Stone-age law

The revelation (your report, 4 March) that the consumer body Which? has raised concerns about Lord Hamilton's proposed restrictions on the party litigant's choice of McKenzie Friend confirms that only legislation can drag the Scottish legal establishment into a tentative relationship with modernity.

It would appear that every attempt to make our legal system more accessible, affordable and accountable for those who pay for it and use it provokes hostility in the ranks of the legal establishment.

Your report that Stewart Mackenzie – who has petitioned the Scottish Parliament to legislate for the introduction of McKenzie Friends – accused Lord Hamilton of taking the Scottish legal system "back into the dark ages". Many who have used Scotland's legal system remain to be convinced that it is modern enough to qualify for entry into the stone age.

THOMAS CROOKS

Dundas Street

Edinburgh