Further Scottish court chaos averted

In a 30 second hearing, senior Scottish judges ruled that decisions made by Scotland’s temporary sheriffs for the past 22 years were not invalid. The court pledged to provide reasons for its decision later.

It was claimed in the case that the use of temporary sheriffs contravened the Sheriff Courts (Scotland) Act 1971, which allows for the use of temporaries only in times of emergency.

The temporary sheriffs have now been made redundant following an appeal court ruling that they contravene the European Convention on Human Rights, introduced in Scotland in May