Law

Lindsays has appointed a new director to its commercial property team. Bringing more than 20 years’ experience and a special interest in advising firms operating in the tourism, hospitality and retail sectors, Martin Bennett's arrival comes as demand for advice in the sector grows and as part

The Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) has warned that companies are leaving themselves open to cyber attack by ignoring crucial measures like updating software and training staff. The warning comes as ICO issued a fine of £4,400,000 to Interserve Group Ltd, a Berkshire-based constr

In an exclusive piece for Scottish Construction Now, construction lawyer Jonathan Seddon explains how the way in which we use commercial real estate has changed and why the sector needs to think outside the box to take full advantage of the opportunities available. The way we use commercial real est

Construction lawyer Andrew Boccoli believes that a question mark hangs over the continuation of fixed-price arrangements. For the past 20 years, convention in the construction trade has been that contractors take on much of the financial risk when they tender successfully for projects. But, as the w

A reclaiming motion by a local authority challenging the refusal of its counterclaim against an adjudicator’s decision that a Final Certificate of an amount due to a building contractor was not conclusive has been refused by a 2:1 decision in the Inner House of the Court of Session. D McLaughl

Bruce Allan, director of Malcolm Allan Housebuilders, has pleaded guilty to being responsible for the destruction of setts that were home to an estimated 30 badgers while completing construction works in Milltimber, Aberdeen. Aberdeen Sheriff Court heard that when Malcolm Allan Housebuilders was war

A bid by West Dunbartonshire Council to overturn the Scottish Government’s approval of 99 homes on greenbelt land in Clydebank has been refused by the UK Supreme Court. Councillors had unanimously opposed the original plans by Barratt Homes for the development at Duntiglennan Fi

Fraser Mitchell has re-joined Shepherd and Wedderburn as a partner in the planning team, bringing to the firm and its clients almost two decades’ planning expertise, with a particular focus on the housebuilding, commercial property and clean energy sectors. Mr Mitchell, who trained at Shepherd

Litigation lawyer Richard McMeeken discusses a recent decision involving a building contractor which has clarified certain aspects of the law of bribery in Scotland. In Oil States Industries (UK) Limited v "S" Limited; Lagan Building Contractors Limited (in administration); John Hansen and Stuart Ir

The Edinburgh Tram Inquiry is set to exceed £13 million in costs. A projection from Transport Scotland indicates that the cost will reach £13,100,812 by the end of this financial year.

A renewables company has failed in its bid to overturn a decision to refuse planning consent for a wind farm in Dumfries and Galloway. NLEI Ltd had sought to develop a wind farm at a site on the Queensberry Estate near Crawfordjohn, Sanquhar and Wanlockhead. The Scottish Ministers refused to gr

Construction contractors may need to deploy greater legal safeguards in order to protect their businesses from being pushed under by spiralling costs, a lawyer has warned. Andrew Boccoli, a director in the Commercial Property department at Scottish legal firm Lindsays, believes extreme market volati

Andrew Diamond, partner and head of residential property at Lindsays, reveals how ‘subject to purchase’ bids hold potential for unlocking opportunities to bring more homes on to market as well as greater buying power. Contract clauses which make home sales subject to the seller buying th

More than £7.3 million worth of repairs are needed across Scotland's court estate — equal to almost the entire £8m capital budget of the Scottish Courts and Tribunals Service (SCTS). The SCTS set out the estimated cost of maintenance work required to fix leaky roofs, ceilings an da

A commercial judge has rejected a proposition by an electricity supplier that a hotel’s case against non-payment of a £168,000 bill accrued over the past five years is irrelevant. SSE Energy Supply Ltd raised the case against Stag Hotel Ltd, the owner of a hotel in Argyll, for monthly in