There are some cases that you read and know, “This is important. This case fundamentally redefines how we understand the law.” This is not one of those cases. This is a case that you read and think to yourself, “How on earth did this end up at the Supreme Court”. It is, quite literally, about map scales. R (on the application of Trail Riders Fellowship … Continue reading Meanings and Maps…
…or why I need to check my tweets before hitting send. I do a thing every night Sunday – Thursday. I carry out “NatOnal #HandWatch”. It’s not mean-spirited, I don’t think. It’s a bit off fun. It’s an establishing meme of Scottish Politics along with Soleros being the lolly of choice and things being in Alex Salmond’s pocket, the the front cover of ‘The National’ … Continue reading Sketchy Round the Edges…
…or a long story on a lot of not very much. It’s been a busy few weeks for me. In the past few weeks on the Diploma I’ve had 6 or 7 assessments, some written, some oral and some both. Street Law lessons have been great – and I was part of a ‘Day of Street Law’ at Kyle Academy in Ayr {Which I will be … Continue reading Refuge in Audacity?
…or “Constitutions on ketamine”. So, The Smith Commission. Remember that? One of the recommendations in its Final Report was that: “UK legislation will state that the Scottish Parliament and Scottish Government are permanent institutions. ” [para 21] This was, in turn, translated into the Draft Scotland Clauses 2015 (what would become the Scotland Bill 2015) in s.1, which would insert the following into the Scotland Act 1998: (1A) … Continue reading ‘Higher’ Law…
…or why it might not be a generational thing. This week, David and I did something a little different to the previous weeks. We had, up until now, used lessons that we’d either done before personally, or had been prepared by others for us to use. This week, however, we wanted to prepare our own lesson in response to a suggestion from the first week. … Continue reading #StreetLaw 4: Discrimination and the Law…
…or an examination of the ALMIGHTY KEEPER. So imagine A wants to sell B their magazine. They’d form a contract. A would agree to give B the magazine and, in return, B would agree to pay A money for them. There are two rights created here, along with two obligations: A has a right to payment and an obligation to deliver the magazine. B has a … Continue reading Highland (lack of) Titles…
…or when I realised even kids hate lawyers! For our third lesson we thought we’d be a bit more adventurous that we had one before and not use just worksheets and pens, but strips of paper with human rights (mostly according to the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child) which the groups can move about themselves. It was a risk…but we were prepared to take it. … Continue reading #StreetLaw 3: Aliens and Human Rights
…or why kids seem to have a basic (strict) morality. For our second Street Law lesson, David and I decided to do one of the lessons we did at our training: Should It Be a Crime? There was no BBC filming this week – so we were relieved that at least. we wouldn’t have to keep repeating ourselves for the camera. Although it did mean we … Continue reading #StreetLaw 2 – Should It Be a Crime
Today there was a defining moment in Scottish Theatrical history. At 5pm today, the curtain came down on the final ever show the Singing Kettle will ever have. This, for me, is a sad sad day indeed. The Singing Kettle formed in the 1980s when husband and wife Artie and Cilla started preforming their folk tunes to kids. Joined soon by Gary Coupland who provided the … Continue reading Goodbye Friends…
Yesterday, the Chief Executive of the Scottish Police Federation, Calum Steele, published a letter he has sent to every MSP regarding the latest revelations regarding stop and search powers. Many have judged its contents to be organisationally arrogant, legally ignorant and politicly naive. In particular, Lallands Peat Worrier’s response speaks to some of the more ridiculous parts of the letter. However, virtually every paragraph of the statement contains … Continue reading A Response to Calum Steele…
Paul Cruikshank 