Law Awards of Scotland 2016 Finalists
26 October 2016
Inksters have been shortlisted for three awards at the Law Awards of Scotland 2016.
The firm has been shortlisted for Litigation Firm of the Year, Brian Inkster has been shortlisted for Solicitor of the Year and Alistair Sloan for Trainee of the Year.
Litigation Firm of the Year
The past year has seen Inksters’ litigators involved in a number of high profile and significant legal decisions. This included Sylvia MacLennan for the petitioner in WF v The Scottish Ministers where it was held that medical records are protected under the right to privacy given by the ECHR, and any disclosure must be restricted to the minimum necessary for a specific purpose to balance the interests of justice for one person against the privacy of another. Also of significance was The Firm of Johnson, Thomas & Thomas and others v Thomas Smith and others where Claire Maguire acted for the pursuers with it being successfully argued that the principles set down in Moncrieff v Jamieson (in which Inksters also acted) could extend to an independent free-standing servitude right and not just one ancillary to a right of access.
Solicitor of the Year
Brian Inkster’s nomination for Solicitor of the Year recognises his endeavours in Crofting Law over the past year and in particular his quest to see justice done over the alleged abuse of power within the Crofting Commission over the sacking of three grazings committees. Brian has been very vocal in the press, radio and on TV over the issue. He has written 96 blog posts on this topic alone over the past six months. The Crofting Commission recently issued an apology to the crofters affected by their decisions which they have accepted as being wrong. However, conflict continues within the Crofting Commission with a clear divide between their convener and the other commissioners.
Trainee of the Year
Alistair Sloan has demonstrated skill, dedication and the assumption of responsibility in a wide variety of litigation cases beyond what would normally be experienced by a Trainee. During the course of his traineeship Alistair has studied for and obtained his Masters in Law with his specialism in Data Protection.
Ronnie Murison, director of Sheriff Officer Services, Stirling Park, offered his congratulations to every firm that has been shortlisted across all categories, in particular, those in both the Litigation and Debt Recovery awards, which Stirling Park is sponsoring this year. He said:-
“The quality of entry has been extremely high, which is testament to the high standards within the legal sector throughout Scotland. The final will be a real celebration of the achievements in 2016 and we are very much looking forward to the evening”.
The winners will be announced on 24 November at a gala dinner at the Crowne Plaza Hotel, Glasgow.
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