Legal watchdog roles for ex-police chiefs

Published on Thursday 10 January 2008 20:48

TWO former senior police officers have been appointed to an independent body for legal complaints, it was announced yesterday.

Ian Gordon, former deputy chief constable of Tayside Police, and Douglas Watson, an ex-head of CID with the Lothian and Borders force who worked on the Jodi Jones case, will be among the four non-lawyer members of the newly-created Scottish Legal Complaints Commission.

Other non-lawyer members are former nursing director Linda Pollock and George Irvine, former director of social work at North Ayrshire council.

The new body will be chaired by Jane Irvine, who is currently the Scottish Legal Services' ombudsman. It will begin work in October.

Kenny MacAskill, the justice secretary, said: "I am confident that independent scrutiny will safeguard the rights of both the profession and users of legal services throughout Scotland. "

The Law Society of Scotland said the new body would act as a "gateway" for all complaints about solicitors, adding that it would continue to receive complaints, via the commission, about solicitors' conduct.