Lord Advocate Warns of Legal Disruption from Supreme Court Case

Thu, 01 Jul 2010

The head of the Scottish prosecution service has commented that an impending human rights ruling from the UK Supreme Court could cause ‘enormous disruption’ to the criminal justice system in Scotland. Lord Advocate Elish Angiolini claims that the ramifications of the UK Supreme Court decision on whether solicitors should be present at police interviews could extend to over 100,000 cases.

Ms Angiolini has warned that a Supreme Court ruling that a solicitor may sit in on a police interview would necessitate a ‘fundamental review of the whole system’, disrupting both current prosecutions and past convictions, with many convictions having to be re-examined. Justice Secretary Kenny MacAskill has said the government will not prejudice the Supreme Court’s decision, but they are eager to ensure they are prepared for either eventuality.

The prospect of lawyers being permitted to sit in on police interviews has already attracted considerable opposition from lawyers and legal firms, who claim that the legal profession would suffer financially if this was the case. A decision is expected in October, with solicitors nervous of the financial consequences an adverse ruling may have.
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