But the huge increase in judicial jetting around the globe - which doubled in cost from £22,605.92 in 2015.16 to £43,354,91 in 2016/17 – flouts previous attempts by former top judge Brian Gill to “take control” of judges demanding to go on foreign trips to luxurious destinations, with hotels & golf clubs & ‘hospitality’ added to the mix.
And, chief among the big time spenders of public cash on air miles is the Lord President himself - Lord Carloway - who already earns a public salary of £222,862 a year.
Carloway – real name Colin Sutherland - who also goes by the title of Lord Justice General - took a taxpayer funded £4,189.96 jet flight to Washington DC on what the Judicial Office claim is a “UK/USA Legal Exchange” held in Philadelphia and Washington.
While his number two – Lady Dorrian – Scotland;s first ever female judge serving as Lord Justice Clerk earning £215,216 a year - racked up the most expensive flight on taxpayers in the past year – a £6,188.99 trip to attend the Commonwealth Law Conference held in Melbourne Australia.
Also added to the grand list of judicial jet setting across the globe by Scotland's judiciary is a double overseas junket taken by Lord Matthews and Sheriff Norman McFadyen – who were travelling to the ISRCL - Halifax, Nova Scotia legal seminar in Canada.
Lord Matthews – a Court of Session Senator claimed £4017 costs for the trip, compared with Sheriff McFadyen’s £1842 bill to the public purse.
An investigation of this trip revealed Lord Matthews travelled in a separate business class seat compared with the Sheriff who was forced to fly premium economy class.
The trip by Lord Matthews & Sheriff McFadyen also breached judiciary guidelines on overseas travel issued in 2014 by Lord Brian Gill - which said, as a “general rule”, only one judge or sheriff need attend each conference.
Former Lord Advocate Frank Mulholland also appears on the list of travel junkets by Scottish Judges.
Mulholland was promoted by Lord Carloway to a seat on the bench in the Court of Session – after he blocked a criminal prosecution of footballer David Goodwillie for rape.
Mulholland also blocked criminal charges against the driver of the Glasgow bin lorry which ran out of control in December 2014 killing six people in the centre of Glasgow while injuring 15 others.
Lord Mulholland, as he is now known – took a two day trip on the taxpayer to the European Court of Justice meeting on the 18 - 20 Sept 2016 in Luxembourg, at a staggering cost of £1,216.34
Previous investigations into Overseas travel records released by the Judicial Office for Scotland have also revealed Court of Session judge Lord Brailsford enjoyed a £4,898.94 eight day taxpayer funded junket to Sydney Australia from 11 – 19 November 2015.
Lord Brailsford – who became widely known after his son escaped criminal charges for ‘rape & murder’ threats to a girl on twitter - was outed in published documents obtained from the Scottish Government as the listed owner of the Laigh Hall – which forms part of Court of Session buildings located at Parliament House, Edinburgh.
Earlier reports also revealed Lord Gill enjoyed a two day trip during the twilight days of his short, if stormy three year term as Scotland’s top judge - to the Forum of Chief Justice of British Isles - held in the tax haven of Jersey. Lord Gill claimed £302.09 expenses on top of the £231.60 cost of travel to Jersey - taking the cost of his last ‘confirmed’ judicial overseas junket as top judge - to £533.69.
A Scottish Sun investigation revealed Lord Brian Gill travelled to Qatar in 2014 on a five day £2,800 taxpayer funded state visit - while dodging invitations to attend the Scottish Parliament to face scrutiny on his opposition to increased transparency of the judiciary.
And in early 2016, Lord Gill billed the Scottish Parliament a further £267.75 worth of expenses claims - after the former top judge travelled 1st class to Edinburgh in November 2015 - demanding MSPs drop a three year probe on proposals to create a register of judicial interests as called for in Petition PE1458: Register of Interests for members of Scotland's judiciary.
The Sunday Mail newspaper also investigated judicial overseas junkets in 2015 - revealing three sheriffs spent £15,000 on an overseas junket to Zambia in Africa JUDGE JET: Sheriffs’ £15K tour of Africa adds to air miles racket of Scots judiciary - as top judges' clampdown on judicial jet set junkets takes flight.
And a report in the Sunday Mail on June 2 2013 revealed Scottish judges spent over £83,000 on overseas travel junkets in three years - while top judge Lord Gill refused calls to appear before the Scottish Parliament to answer questions on the judiciary’s secretive financial interests & links to big business, banks & the professions.
Lord Matthews was travelling to the same legal seminar in Canada but racked up a huge bill in first class while Sheriff Norman McFadyen went economy.
By Craig McDonald 14 MAY 2017 Sunday Mail
A judge ran up a £4000 taxpayers’ bill flying business class to a conference – while a sheriff who accompanied him sat in economy.
Judge Lord Matthews and Sheriff Norman McFadyen were travelling to the same legal seminar in Canada.
But Matthews claimed £4017 costs for the trip, compared with McFadyen’s £1842 bill to the public purse.
High Court judge Lord Matthews also filed £201 in expenses for the excursion to Halifax, Nova Scotia, last year.
Sheriff McFadyen, who sits at Edinburgh Sheriff Court, claimed no cash back.
The trip also appeared to breach judiciary guidelines issued in 2014 which said, as a “general rule”, only one judge or sheriff need attend each conference.
Another trip saw five High Court judges – Lords Brodie, Glennie, Doherty, Pentland and Lady Scott – attend a Strasbourg conference at a total cost of £4378.
It also cost £1408 to send four sheriffs – Corke, Reith, Mackie and Stewart – to a conference in Dublin.
The taxpayer coughed up £43,354 for foreign travel by the judiciary office last year. The figure was double the total of £22,605 in 2015.
Labour’s justice spokeswoman Claire Baker MSP said: “Questions should be asked about why one person is travelling at twice the cost of another.
“There will be legitimate reasons why the judiciary require to attend international events.
“However, this is an overall significant increase on the previous year and they need to be mindful that this is public money. All trips need to be proportionate.”
Scottish Tory justice spokesman Douglas Ross MSP said: “This is a huge increase in travel costs and needs to be explained.
“When guidelines state that one judicial member should be sufficient for each event, it’s questionable why so many have been travelling together.
“This is taxpayers’ money and shouldn’t be splashed out on needless flights.”
The judge and sheriff were attending the International Society for the Reform of Criminal Law seminar between July 24 and 28 last year.
In 2014, the then Lord President, Lord Gill, issued guidance on overseas travel in which he stated “it should only be necessary for one judicial office holder to attend a conference overseas”.
Lord Gill said it would only “be in exceptional cases that I am likely to consider it necessary for more than one person to attend”. He added: “In all cases where funding is being sought, I will require a business case to be produced.
“I will need a clear justification for any overseas travel.”
Figures for judicial travel for the 12 months to March 31 showed a total of 38 trips were made overseas.
The biggest single claim was for a £6188 trip to Australia by Lady Dorrian to attend the Commonwealth Law conference in Melbourne.
The least expensive was when Lord Tyre managed an Academy of European Law trip to Frankfurt at a cost of just £84. The High Court judge did claim a further £57 in expenses for the trip last April.
Lord Tyre also attended events in Brussels, The Hague, Amsterdam, Barcelona, Warsaw, Madrid and Rome.
One of the most widely travelled of the judiciary last year was Edinburgh Sheriff Gordon Liddle.
He attended the Commonwealth Magistrates’ and Judges’ Association in Georgetown, Guyana, at a cost of £3637 and a European Network of Councils for Justiciary event in Warsaw, Poland, costing £607.
Sheriff Liddle also attended events in Ljubljana, Slovenia, costing £383 and in Bratislava, Slovakia, costing £285.
A spokesman for the Judicial Office for Scotland said last week: “There will be occasions where it is appropriate to send more than one member of the judiciary to important legal conferences.
“Attendance at overseas conferences is only authorised by the Lord President where there is a clear justification.”
He added: “Lord Matthews flew business class, while Sheriff McFadyen flew premium economy/economy, which goes some way to explaining the difference in cost.
“Furthermore, Lord Matthews’ flights required to be booked closer to the date of departure as he was presiding over a trial.”
JUDICIAL JUNKETS – Judges cost taxpayers £43K in flights to ‘legal’ conferences, hotels with health spas, golf courses & hospitality in 2016/17:
10 - 12 April 2016 Lord President - CJEU Bilateral meeting - Luxembourg £673.83 £20.00 £693.83
10 - 12 April 2016 Lord Tyre - ENCJ Conference - Barcelona £284.76 £74.69 £359.45
21 - 23 April 2016 Lord Tyre - Board of Trustees of the Academy of European Law - Frankfurt £84.64 £57.09 £141.73
1 - 3 June 2016 Lord Tyre - ENCJ General Assembly - Warsaw £604.94 £73.97 £678.91
1 - 3 June 2016 Sheriff Liddle - ENCJ General Assembly - Warsaw £607.35 £32.86 £640.21
29 - 30 June 2016 Lady Dorrian - Joint meeting of the Working Party on e-Law with legal practitioners - Brussels £511.92 - £511.92
3 - 4 July 2016 Lord Tyre - ENCJ Executive Board Meeting - Madrid £464.59 £76.35 £540.94
24 - 28 July 2016 Sheriff McFadyen - ISRCL - Halifax, Nova Scotia £1,842.93 - £1,842.93
24 - 28 July 2016 Lord Matthews - ISRCL - Halifax, Nova Scotia £3,816.19 £201.74 £4,017.93
6 - 11 August 2016 SP Abercrombie - Representing the Scottish Sentencing Council -Salt Lake City, Utah. £230.98 £36.13 £267.11
14 - 23 Sept 2016 Lord President - UK/USA Legal Exchange - Philadelphia and Washington USA £4,189.96 £123.11 £4,313.07
18 - 20 Sept 2016 Lord Mulholland QC - Attending ECJ meeting - Luxemburg £1,131.03 £85.31 £1,216.34
18 - 22 Sept 2016 Sheriff Liddle - CMJA Conference - Georgetown, Guyana £3,637.78 - £3,637.78
26 - 27 Sept 2016 Lord Tyre - ENCJ Project Group Meeting - Rome £381.07 £104.93 £486.00
1 - 3 October 2016 Lady Dorrian - Opening Legal Year - Dublin £623.21 - £623.21
1 - 3 October 2016 Lord Doherty - Opening Legal Year - Dublin £623.21 £162.19 £785.40
3 - 14 October 2016 Sheriff L Drummond - FBIJCC Stage 2016 - Paris £3,185.32 £350.83 £3,536.15
16 - 21 October 2016 Sheriff O'Carroll - IAJ Conference 16 - 21 October 2016 - Mexico City £3,660.29 - £3,660.29
17 - 28 October 2016 Sheriff C Cunninghame - FBIJCC Stage 2016 - Bordeaux £1,899.73 £210.70 £2,110.43
20 - 22 November 2016 Lord Brodie - Bilateral between the European Court of Human Rights and the Senior Judiciary of Scotland - Strasbourg £740.14 £229.62 £969.76
20 - 22 November 2016 Lord Glennie - Bilateral between the European Court of Human Rights and the Senior Judiciary of Scotland - Strasbourg £817.23 - £817.23
20 - 22 November 2016 Lord Doherty - Bilateral between the European Court of Human Rights and the Senior Judiciary of Scotland - Strasbourg £817.23 £47.51 £864.74
20 - 22 November 2016 Lord Pentland - Bilateral between the European Court of Human Rights and the Senior Judiciary of Scotland - Strasbourg £827.43 £82.13 £909.56
20 - 22 November 2016 Lady Scott - Bilateral between the European Court of Human Rights and the Senior Judiciary of Scotland - Strasbourg £817.23 - £817.23
21 November 2016 Lord Tyre - ENCJ Executive Board meeting - Brussels £366.87 £87.16 £454.03
24 - 25 November 2016 Sheriff D Corke - 4 Nations Public Guardian Conference - Dublin £361.32 - £361.32
24 - 25 November 2016 Sheriff F Reith QC - 4 Nations Public Guardian Conference - Dublin £363.48 £39.65 £403.13
24 - 25 November 2016 Sheriff A Mackie - 4 Nations Public Guardian Conference - Dublin £298.19 £8.40 £306.59
24 - 25 November 2016 Sheriff N Stewart - 4 Nations Public Guardian Conference - Dublin £336.90 £336.90
8 - 9 December 2016 Lord Tyre - Attending ENCJ Independence & Accountability Project Team Meeting - The Hague £441.97 £63.21 £505.18
11 - 12 December 2016 Sheriff Liddle - ENCJ - Project Group Meeting - Bratislava £285.36 £22.15 £307.51
26 - 28 January 2017 Lord Boyd - Attending ECHR Judicial Seminar, Principle of international Law - Strasbourg £497.40 £32.53 £529.93
12 - 14 February 2017 Lord Tyre - ENCJ Executive meeting - Brussels £428.74 £30.39 £459.13
12 - 14 March 2017 Sheriff Liddle - ENCJ Project team meeting - Ljubljana £383.69 £26.78 £410.47
15 - 25 March 2017 Lady Dorrian - Commonwealth Law Conference - Melbourne Australia £6,188.89 £6,188.89
16 - 17 March 2017 Lord Tyre - ENCJ, Project meeting - Vienna £301.98 £12.25 £314.23
26 - 28 March 2017 Lord President - Judges Forum, 60th Anniversary of the signatures of the Treaties of Rome - Luxembourg £32.14 £32.14
30 - 31 March 2017 Lord Tyre - ENCJ, Digital Justice Seminar - Amsterdam £132.94 £132.94
Total cost of trips: £42,860.72 Total Expenses claimed: £2,323.82 Grand Total of Judicial Overseas costs to March 2017: £43,354.91
GUIDANCE BY GILL – Former Lord President Brian Gill’s guidance on judicial overseas junkets:
After several spats between members of the judiciary who were keen to take overseas junkets to luxurious destinations & enjoy tours, hospitality & golf instead of attending law conferences on taxpayers cash, Lord Gill attempted to curtail demands of greedy judges on the public purse.
Guidance issued by Lord Gill in 2014 stated:
I have been reviewing the arrangements to control expenditure to meet attendance at conferences by the judiciary, especially where the conference is taking place outwith the United Kingdom. I have also been considering the arrangements for the authorisation of all other overseas travel to be paid from public funds. With immediate effect the following arrangements are to apply to future requests.
Requests for funding for attendance at conferences and for all other overseas travel should be sought only from the Judicial Office . No request for support to meet attendance at conferences, or other overseas travel should be made to any other part of the Scottish Court Service.
In all cases where funding is being sought I require a business case to be produced by the judicial office holder or the judicial representative body that is seeking funding. The business case does not need to be long, but it must:
(i) identify the nature of the conference;
(ii) the number of judicial office holders it is suggested should attend;
(iii) why that number is necessary if it is more than one;
(iv) the benefit either to those attending or to the judiciary more widely from attendance at the conference;
(v) the likely costs of attendance ; and
(vi) the likely impact on the efficient administration of business.
The business case should be sent to the Executive Director of the Judicial Office for Scotland, Stephen Humphreys. He will assess whether funds are available to meet the costs of attendance and if so pass the business case to me.
I will then consider all requests and respond directly to the judicial office holder. I will need a clear justification for any overseas travel. As a general rule it should only be necessary for one judicial office holder to attend a conference overseas. It will only be in exceptional cases that I am likely to consider it necessary for more than one person to attend.
Where support is provided to attend a conference a report is to be prepared and sent to the Executive Director within one month of the end of the conference. The report will be placed on the Judicial Hub and the Judicial website. It is important that as many of the judiciary as possible are able to benefit from the investment of public money in attending the conference.
Lord President Lord Gill, July 2014
Previous articles on the judiciary’s use of public cash to fund judicial overseas junkets can be found here: Overseas travel of Scottish judges.
24 comments:
The Cherbi attention to detail nails it every time and Carloway must be seething with anger to have to face your blog and such coverage!
Well done to you and to papers who stand up to judicial excesses!!
Costs are one thing, but what worries me is that with a longstanding and admitted record of outrageous delays in the Court of Session - which if memory serves me correctly Lord Gill stated endangered the Public's very right of access to justice - and yet we still have judges being allowed to spend precious time abroad when they should be here doing their job.
That is what we pay them for!
There was a discussion about your blog and coverage on travel.Gill felt publication of the figures would put an end to your features.Obviously not and congrats for not being put off writing about Carloway's mile high club.
Oh and one more thing Peter.
A number of solicitors and legal hangers-on have been put on to your twitter and blog to bring down your excellent features on real life in the justice system.Something to do with concerns about your petition advancing towards advocates and solicitors interests.I am sure you are already aware of this as those who support lawyers and vast expenditure of public cash on the justice system stand out from the rest of society.
You are obviously upsetting people who have a keen interest in furthering their own careers on the back of gains from their position and friends in the legal profession.I wondered myself as the tone of those having a go at you are very pro-legal,you know the usual suspects who dislike anyone writing about the justice system who does not make money out of it and thus is held to silence by their own industry.I encounter many such people during my work at Scottish Courts.
Keep up the good work MrC.What a great public service you have given us all.
in answer to the comment about lawyers and and their pals having a go at Peter and this blog I wouldn't pay too much attention to supporters of the legal profession all you need to do is look at who they are and you soon find out they are lawyers or have a relation in the legal mafia or are in some way connected back to the money fleecing empire otherwise known as the courts!BUT the good thing is when they show themselves we all get an education on who they are what they are up to and where their loyalties lie!Good to keep tabs on those who dont want it published about Crown Office tossers spending half a million on media campaigns and paying their own mortgages off!
Have you seen this
http://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/news/scottish-news/judge-feeling-heat-after-letting-10463172
Judge slammed after letting brother sit next to him during high profile trial 'as a treat'
ByCraig McDonald
06:00, 21 MAY 2017
The judge in a major fraud trial was under fire yesterday after he let his brother sit beside him in court as a treat.
Lord Stewart introduced his big brother Patrick, 71, to jurors at the High Court in Glasgow.
A source said: “The judge said he had agreed to let him sit in on a bit of the trial as a treat. People were incredulous.
“The brother was on the bench with a clear view of material in front of the judge and his computer screen.
“Some people felt it was inappropriate.”
Patrick made his guest appearance during the longest criminal trial in British history, where Edwin McLaren and his wife Lorraine stood accused of duping home owners in a £1.7million mortgage scam.
And Labour justice spokeswoman Claire Baker MSP said: “It is a very unusual move and would seem fairly inappropriate, given the seriousness of the case and the upset caused to victims.”
The trial had been running for more than a year when Patrick joined his brother on the bench. He listened to proceedings for a time then left during a break.
A senior legal source told the Sunday Mail: “It’s most irregular and uncommon but it’s not unheard of.
“There are occasions when judges from another jurisdiction sit in on a trial to gain experience of a different legal system.
“The judge’s brother doing so is less common. But if there were any objections, these would have been raised at the time.”
The Judicial Office of Scotland said: “The trial judge invited Patrick Stewart MBE, anhonorary sheriff, to sit on the bench for a short period on the afternoon of December 15, 2016.
“It is not uncommon for judges to extend this courtesy to distinguished visitors.”
The McLarens tricked people into transferring the ownership of their homes then remortgaged them and pocketed the cash.
Police said many of their victims were vulnerable and had been left “distraught, penniless and homeless”.
Edwin McLaren was found guilty last week of 29 charges involving £1.7million and his wife was convicted on two counts. They are now awaiting sentence next month.
The trial heard 320 days of evidence. It went on so long that Lord Stewart had to work on past his retirement age of 70.
The case had to be delayed for three weeks for a juror to get married and go on honeymoon.
Yes I read an earlier article of yours about the judiciary deciding to publish the overseas travel after your investigations.
Well done Peter!You and the few brave journalists who tackle the judiciary head on make the difference!
I cannot imagine how difficult they must make your lives and all the dirty tricks and life threatening events they will derive to thwart your publications however you certainly earn a place in my heart!
@ 22 May 2017 at 19:30
More days in court, less days on jets ...
@ 23 May 2017 at 14:36
Wolves in sheep's clothing are easy to spot...
@ 23 May 2017 at 15:55
Criticism is welcome ...
Anyone who is so hostile to publication of £m's of public cash being spent on COPFS staff who soak up over £110m a year obviously has nothing to hide ...
@ 23 May 2017 at 16:50
Working on it, there are some interesting developments to come ...
@ 23 May 2017 at 18:18
A life sentence I'm sure.
People with the most power,the most to hide and those who quickly resort to threats or intimidation play for keeps ...
When someone tells you something is not news,trust me it is news.I had a look at those comments the QC who went off his face when you mentioned mortgage figures worked for the Crown Office for a long time and one of the other guys is definitely a lawyer because I looked him up.Nice to see you rattling cages in need of rattling.
If you want another fact of interest the QC was paid over £260,000 taxpayer backed legal aid last year in between tweets!I looked that one up too!
On the subject of your twitter I understand a solicitor who followed you received a call from the LSS 20 minutes later instructing he immediately un-follow you.
So much for democracy in the profession but at least we have now established mentioning your name or a willingness to engage with you draws a better response time than an ambulance.
As you are probably aware of the solicitor's identity I wont say any more except keep up the good work Peter.Your blog and recent graphics beat the Journal Online any day!
@ 23 May 2017 at 20:56
Interesting points, thanks for this ...
@ 24 May 2017 at 17:26
Thanks.The Law Society have their own interests to take care of - none of which coincide with either the profession at large, or the clients and consumers who fund it.
The point of this blog is to report news from the legal profession while also reporting the other side, and helping consumers and clients who have little or no voice in the legal profession.
If the blog has helped only one person since it came into being, it will have been worth it.
___
Some comments have not been published however information provided will be looked into.Thanks.
Another reason to stay away from Scotland's judicial crooks. Why am I not surprised?
Ha.I for one am sure you helped more than one person along the way.Not that you will ever receive any thanks or recognition for doing so.Much like a hard working solicitor.You did some good work.TTFN Pete.
Whatever happened to "take control"?
http://www.heraldscotland.com/news/13174141.Top_judge_takes_control_of_funding_for_overseas_trips_after__junkets__outcry/
Top judge takes control of funding for overseas trips after 'junkets' outcry
9th August 2014 / Tom Gordon, Scottish Political Editor
SCOTLAND'S top judge has ordered an immediate clampdown on judges, sheriffs and justices of the peace attending overseas conferences after a Sunday Herald story about JPs and a controversial £3000 "junket" to Africa.
Lord Gill, the Lord President and head of the country's judiciary, will exercise a personal veto over any publicly funded conference without a clear justification.
In future, all overseas trips funded by the Judicial Office for Scotland must be supported by a business case, and those attending must write a report on the event within a month for publication in an online legal library.
Gill's intervention comes just three weeks after the Sunday Herald revealed a rift at the top of the Scottish Justices Association (SJA) over its secretary's attendance at a five-day conference by Zambia's Victoria Falls. The whole of the last day at the Commonwealth Magistrates' and Judges' Association event has been set aside for sightseeing, including a "sunset cruise on the Zambezi River".
Group Captain Keith Parkes, a former RAF pilot who sits at Perth Sheriff and JP Court, and who proposed the key vote on the trip, is due to fly out to Livingstone in Zambia next month.
The decision prompted a backlash from some JPs on the association's executive, who denounced it as a "junket" and a "gross misuse of public funds", with three JPs threatening to quit.
In an edict issued last week, Lord Gill said he had been "reviewing the arrangements to control expenditure to meet attendance by the judiciary, especially where the conference is taking place outwith the United Kingdom".
As a result, and with "immediate effect", all future requests for conferences from judicial office-holders will require a business case identifying costs, "the benefit either to those attending or to the judiciary more widely", and "the likely impact on the efficient administration of business".
Stephen Humphreys, the executive director of the Judicial Office of Scotland, will then assess whether funds are available.
Gill said that, after the applications had been assessed for funding he will then consider all requests. He said: "I will need a clear justification for any overseas travel. As a general rule, it should only be necessary for one judicial office-holder to attend a conference overseas.
"It will only be in exceptional cases that I am likely to consider it necessary for more than one person to attend."
To ensure overseas trips do not become holidays, he concluded: "Where support is provided to attend a conference, a report is to be prepared and sent to the Executive Director within one month of the end of the conference.
"The report will be placed on the Judicial Hub [an online library and training resource].
"It is important that as many of the judiciary as possible are able to benefit from the investment of public money in attending the conference."
#2 of http://www.heraldscotland.com/news/13174141.Top_judge_takes_control_of_funding_for_overseas_trips_after__junkets__outcry/
In recent years, sheriffs and judges have attended judicial training conferences in Barcelona, Budapest, Sydney, and Bordeaux.
Lord Gill, who is paid £218,470 a year, has also been on recent visits to South Africa, Taiwan and Qatar.
A spokesman for the Judicial Office for Scotland said: "The Judicial Office for Scotland holds a budget for the attendance at conferences and overseas travel by members of the judiciary in Scotland. New guidance was issued to ensure costs are controlled effectively, and the maximum benefit is gained from any attendance at conferences by the judiciary."
However, the rules will not apply to conferences paid for solely by the SJA.
"It only applies when a judicial office-holder is seeking funding from the budget the Judicial Office for Scotland holds," he added.
Why are judges allowed to fly all over the place instead of doing their job and getting all that salary how did they get the money for all these flights is it another demand on the public purse and they throw their toys out the pram if not allowed to fly like the politicians and why doesnt someone put a stop to this they get paid enough as it is!
A report from the Inns of Court College of Advocacy from October 2016 finds that;
"New advocates lack “basic knowledge” of ethical rules"
This could never happen in Scotland of course.
More at;
http://www.legalfutures.co.uk/latest-news/new-advocates-lack-basic-knowledge-ethical-rules-report-finds
Interesting blog which puts out a very different picture of Scotland and England's justice system from the official line.
Seriously, I am surprised Scotland's justice industry have not taken you out or arranged something against you in an attempt to discredit your effort.These are very dangerous people you have taken on.They do not forgive or forget.The well being of individuals families children mean nothing to them.We have exactly the same over here and in many other countries around the world.
To quote you an example a journalist I know who covers courts and attorneys lost custody of this child when an order was granted by a judge who turned out to be on the payroll of the journalist's ex wife's new partner.The child was returned the judge quietly retired (now works at the law firm of ex wife's new partner) but in all honesty the judge should have gone to jail.I can well imagine such events in Scotland and England where there appears to be a general subservience to authority and the courts no matter how wrong,biased or possibly corrupt a decision is.
Those who protest they require uninterrupted independence when challenged on their personal activity and interests (compared to challenging court judgments) often have the most to hide.As I read of this petition of yours on judicial interests the same is true in Scotland and England's judiciary and legal services industry.
Noted there are publications who appear to understand all is not well in the courts or law enforcement agencies.Perhaps in the circumstances of developments I read in the comments above decisions taken in court should be challenged more often rather than accepted as-is.
You must be a very knowledgeable person to write up these posts with such detail but remember Wikileaks was hailed as a new era when it was first founded but look what Governments have done to Wikileaks and those who have helped it over the years.
The justice system is as dark deadly and downright dirty as any criminal gang for this network of anti crime business employing millions and sucking in trillions worldwide exists with funding and lobbying groups to justify an eternal existence fighting crime and serving up legal feasts for attorneys with no accountability whatsoever.
From the judiciary right down to the attorney's office on the street their preferred method of defense is full on attack of anyone who does not follow their script.
You took on a task covering what is the most powerful gang in the world.As other journalists have found out to their cost and some who have lost their lives because of their specialty,crime and courts are the most dangerous subjects in the industry,much more so than dipping in to a war for a few days with a camera crew and being embedded with people who quite frankly are as much a danger to reporters and the truth as those they are allegedly there to fight.Take it from me,I have been there.
Good luck with your writing.
@ 24 May 2017 at 22:13
Depends on the viewpoint ...
Hard working solicitors have the protection of the Law Society of Scotland, who often use their muscle against reforming legislation, clients who are left financially ruined, politicians who receive pleas for help and the enquiring media when the profession prefer silence ...
@ 24 May 2017 at 23:20
Clearly there is no control over judicial overseas junkets as the cost has risen from just over £22,000 a year to over £43,000 a year ... and this is solely on the travel acknowledged by the Judicial Office ... there are allegations other trips have been taken by members of the judiciary in which judicial business & politics are alleged to have been discussed and agreed upon which remain unlisted ...
@ 25 May 2017 at 00:41
Basically because judiciary command the power to perform dual roles as judges sitting in court on £220,000 public salaries with £1m plus pensions, and judicial ambassadors mixing justice with business, hospitality and politics while on overseas trips.
As no one is challenging this, it all goes unnoticed ...
@ 26 May 2017 at 13:15
There is little in the way of ethics at the Faculty of Advocates or an adherence to rules not worth the paper it is printed on.
Recently DOI reported on a cash payments scandal where one senior QC demanded bundles of notes in £5,000 blocks to be paid directly at various venues.
Since those articles were published, and appeared in the media, more contacts have come forward with evidence of similar demands from advocates and other QCs for cash payments and some issues which are clearly not in tune with the Faculty's code of conduct ...
More to follow ...
@ 27 May 2017 at 04:46
Noting what you write, much of which is pertinent to Scotland there are many events over the years clearly designed to put an end to independent sources of news on Scotland's legal profession.
Generally it could be said people whose lives have collided with the law, the legal profession Scotland's abhorrent system of self regulation of solicitors - never recover.
DOI has spoken to many over the years who are never given a chance to recover their livelihoods or personal lives after being ripped off by a solicitor or advocate.
The effort expended against victims of the legal system and profession is amazing, yet easily able to be written about in an age where everyone's point of view matters, regardless of a mean spirited legal services sector which serves itself.
If you would like to talk more please contact the blog.
Its as simple as this, don't go near them because they are far worse than the people you are having the grievance with.
They think they are getting away with self regulation and people are frustrated with nothing getting done, but there is something happening because all the ripped off people tell their family & friends who in turn tell others & along with this blog is literally thousands which will generate a huge knock on effect in the future that equals no work for lawyers.
You have been warned stay away from them & you will live a happy life.
Noting what you write, much of which is pertinent to Scotland there are many events over the years clearly designed to put an end to independent sources of news on Scotland's legal profession.
Generally it could be said people whose lives have collided with the law, the legal profession Scotland's abhorrent system of self regulation of solicitors - never recover.
DOI has spoken to many over the years who are never given a chance to recover their livelihoods or personal lives after being ripped off by a solicitor or advocate.
The effort expended against victims of the legal system and profession is amazing, yet easily able to be written about in an age where everyone's point of view matters, regardless of a mean spirited legal services sector which serves itself.
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27 May 2017 at 12:05
Truer words were never spoken!Peter!
and can I just add the way lawyers and their brethren on the bench come at you is not up front what they do instead is arrange for others give you a hard time so it cannot be linked directly back to some scumbag lawyer for instance a local council or health board is often used against people when they have trouble with the law and big surprise if you bother to dig deep enough the rubbish who are brought in to cause problems are good friends with the lawyer who kicked it all off.
I have seen it all before.
The town where I live there is a law firm owned by the wife of a sheriff and she owns 1/4 of the town surprise all these ignorant old single women who never spend a penny die off and leaving their houses and cash to charity think they are doing a great public service the charity never got anything it was the sheriff's wife who took the lot for herself and not even any interest from the local rag.Proves you have to be a damn good journalist these days to rise above the judiciary and their cohorts.
Keep up the good work Peter!!!!
All respect to Wikileaks but for some reason they do not take on the legal mafia.Look at their category of judiciary and you will see few entries (only one short entry for the entire UK judiciary!) https://wikileaks.org/wiki/Category:Judiciary
If there is a Wikileaks category for lawyers I cannot find it!
As for Wikipedia (Yes I know an unrelated venture to Wikileaks) all their pages on the legal mafia sound as if they are written by the same legal mafia.Glowing testimonials on page after page typify absolute rubbish in the name of a knowledge base.If I wanted to be complementary I could say there is more detail and truth in just one of your posts compared to half the internet on Scots law!
What you should also be writing about is the skills gap.
Law students from Scotland are now some of the worst qualified in the world.They lack basic skills are very poor at communicating with others completely untrustworthy,never satisfactorily complete a task and act as if they have the right to succeed and pass over far superior candidates for positions.
However the most worrying trend is LLB qualified students committing what is nothing short of organised poaching or theft of clients from firms where they do a stint as an intern or trainee.
After a bitter experience hiring a thug from the University of Glasgow who came to our firm proceeded to direct some of our key clients to an Edinburgh based firm where a relative is a partner and then left when his actions came to light I seriously advise caution in employing anyone with a law qualification from Scotland.
You will find their skill-sets are untrustworthy,ignorant and dishonest if you do.
Former Lord Advocate Frank Mulholland also appears on the list of travel junkets by Scottish Judges.
Mulholland was promoted by Lord Carloway to a seat on the bench in the Court of Session – after he blocked a criminal prosecution of footballer David Goodwillie for rape.
Mulholland also blocked criminal charges against the driver of the Glasgow bin lorry which ran out of control in December 2014 killing six people in the centre of Glasgow while injuring 15 others.
Lord Mulholland, as he is now known – took a two day trip on the taxpayer to the European Court of Justice meeting on the 18 - 20 Sept 2016 in Luxembourg, at a staggering cost of £1,216.34
Tells you a lot about how corrupt the judicial appointments are in Scotland when you have the head of the prosecution service given a job as a judge immediately after resigning from the crooked Crown Office
Bare faced corruption from start to finish and look at Lord Stewart sitting in on the mortgage case with his brother what a disgrace time for a clean out of corruption in our courts!
Agree with all said but really lawyers feed the greed of people nothing more nothing less if you think about it for a second and the judges are at the top of the greed tree.
Look for example at the action against RBS in the London courts.Why adjourn the case when Goodwin should really be taking the stand and giving evidence in court.Everyone knows he should be on the stand but the judiciary and the bank using up hundreds of millions of our money are desperate to protect him and to avoid anyone hearing the evidence of Goodwin.
Same is true of recent cases in the Scottish Courts where clients are flocking to a couple of law firms to sue the pants off major companies after cosmetic surgery went wrong and all because they wanted to pay bottom dollar.Three years on the same people will be moaning about not receiving the settlement they want and then ending up with 50p in the pound after their lawyers take most of the winnings for themselves.Greed by any other name all done in the same of so-called "access to justice"
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