Law

Fraudsters are becoming increasingly sophisticated in how they initiate and execute cyber-crime – estimated to cost the UK £27 billion every year – and businesses which fall victim must act quickly to give themselves the best chance of recovering monies.

Among the proposals in the latest Scottish Budget are increases in the rates of land and buildings transaction tax (LBTT) for commercial properties, and a rate hike for the additional dwellings supplement (ADS) for purchases of additional residences in Scotland, eg a second home or a buy-to-let property.

Every year, ­without fail, December seems to be an exceptionally busy month.

Brexit is fraught with uncertainty – but there is now one thing we know without doubt. The Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) has confirmed the UK is legally entitled to unilaterally revoke its Article 50 notice. In practical terms, this means that if the withdrawal agreement is not acceptable to Parliament, and ‘no deal’ is equally unacceptable, there is another path.

This year marks ten years since our Moving On project opened. It was launched in a bid to stop the revolving door of young men leaving ­prison, reoffending and quickly finding themselves back behind bars.

Christmas is often an ­unintended bearer of stress. It’s that time of year when otherwise innocuous factors can ­collide and accumulate to ­create a ­situation which many of us find ­difficult to endure.

Real estate transaction volumes suggest that 2018 will be one of the decade’s strongest in terms of overall levels of investment in Scottish commercial property.

The last year might best be characterised as 12 months of solid progress for the legal profession in Scotland. Growth has been steady following a fairly flat 2017 – and Brexit, perhaps surprisingly, has not had the direct impact on business that we might have expected this time last year.

Some of the biggest changes in employment law in the last couple of years have been a response to the shifting nature of the modern workforce, while other high profile areas involve decades-old legislation being applied more frequently.

Despite the absence of blockbuster deals, the Scottish mergers and acquisitions (M&A) market has been busy and at times buoyant in 2018 – fuelled by a strong performance in specific sectors and by foreign investment attracted by a weak pound.

In the cafes, restaurants and meeting-rooms of Rome at the annual conference of the International Bar Association (IBA) last month, the conversation kept returning to one main topic.

Despite the Scottish Government’s announcement of increased investment into the sector, the political and economic uncertainties on the horizon have left Scotland’s legal infrastructure experts with mixed views.

A hot topic of conversation among Scotland’s litigators over the last year has been the Civil Litigation (Expenses and Group Proceedings) Bill, which was passed by the Scottish Government in May, with secondary legislation yet to be enacted.

Scottish brands to be protected by ‘Trade Secret’ legislation, which allows companies to keep their recipes for success under wraps, writes Murgitroyd's Gordon Stark

Would you buy a car from a dodgy dealer – or even an upstanding member of ­Scottish society advertising in the ­Scotsman? What would you reasonably expect when forking out for such a big-ticket item? Complete log book? A look under the bonnet? A chance to kick the tyres? A test drive, perhaps?

Cosmetics retailer Lush has been heavily criticised after it launched a new advertising campaign calling for justice for those spied on by undercover police officers.

Most of us would ­consider prevention and ­rehabilitation as ­fundamental to creating safer ­communities in Scotland and ­tackling the harm caused by crime.

Gold medals are only part of the equation for young sports stars. Rosemary Gallagher finds out what they should think about in legal terms

As Brexit throws doubts over the future of European trade mark and design registrations presently covering the UK, businesses are being urged to take steps now to protect themselves.