Month: November 2006

 

Lord Glennie’s decision in Potter v Scottish Ministers 2007 SLT 363 that prisoners’ Article 8 ECHR right to respect for the privacy of their correspondence  was infringed by prisons placing a recorded message on phone calls made by inmates stating that the call was coming from a prison (see No 641) was over-turned by the First Division of the Court of Session on 21 August 2007 – see [2007] CSIH 67 at http://www.scotcourts.gov.uk/opinions/2007CSIH67.html.  The principal reason for this, to some redtop joy, was his failure to take account of the human rights of the recipients of prisoners’ calls as well as those of the prisoners’ themselves, particularly where the calls were to be recorded (see para 27).  Accordingly Lord Glennie’s decision was premature and the case was remitted back to him for further consideration and procedure.  The court also noted that it was not in their opinion clear that all aspects of making telephone calls, including the placement of pre-recorded messages, was caught by the concept of correspondence” in Article 8 ECHR (para 31).

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The Law Society of Scotland announced on 27 August 2007 that its President John MacKinnon was resigning with immediate effect.  In the language of the press release, Mr MacKinnon regrets that pressure of work at his Fraserburgh-based firm does not allow him to commit himself fully to the demands of the role.  The Society’s Vice President, Richard Henderson, stepped up to become President immediately.  Mr Henderson is the recently retired Solicitor to the Scottish Executive, and presumably feels less pressure on his time.  For the Law Society’s problems at present, which make the President’s job rather unenviable, see e.g. Nos 621, 661.  One of the difficulties, the new Scottish Legal Complaints Commission which will take over some of the Law Society’s present roles, will be located in Edinburgh when it opens in late 2008 (see Scottish Executive press release of 27 July 2007,  http://www.scotland.gov.uk/News/Releases/2007/07/27101226).