District Courts Of Scotland

They were introduced in 1975 as replacement for Burgh Police Courts (see Burgh); they deal with the most minor crimes. They are run by the local authorities. Each court comprises one or more Justices of the Peace (lay magistrates) who sit alone or in threes with a qualified legal assessor as convener or clerk of court.

Role

They handle many cases of breach of the peace, drunkenness, minor assaults, petty theft, and offences under the Civic Government (Scotland) Act 1982.

District Court operate under summary procedure and may not impose a fine in excess of Â£2,500 or sentence an offender to more than 60 days in prison. In practice, most offences are dealt with by a fine.

Glasgow

In Glasgow where the volume of business requires the employment of three solicitors as "stipendiary magistrates" who sit in place of the lay Justices. The Stipendiary Magistrates' court has the same sentencing power as the summary Sheriff Court.

Current Issues

The Scottish Executive has recently announced its intention to unify the management of the Sheriff and District courts in Scotland, but retaining lay Justices.

Scotland

This article is part of the series:
Politics of Scotland

Scottish Parliament
Scottish Executive
Presiding Officer
First Minister
Lord Advocate
Solicitor General
Members of Parliament (MSPs)
Local government
Elections
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Courts of Scotland are the civil, criminal and heraldic courts responsible for the administration of justice in Scotland. They are constituted and governed by Scots law.
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The Scottish Court Service is an executive agency of the Scottish Executive responsible for the administration the of the Court system in Scotland. The Service was created in 1995 by the Scottish Office
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The College of Justice is a term used to describe the Supreme Courts of Scotland, and its associated bodies.

The constituent bodies of the supreme courts of Scotland are the Court of Session, the High Court of Justiciary, and the Accountant of Court's
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The Judicial Committee of the Privy Council is one of the highest courts in the United Kingdom, established by the Judicial Committee Act 1833.^[1] It replaced the Court of Delegates.
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The House of Lords, in addition to having a legislative function, has a judicial function as a court of last resort within the United Kingdom. Historically, the House of Lords also functioned as a court of first instance for the trials of peers and for
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Court of Session is the supreme civil court of Scotland. It is both a court of first instance and a court of appeal and sits exclusively in Parliament House in Edinburgh.

The Sheriff Court is the other Scottish civil court; this sits locally.
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The Lord President of the Court of Session is head of the judiciary in Scotland, and presiding judge (and Senator) of the College of Justice and Court of Session, as well as being Lord Justice General
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Sheriff courts provide the local court service in Scotland, with each court serving a sheriff court district within a sheriffdom.

Sheriff courts deal with a myriad of legal procedures which include:

Solemn and Summary Criminal cases

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SHERIFF is a telecom fraud detection and management system, originally developed by BT and MCI. SHERIFF is an acronym for Statistical Heuristic Engine to Reliably and Intelligently Fight Fraud.
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The High Court of Justiciary is the supreme criminal court of Scotland.

The High Court is both a court of first instance and also a court of appeal. As a court of first instance, the High Court sits mainly in Parliament House (or in the former Sheriff Court
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Solemn and Summary Criminal cases

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The office of sheriff principal is unique within the judicial structure of Scotland, and it cannot therefore readily be compared with any other judicial office. It is one of great antiquity, having existed continuously since around the 11th century.
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A justice of the peace (JP) is a puisne judicial officer appointed by means of a commission to keep the peace. Depending on the jurisdiction, they might dispense summary justice and deal with local administrative applications in common law jurisdictions.
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Court of the Lord Lyon, also known as the Lyon Court, is a standing court of law which regulates heraldry in Scotland. Like the College of Arms in England it maintains the register of grants of arms, known as the Public Register of All Arms and Bearings in Scotland, as well
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The Lord Lyon King of Arms, the head of Lyon Court, is the most junior of the Great Officers of State in Scotland and is the Scottish official with responsibility for regulating heraldry in that country, issuing new grants of arms, and serving as the judge of the oldest
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A Children’s Hearing is part of the legal and welfare systems in Scotland; it aims to combine justice and welfare for children and young people.

The children’s hearing is a lay tribunal made up of three members of the Children’s Panel
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Scotland

This article is part of the series:
Politics of Scotland

A procurator fiscal is the public prosecutor in Scotland. He/she also carries out functions broadly equivalent to the coroner in other legal systems.

For the majority of crimes in Scotland the procurators fiscal present cases for the prosecution in the Sheriff
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The Faculty of Advocates is an independent body of lawyers who have been admitted to practise as advocates before the courts of Scotland, especially the Court of Session and the High Court of Justiciary.
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An advocate is one who speaks on behalf of another person, especially in a legal context. It is used primarliy in reference to the system of Scots law, Anglo-Dutch law and Israeli law.
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The Law Society of Scotland is the professional governing body for Scottish solicitors, based in Edinburgh. It was established by the Legal Aid & Solicitors (Scotland) Act 1949. The main aims of the Society are set out in the Solicitors (Scotland) Act 1980.
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Solicitor Advocate is the informal term used to describe a solicitor who is qualified to represent clients as an advocate in the higher courts in England and Wales or Scotland.
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court is a public forum used by a power base to adjudicate disputes and dispense civil, labour, administrative and criminal justice under its laws. In common law and civil law states, courts are the central means for dispute resolution, and it is generally understood that all
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Motto
Nemo me impune lacessit (Latin)
"No one provokes me with impunity"
"Cha togar m'fhearg gun dioladh"
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District Courts Of Scotland

Information about District Courts Of Scotland

History

Role

Glasgow

Current Issues