sectors are delighted to announce the appointment of Euan Bell- Scott as a consultant in Private Law. Euan joins the firm after many years experience as a partner with Russel + Aitken and having held board appointments with various public bodies over the years and brings a wealth of experience with him. This appointment gives the firm of Shield & Kyd the ability to strengthen the services currently on offer to their existing clients. In addition, Shield & Kyd can now offer to other legal firms an added value service to them to assist in developing their Private Client business on an introductory commission sharing basis for Wills, Powers of Attorney, Guardianships and Executries. If this may be of interest, please contact Euan Bell-Scott on 0131 228 2381 or e-mail etmbs@shieldandkyd.co.uk Stuart Ogilvie associate. Stuart and Fayona can be contacted at the firm’s main Aberdeen office at 248 Union Street, Aberdeen. Stuart Malcolm is pleased to intimate the establishment of STUART MALCOLM LLP, a niche specialist business law firm based in Oxford, England focusing on the United Kingdom’s science, technology and innovation sectors and knowledge-based and creative economies. Contact details: www.stuartmalcolmllp.com MAXWELL MACLAURIN, Glasgow and Edinburgh, intimate that with effect from 30 September 2009 Linda H Hepburn retired as a partner in the firm. MELROSE & PORTEOUS, Duns and Eyemouth, and WALLACE & MENZIES, North Berwick, intimate that with effect from 30 October 2009 Alan Anderson has retired as a partner of the firm. Ivan Ralph is pleased to announce that with effect from 1 November fyi Send your photographs for the people section to: peter@connect communications.co.uk Fayona Gordon Partner appointment, andersonbain & co Intimations for the people section should be sent to: Denise Robertson, Registrar’s Dept., The Law Society of Scotland, 26 Drumsheugh Gardens, Edinburgh EH3 7YR Email: deniserobertson@ lawscot.org.uk 2009 he has commenced practice on his own account trading as McEWAN FRASER LEGAL, 15 Annandale Street, Edinburgh EH7 4AW; LP – 9, Edinburgh 2 (tel 0131 524 9797; fax 0131 524 9799). Ivan was formerly a partner with LESLIE DEANS & CO, Edinburgh. Raymond G Mallon and Mark C Shepherd, both formerly qualified assistants with RUSSEL & AITKEN, Falkirk, have great pleasure in intimating that they have commenced in practice together under the firm name of RMS LAW LLP at 8 Lint Riggs, Falkirk FK1 1DG; LP 8, Falkirk. The firm telephone number is 01324 228587. A & W M URQUHART, Edinburgh, intimate that Christine Alexandra Mackenzie has joined the firm as a consultant with effect from 2 November 2009, and that Chris Henderson Lucas has retired as a consultant with effect from 30 September 2009. andersonbain & co, Solicitors of 10 Thistle Street and 243 George Street, Aberdeen are very pleased to announce that Kevin Rattray, formerly a founding Partner of Hutcheon Rattray & Co. has joined the firm as Partner to lead their expanding Property Sales Division. Kevin has vast experience of the local property market and his appointment reinforces andersonbain’s commitment to provide a first class and proactive estate agency service for their existing and new clients and confirms their confidence in the residential property market for the future. Commenting on his appointment Kevin said “I am absolutely delighted to be bringing my client base to andersonbain and am looking forward to developing the firm’s estate agency profile and services while maintaining the extremely high standards of customer care already fundamental to the firm”. For more information please contact us on 01224 626244 or mail@andersonbain.co.uk www.journalonline.co.uk
The Cabinet Secretary for Justice welcomed Lord Gill’s report in the Scottish Parliament by describing it as “hard hitting” and “the first system wide review in modern times”. The writer concurs in his appreciation of the work carried out by the review team; but questions whether two major proposals would improve access to justice. First, that “the existing shrieval complement would be reduced by around half the current number of permanent posts... there will be a substantial reduction in the number of Senators” (chapter 4, paras 213 and 215). Secondly, that the privative jurisdiction of the sheriff court be increased to £150,000. The target of the report’s reforms is to “make Scotland an attractive forum for the resolution of disputes by providing high-quality judicial decisions at every level” (Introduction). There was a desire expressed that the international reputation of Scotland’s legal system should be retained. The report makes it clear that its approach is to follow that of Dame Hazel Genn in her recent Hamlyn Lectures, “Judging Civil Justice”. What Dame Genn in fact stressed in relation to English law and courts is that “appointing judges of the highest calibre and ensuring that candidates of the highest calibre put themselves forward for consideration is critical. This is about securing the quality of the judiciary for the future” (p 146). The current level of judicial decision making certainly will not withstand the impact of a 50% reduction in the number of sheriffs and substantial reduction in senators. The Lord President, in his address at the opening of the legal year on 18 September 2009, commented: “the amount of commercial business attracted to the court continues to increase – surely a sign of the quality of treatment and disposal by the dedicated judges there”. If Court of Session commercial work is a success, where does this leave personal injury work? The report makes it clear that “practitioners on both sides point to economies and efficiencies of scale that accrue through centralising all but the lowest value personal injury litigation in the Court of Session” (para 4.153). In relation to civil justice it can be seen that currently there are successes in the Court of Session. The report however identifies that “one of the key areas for reform in the civil justice system is the sheriff court” (Introduction). It proposes that the privative jurisdiction of the sheriff court would increase to £150,000. There would be strict sanctions in expenses for noncompliance. The result of this increase would be twofold. First, a massive reduction in the Court of Session workload. Secondly there would be increased pressure on the sheriff court dealing with the additional personal injury workload, civil jury trials (in Edinburgh Sheriff Court), and ordinary and commercial cases at a higher level. One cannot identify how there will be an improvement in access to justice where the sheriff court, already identified as a major problem, is subject to an increased caseload at a higher value, requiring specialist judges and with half the existing shrieval complement. In relation to the Court of Session, the writer’s figures indicate that existing business would shrink to around a fifth of the current volume of cases. The report estimates a reduction of 64% of actions commenced in the general department. It is hard to see how any meaningful supreme court could function with the modest caseload remaining in the court. The Chapter 43 procedure will not Opinion From a personal injury practitioner’s perspective there are serious questions whether two major proposals in the Gill Review would improve access to justice A step too far? www.lawscotjobs.co.uk David Sandison David Sandison is Senior Partner, Lawford Kidd Solicitors, a personal injury specialist and a member of the Law Society of Scotland’s Civil Justice Committee be replicated in the sheriff court. It depends on a tripartite relationship involving Chapter 43, the Court of Session administration and judiciary, and the ability to involve counsel. The report confirms that litigation costs in Scotland are around half those of England. Insurers are not suffering excessive costs in Scotland. The current annual Court of Session personal injury caseload is around 2,425. The bulk of these cases will be transferred to Edinburgh Sheriff Court, in which 232 PI actions were raised in 2008. Clearly the court will be unable to cope with this additional caseload and presumably these cases will be transferred back to use the unoccupied “estate” in the Court of Session (with a smaller contribution from court dues, which are less in the sheriff court). Whether this would be of any administrative cost saving benefit is doubtful, and even more questionable is whether it is an appropriate use of a court which is currently subject to redevelopment at an estimated cost of £63,000,000 (freedom of information response from Scottish Court Service, 18 November 2009). Are we heeding Dame Genn’s warning “The contribution of civil justice reviews to declining civil justice” (p 52)? A fuller version of this article can be found at www.journalonline.co.uk/extras December 09 theJournal / 9
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Page 4 and 5: Consultations Brian Dempsey’s mon
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Page 10 and 11: Letters Facing up to ABS I wholehea
Page 12 and 13: Feature Home reports One year after
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