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Justice Committee 10 June 2014

10 Jun 2014 · S4 · Justice Committee

Item of business

Courts Reform (Scotland) Bill: Stage 2

MacAskill, Kenny SNP Edinburgh Eastern Watch on SPTV

This group of amendments is intended to assist with the successful establishment of the sheriff appeal court. Amendment 7 is required to introduce amendment 8, which will permit senators of the college of justice, as Court of Session and High Court judges are formally known, to be appointed to act as appeal sheriffs in the new sheriff appeal court by the Lord President, in order to assist the appeal sheriffs, both sheriffs and sheriffs principal, with the appellate work in that court. The arrangement would, however, be restricted to a period of three years to permit the senators to pass on the benefit of their practical and legal expertise in dealing with appellate work. Senators are to act as but not be appeal sheriffs, although they are to be treated as appeal sheriffs. Accordingly, just in the same way as sheriffs principal are not given greater powers in the sheriff appeal court than sheriffs who are also appeal sheriffs, the same is to apply for senators. I am aware that the committee has expressed concerns about appeal sheriffs who are not sheriffs principal hearing appeals while sitting alone. I believe that the assistance of senators in the early years of the sheriff appeal court will help appeal sheriffs, both sheriffs and sheriffs principal, to build up the expertise of that court in handling and deciding upon appeals. Most of the business of the sheriff appeal court will be minor and procedural appeals and the Government is therefore confident that appeal sheriffs sitting alone will be perfectly capable of dealing with such appeals, particularly after they have had the benefit of the assistance and expertise of senators sitting beside them as appeal sheriffs in the early days. Under the provisions of the bill, it will be for court rules made by the Lord President to decide upon the quorum of the court in particular kinds of cases. It would be wrong for the bill to restrict that flexibility. The Lord President will be able to appoint as many senators to act as appeal sheriffs as the Lord President considers necessary for the purposes of the court during the three-year transitional period. A senator will be appointed to act as an appeal sheriff only if they have held office as a senator for at least one year. The appointment of a senator will not affect the senator’s capacity as a Court of Session judge or as a High Court judge, and they may continue to act in those capacities. The provisions permitting senators to act as appeal sheriffs are to be active for a transitional period of three years after the sheriff appeal court becomes operational. After that period, all the appointments of senators under that temporary provision will cease. A senator who acts as an appeal sheriff will, however, be able to continue to give judgment on or deal with a matter relating to a case with which they are involved that began before the expiry of that period. To make it permanently possible for the Lord President to appoint senators to act as appeal sheriffs would go against the rationale for having a sheriff appeal court and the principle of the bill generally, which is to ensure that cases are dealt with at the lowest level in the court structure at which they can competently be dealt with. The sheriff appeal court will deal with summary criminal appeals and most of the civil appeals before it will be procedural in nature. Neither group of appeals merits the attention of the High Court or the inner house of the Court of Session. However, it is right that, in its early years, the new court should benefit from the assistance and experience of senators of the Court of Session. I move amendment 7. 11:30

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Justice Committee 10 June 2014

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