The Law Society of Scotland has raised “serious concerns” about a possible move to judge-only trials, insisting that it would be “incompatible with justice”.

A Scottish Government consultation paper on reform of the justice system has laid the arguments for and against the changes ahead of a possible pilot scheme of judge-only trials.

It states juries continue to return verdicts of acquittal at a significantly higher rate for sexual offences than all other crimes, and points to evidence of jurors misunderstanding crucial legal issues.

However, the Law Society has warned against any moves to scrap jury trials, stating jurors should not shoulder the blame for any criticism around lower conviction rates.

Stuart Munro, convener of the society’s criminal law committee, said: “It’s important that people who are affected by crime are treated with respect. We support changes that make it easier and less traumatic to participate in our justice system, but not if they compromise fundamental principles such as the presumption of innocence and the right to a fair trial.

“The right to trial by jury for serious crimes is a cornerstone of the Scottish legal system, and we believe replacing that with judge-only trials would carry risks with no discernible benefits. A jury will always be far more reflective of Scottish society than a single judge can be, which greatly reduces the potential for subconscious bias to influence trial outcomes.”

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Rape Crisis Scotland has expressed support for judge-led pilot trials, but the Law Society of Scotland is opposed to the proposal. Picture: PA

Mr Munro added: “Juries are anonymous while judges are not. Overt public criticism of judges or the exertion of political pressure on them would be unfair on the judiciary and incompatible with justice.”

Other organisations who have responded to the Government consultation, which closed last week, have signalled support for single judge trial pilots.

Rape Crisis Scotland said there were “serious concerns” about the ability of a jury to properly determine a trial involving rape or sexual violence. The organisation pointed to research that showed juries were “overly affected by the concept of rape myths”, such as the effects of alcohol, the length of time in reporting crime, and assumptions about how rape victims “should present”.

In its submission to the Government, the charity added: “There is a feeling that judges are legally trained, but also accountable in a way that juries are not.

“They are trained to evaluate evidence and are less likely to be distracted by irrelevant issues.”

The Government consultation also proposes the creation of a new specialist sexual offences court. The Law Society of Scotland said such a change would “add another lawyer of complexity and bureaucracy to the justice system”.

But Rape Crisis Scotland strongly supports the idea of a new court, reasoning that it would improve the experiences of complainers accessing the justice system.

Figures published last week by the Scottish Courts and Tribunals Service showed the trial backlog across Scotland has been reduced by 7,500 cases since the start of the year.

Judge-led sexual offence trials risk undermining justice system in Scotland, solicitors warn