APEX honour for Murray

Summary of second annual APEX lecture given by Society's President Duncan Murray

The Journal, October 2004, page 36

Law Society of Scotland President Duncan Murray was invited to deliver the second annual lecture organised by APEX, the charity that addresses the employability needs of offenders, ex-offenders and young people at risk.

The first lecture last year hit the headlines when First Minister Jack McConnell was widely reported as criticising lawyers and the legal system for causing delays. Duncan Murray pointed out that much of the speech commended the constructive co-operation that takes place in making the justice system work, and committed the Society’s continued support for this approach.

Taking as his theme the rule of law and its components, the President accepted that it embodies the values of which the First Minister spoke – respect, compassion, justice and responsibility. Public knowledge of the law, and its accessibility, he said, are the first key components, but he added, “The rule of law will only be upheld if the rights of individual Scots are protected – including the right to live a life free from crime. To help achieve this, we need to inspire the people of Scotland to better citizenship, encourage communities to take pride in local issues as well as supporting the desire to uphold the political and civil liberties that have gained status as universal human rights.” The Society plays its part, he said, through its support for the Young Citizen’s Passport and the Law in Schools project.

His next element, development and reform of the law, also represents a collective enterprise: the Scottish Parliament has shown its potential and done so in an open, accessible and responsive manner; but with so much change so quickly “our parliamentarians must be careful to let that change deliver benefit”. Returning to the criminal justice system, he called for a fair allocation of resources to enable the major reforms now in progress to operate fairly and expeditiously. Finally, he recognised the independence and impartiality of the judiciary – “the single most sensitive issue in most democracies and also the first to fall when democracy falls”. Public confidence is crucial, he commented, but judges must be allowed to exercise a discretion to select the most effective sentence in individual cases.

Duncan Murray’s speech can be read in full on the Journal website – select “submissions”.