Defence lawyer strike hits Scottish sheriff courts

Industrial action will affect Glasgow, Kilmarnock, Falkirk, Aberdeen and Dumbarton

News, 6 May 2008

Disruption is expected in Scotland’s sheriff courts today, as criminal lawyers protest against the Scottish Government’s proposals for legal aid payments in summary criminal cases.

The hardest hit court is likely to be Glasgow, which usually runs until 10pm after a bank holiday dealing with custody cases from the weekend. Only four duty solicitors will be available to process these cases, as solicitors of choice will not be taking on cases.

Representatives from the Glasgow Bar Association, which represents one third of Scotland’s criminal lawyers and whose members voted for industrial action three weeks ago, met with Justice Secretary Kenny MacAskill yesterday in an attempt to avert the strike.

However, the situation has not been resolved and the sheriff courts in Aberdeen, Falkirk, Dumbarton and Kilmarnock will be affected too. Any offenders who have not been dealt with by midnight will need to be released and told to return to court later in the week.

Sara Matheson of the Glasgow Bar Association said the association felt that the Scottish Government’s consultation process with lawyers had not been thorough enough, which was why industrial action was taking place. She added that the association was thinking of stepping up action in other areas.

The Law Society of Scotland had asked lawyers not to take the action. Ian Smart, Vice President of the Society, said a number of concessions had been won thanks to its ongoing negotiations with the Government.

A spokesman from the Scottish Government said the reforms were driven by the need to improve summary justice and not cut costs.

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