Here at Drummond Miller, we have a busy Court of Session department. This is a litigation department which deals with a truly diverse range of cases. When people think about litigation, they often believe that this is primarily people fighting over money or for compensation due to an injury. However, the Court of Session has jurisdiction over many kinds of disputes.
Firstly, what is the Court of Session?
The Court of Session is Scotland’s supreme civil court. It consists of an Outer and Inner House. The Outer is a court of first instance. It hears cases typically for the first time. It differs from the Sheriff Court as it has jurisdiction over claims valued at £100,000 or that are of legal complexity. The Inner House is a court of appeal. Appeals can be made from the Outer House to the Inner House and in certain circumstances Appeals can be made direct to the Inner House under specific statutory provisions.
Who hears cases in the Court of Session?
The Court of Session is presided over by the Lord President, Lord Carloway, who is Scotlands most senior judge. The second most senior judge is the Lord Justice Clerk, Lady Dorrian. At the moment there are around a further 35 judges who sit in the Court of Session. The Inner House generally sits with 3 judges presiding over any one case with the Outer House requiring only 1. If a case is particularly important or raises a significant legal point a bench of five judges or more can sit.
Who can present a case in the Court of Session?
As this is the highest Court in Scotland only specifically qualified persons can present cases in the Court of Session. This can be a QC or Advocate, a Solicitor Advocate. An individual who is party to a case and is representing themselves or someone appointed as a lay representative may also appear.
What kind of cases does the Court of Session decide?
A very wide range. The Court deals with all manner of cases including high value claims for more than £100,000. This can be a personal injury claim, a breach of contract or a duty of care, family law cases such as divorce, child abduction and adoptions, or judicial reviews of local or central government decisions. The Court of Session also has a Commercial Court which hears disputes over commercial matters such as insurance transactions, intellectual property or breaches of contract.
Group Proceedings
From 31 July 2020 it has been possible to raise group proceedings in the Court of Session. This is where a legal action is brought by a group of people about the same issue rather than them all having to raise their own individual case. The group can be made up of two or more people who have similar or related claims against the same company, organisation or person. Drummond Miller are currently involved in the Volkswagen Emission Scandal Group Proceedings.
We hope that this whistle-stop tour of the Court of Session is useful but if you do have any questions or queries then please get in touch with a member of our Court of Session team who may be able to assist you going forward.