Scott Clair: Inner House success for respondent health boards in regulatory appeal
Scott Clair acted for the three successful respondent health boards in the regulatory appeal by Saranjit Nandhra against a decision and associated order of the – rarely constituted – NHS Tribunal. In refusing the appeal, the Inner House held that the NHS Tribunal was entitled to find that the appellant was an unsuitable person to continue to be listed in the dental lists maintained by the respective health boards, given he lacked integrity in that he had in effect sought to demobilise dental services and profit from an emergency payment scheme introduced by the Scottish Government that was intended to remobilise those services during the Covid-19 pandemic. The full decision of the Inner House can be found here.
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Gray v Dixon [2026] SAC (Civ) 3
The Sheriff Appeal Court has issued its Opinion in Gray v Dixon [2026] SAC (Civ) 3. Ampersand’s Scott Clair, advocate, appeared for the successful appellant.
The action was one of count, reckoning and payment in which the appellant, who was the son of the deceased, sought an accounting from the respondents, who were both joint attorneys prior to the deceased’s death and executors-nominate under his will. The respondents maintained they had made an accounting, but in any event disputed the nature of their obligation to account.
At first instance, the sheriff had found that only the first respondent owed an obligation to account to the appellant, as the second respondent had in fact made no intromissions. On appeal, the Sheriff Appeal Court held that the obligation was owed also by the second respondent. An obligation to account is owed by every attorney. The only reason to exclude the second respondent from such an obligation would be if the sheriff were correct to conclude that her duty to account only arose upon intromission.
The Sheriff Appeal Court reiterated that a beneficiary should not be required to prove intromissions as a precondition for seeking accountability for those intromissions. The purpose of accountability is to show transparency in dealing. It is not for the beneficiary to prove, but for the attorney to show, what financial transactions have taken place. It is only once that is established that any further rights can be determined. The sheriff had therefore erred in limiting any period of accountability to the period following the first intromissions. The executors-nominate had power to demand an accounting for the period during which the attorneys’ power endured.
The Sheriff Appeal Court therefore quashed the existing interlocutor and of new made an order directed against both respondents qua executors, ordaining them to seek an accounting from both respondents qua attorneys, of their intromissions with the estate of the deceased from the date of their appointment as attorneys to the date of death.
You can find the Sheriff Appeal Court Opinion here.
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Lord Sandison issues Opinion in Biffa’s claim over bottle return scheme
Lord Sandison has issued his Opinion in Biffa Waste Services Limited v The Scottish Ministers [2026] CSOH 3. Ampersand’s Paul Reid KC appeared for the Scottish Ministers along with Gerry Moynihan KC and Victoria Arnott, advocate.
The action concerned losses Biffa said it suffered following the postponement of Scotland’s deposit return scheme for single-use drinks containers. The scheme was delayed in May 2023 after the UK Government granted only a partial exclusion from the United Kingdom Internal Market Act 2020, which meant the scheme could not proceed on the basis originally intended because glass containers were not covered.
Biffa argued that the Scottish Ministers had assumed responsibility for the scheme’s deliverability and, on that basis, owed a duty of care to warn that an IMA exclusion was required and still outstanding. It also maintained that a May 2022 ministerial letter amounted to a negligent misrepresentation by providing reassurance about deliverability without disclosing the unresolved IMA position.
Lord Sandison rejected those arguments. He held that no duty of care arose here and that there had been no assumption of responsibility for the scheme’s deliverability. He also concluded that the May 2022 letter was not misleading and did not amount to negligent misrepresentation. Decree of absolvitor was therefore granted in favour of the defenders.
You can find a copy of Lord Sandison’s Opinion here. BBC news article is here.
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Sir Ian Forrester KC: Ampersand advocate knighted in New Year Honours list
Ampersand is delighted to hear the news that Ian Forrester KC, a Member of the Faculty of Advocates since 1972 and a former Judge of the Court of the European Union, has been conferred the honour of Knight Bachelor on the 2026 New Year Honours list.
Sir Ian is recognised for his lifetime contribution to international legal practice, writing and teaching in law, supporting and actively providing pro bono legal practice, Franco-British legal relations and other charitable work. Before his appointment as an international judge, he also represented a wide range of clients including the Government of Gibraltar, the BBC and the Scottish Football Association, and was described in the legal world as one of the world’s top competition lawyers.
In 2015, he was nominated by the UK to serve as the UK Judge on the General Court of the European Union, a role he fulfilled with distinction, and earned a strong reputation, reflecting well on the UK, right up until the UK’s EU Exit. He has subsequently served on the Competition Appeal Tribunal, is a former President of the Franco British Lawyers Society and an Assembly Trustee of the Church of Scotland, further cementing his legacy in both the legal profession and public service, as well as supporting the arts and music.
Stable Director, Isla Davie KC, said: “Sir Ian Forrester KC has a formidable reputation as one of our leading legal minds. His stellar career and the regard in which he is held in the legal world are testament to that fact. What is perhaps less well known, for those who have not met him in person, is that he is an incredibly charming and modest man. It is a real pleasure having him as a member of Ampersand stable. As the saying goes, this really couldn’t have happened to a nicer person.”
We offer Sir Ian sincere congratulations on this honour.
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Susanne Tanner KC’s report on the prosecution of sexual offences in Scotland has been published
Susanne Tanner KC’s report on the way in which Scotland’s independent prosecution service deals with sexual offences has been published.
The review of the approach of Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service (COPFS) to these cases was commissioned by the Lord Advocate, Dorothy Bain KC, in December 2021, in recognition of the profoundly damaging impact of sexual offending on victims and society and the disproportionate impact of sexual violence on women and girls.
The vision for the work was a wide-ranging review to take account of a diverse spread of experiences and views, so that it was relevant to as many people, groups and organisations as possible.
The Review’s Terms of Reference were published in November 2022 and the work took place over three years in which there were various political and legal developments in the way in which sexual offences are dealt with.
Ms Tanner KC, the Chair of the Review, said: “One thing remains constant in a changing legal landscape: the need to listen to people and to actually hear what they are saying.”
“A solely inward-looking review would not have met its intended purpose – to produce a prosecution approach to sexual crime which is fit for our age.”
The Review heard hundreds of contributions from victims, third sector support organisations, charities, COPFS staff, prosecutors, defence lawyers, government, police officers, judges, courts service, Bairns’ Hoose, academics and business leaders, in Scotland, England & Wales, Ireland, New Zealand and the United States.
Ms Tanner said: “Central to our approach was how best to gather and reflect the views and experiences of victims of sexual crime. It is clear from evidence we gathered and from the literature about sexual offences that victims of sexual crime and the third sector organisations supporting them have been saying the same things, in different forums, for what seems like an endless period of time. Nonetheless, it was important for me to meet victims of sexual crime who wanted to take part in the Review and share their experiences of the prosecution process. The victims’ contributions and those of the third sector organisations supporting them were a cornerstone of the Review.’
“I am indebted to the wide range of contributors for their time, support, views, knowledge and expertise. I hope they see their views reflected throughout the report and in many of my recommendations.”
Ms Tanner made 197 recommendations and four observations.
They are wide ranging and include: improved communication with victims; national legal leaders for sexual offences; a ‘lived experience board’ to allow victims to participate in policy development; more effective collaboration with the third sector, police and courts service; wellbeing support for prosecutors and staff; increased accessibility and transparency of COPFS sexual offences policy; embedding trauma-informed practice and the rights of the accused in specialist training for prosecutors and staff; improved record keeping and collection of statistical data on sexual offences; and finding creative and rights’ respecting ways of seeking the views of children and young people.
Review Chair, Susanne Tanner KC, is recognised for her work on high-profile inquiries and reviews. She is ranked as a leading silk in public law, inquiries, investigations and criminal law. She is dual qualified as an advocate in Scotland and a barrister in England & Wales.
She has extensive experience of prosecuting and defending rape and serious sexual offence cases, including a commission as Assistant Principal Crown Counsel, one of the country’s senior prosecutors, and three years as a specialist sexual offences Advocate Depute. She lectures at University of Edinburgh on sexual offending and the law.
She said: “My vision is for COPFS to take a unified approach to sexual offence cases in which staff are empowered through specialist training and welfare support to do a difficult job; in which victims are supported and have their rights respected throughout the prosecution process, while respecting the rights of the accused; and in which there is genuine, positive and effective collaboration with Police Scotland, SCTS, Scottish Government, the third sector and the wider legal profession.”
COPFS, Scotland’s independent prosecution service, has accepted the broad principles of the Review as part of an ongoing programme of change.
Ms Tanner said: “My sincere thanks go to the Review Team – Angela Farrell, Emma Forbes, Mylene Cremers and Connor MacIntyre – for their dedication, support and hard work. I am also extremely grateful for the assistance of Alex Sutherland and Paul Harvey, Advocates; and to Erin Rennie, Glasgow Caledonian University, for her contribution to the literature review. Thanks also to Sam Craib, Mhairi-Clare Collins, Styliana Papachristoforou and Kathryn Wilson, trainee solicitors, who assisted our work and Tammy Hislop, Aslam Ramzan and Lindsay Shields, trainee solicitors, for proof reading.”
Ms Tanner said: “I am grateful to have been given the opportunity to do this work and I hope that my recommendations lead to real, transformative change in the way in which COPFS deals with sexual offences now and in the future.”
To access the Sexual Offences Review Report: https://www.copfs.gov.uk/publications/sexual-offences-review-report/
To access the Summary of Recommendations and Observations: https://www.copfs.gov.uk/publications/sexual-offences-review-report-recommendations-and-observations/
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Chris Stephen appointed to Attorney General’s Public International Law Panel
We are pleased to announce that, following the application process earlier this year Chris Stephen has been appointed to the Attorney General’s Public International Law Panel. Chris has been appointed to the C Panel.
Members of the panels advise the UK Government on matters of public international law and undertake cases involving public international law in international courts and in the domestic courts of the UK.
The appointment will commence from 1 January 2026 for a period of 5 years.
Chris specialises in public international law, international arbitration and public law. He is called to the Bars of both England & Wales and Scotland. Prior to being called to the Bar, he worked for over twelve years as a solicitor both in private practice law firms and for the UK Government, including as an Assistant Legal Adviser in the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO). He was appointed Standing Junior Counsel to UK Government Departments in Scotland in 2022.
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