Absolvitor: Scots Law Online

An article in the This Day Online website (“African Views on Global News”) and an amusing extract from the welcome address for budding lawyers entering law school in Nigeria.

”
Gentlemen,

We use the above term with no apologies whatsoever to the gender hyperactive ones among you. The term has subsisted these long years to cover both sexes and we do not see any reason for it to be tampered with.

We must point out that we do not accede to the ludicrous version ‘gentlemen in skirt’ when referring to our females members … As this is not Scotland, the very picture of a gentleman in skirt wakes up disturbing images which thankfully our laws have not yielded to yet.
“

I’m guessing that “Law and Gender” hasn’t made it onto the curriculum yet, then?

From today’s Herald letters page:

Judith Gillespie is right to be concerned about commercial sponsorship in schools (“Watchdog embraces business cash for schools”, The Herald, March 19). The legal duty on schools is to provide an education which is directed to “the development of the personality, talents and mental and physical abilities of the child or young person to their fullest potential”, not one which is directed to the development of a company’s brand image or profit margins.

Consumer Focus Scotland (CFS) also recently published a guide to education law for parents which includes the following advice: “If parents object to a proposed sponsorship arrangement, they could take this up with the head teacher or education authority.” It is to be hoped that parents following this advice will not find their objections dismissed on the basis of another CFS document.

Iain Nisbet, Head of Education Law, Govan Law Centre, 47 Burleigh Street, Glasgow.

Posted on Absolvitor: Scots Law Online.

The Herald reports on a novel solution to the thorny problem of teenage pregnancies – more nudity!

This counter-intuitive suggestion comes as part of a formal submission to the Scottish Government on child welfare – courtesy of the British Naturist Society.

According to Andrew Welch, of the British Naturist Society: “There is strong evidence that conventional attitudes towards the human body contribute significantly to a wide range of problems, some of them serious – but there is incredible reluctance to face the implications.”

“Westminster Government figures published recently show that the UK has the worst teenage pregnancy figures of any country in Europe, while the figures are even worse in Scotland. The UK is probably the most censorious country in Europe about anything to do with the body.”

“This pattern of less body tolerance, worse outcomes is repeated across the Western world. Our research shows conclusively that this is no chance connection.”

“Governments, authority figures and social and community leaders should accept that the human body is not something to be ashamed of or embarrassed about and that being more open about it would benefit society. The evidence is clear but there is incredible reluctance to face the implications. It is time to leave prejudices behind and do what is right for the young people of this country.”

Posted on Absolvitor: Scots Law Online

The Morning Call website in Pennsylvania, USA reports on an usual defence to a drink driving charge.

The law doesn’t apply to him, he claims, because he is a “sovereign man”.
He continued, “I don’t live in the state of Pennsylvania … I live inside myself,” The 44 year old man told the judge that to convict him would be tantamount to “committing acts of treason, usurpation and tyranny.”

The judge has ordered a psychological examination of the man.

Posted on Absolvitor: Scots Law Online

According to BBC News, Glasgow City Council and South Ayrshire Council are facing legal action over claims they discriminate against shops which sell Buckfast Tonic Wine.

J Chandler & Co, which distributes the popular drink, said it had evidence officials in Glasgow and South Ayrshire had singled out the product. Both authorities have denied the claim and said they had always acted in accordance with licensing laws.

J Chandler & Co will seek a judicial review of the actions of both licensing boards at the Court of Session in Edinburgh.

Spokesman Jim Wilson, is quoted as saying: “They shouldn’t be discussing or alluding to particular products, so why is Buckfast being targeted? We are taking legal action because this has got to stop.”

“We know what Glasgow licensing board is up to. They’re using euphemisms to refer to Buckfast and we are not prepared to let this continue. This is not sabre-rattling.”

According to my extensive Internet research, one of the more popular euphamisms for Buckfast is “electric soup”.

I suspect the only people who will get any “buck(s) fast” out of this will be counsel for the opposing sides!

I learn from the online edition of the Jerusalem Post that a group of activists from the Scottish Palestine Solidarity Campaign (SPSC) who disrupted a concert by the Jerusalem String Quartet in Edinburgh during the 2008 Festival have been charged with “racially aggravated harassment”.

At a performance in Edinburgh’s Queens Hall on 29 August 2009, four members of the SPSC interrupted the concert by shouting at the musicians and audience. It was claimed that the activists caused distress to both the orchestra and members of the audience.

The protesters had originally been charged with disturbing the peace, but at Edinburgh Sheriff Court those charges were dropped in favor of the more serious charge of “racially motivated conduct.”

Sofia Macleod, one of those charged, is quoted as saying: “We think it’s totally ridiculous. Our actions and campaigning are based on international human rights. We take the allegations seriously, but there is no question whatsoever that any of our actions are racist in any way.”

She added that the Palestine solidarity movement was “an anti-racist movement based on anti-racism,”.

In a statement put out by the group, SPSC chairman Mick Napier, who is also due to appear in court at a later date, said, “We thank the court for providing us with the forum to explain that opposition to the violent, racist state of Israel is motivated by a commitment to universal human rights. We support the Palestinian people faced with Zionist savagery, and we are contemptuous of attempts to smear such a struggle for justice with the taint of racism. I hope these charges are not quietly dropped and we will have the opportunity to meet our critics in open court.”

This brings to mind several questions, including: is being “racially motivated” the same thing as “racism”? As I understand that the string quartet are not accused of personally being involved in any human rights violations, they are being targeted due to their nationality. This is covered in the term “race” or “racial” in UK law. So in that sense, I guess the actions of the SPSC were “racially motivated” – but their support for the Palestinian people through charitable donations might also be described as “racially motivated”. Is that always a bad thing?

And is therefore “racially motivated” harrassment quantitively worse than plain old “alcohol motivated” harrassment? On one view, SPSC would argue that their motivations were a mitigating factor to any crime committed – however it may lead them to incur heavier penalties. Should we be prosecuting “thought crimes” anyway? And would this pass the “Nelson Mandela test”?

I simply couldn’t let the birth of Govan Law Centre boss, Mike Dailly’s new blawg, “Vox PopLex” pass without comment. So I haven’t.

The blawg offers “life & law from a public interest perspective” – sounds good, no?

And the title? According to TranExp.com it means “Cry, the people, law!“. Quite so, the law often reduces me to tears, at any rate!

Welcome to a new law firm website, Martin & Company from South Ayrshire. You’ll also find them listed under various areas of law, including Civil Legal Aid.