Chamber and committees

The Scottish Government has not held any discussions with the Law Society of Scotland or other legal regulators regarding the issue you identify.

The Law Society of Scotland Practice Rules 2011 sets out requirements of professional and ethical practice for Scottish solicitors. Compliance with these requirements is mandatory. Rule B1.2 provides that a solicitor must act at all times with trust and personal integrity while Rule B1.5 provides that a solicitor must refuse improper instruction by a client.

If a person wishes to make a complaint about the conduct of a solicitor then they can do so by filing a complaint through the Scottish Legal Complaints Commission (SLCC).

In 2025, the Scottish Government consulted on strategic lawsuits against public participation (SLAPPs), including a draft Model Law prepared by interested stakeholders. The majority view expressed by respondents was that SLAPPs need to be tackled and that reform should resemble the Model Law consulted on. The Scottish Government agreed and further work is being carried out on aspects of the Model Law, including how it would operate in practice. The Scottish Government is committed to bringing forward reform to identify and prevent SLAPPS in this Parliamentary term.

The Scottish Government is committed to bringing forward reform to identify and prevent SLAPPS in this Parliamentary term. The legislative programme will be agreed by Ministers and announced to Parliament in due course in the usual way.

The Scottish Government consulted on strategic lawsuits against public participation (SLAPPs), including a draft Model Law prepared by interested stakeholders. The majority view expressed by respondents was that SLAPPs need to be tackled and that reform should resemble the Model Law consulted on. The Scottish Government agreed and further work is being carried out on aspects of the Model Law, including how it would operate in practice.

Work is ongoing, including discussions with legal academics who prepared the Model Law and other stakeholders, to ensure that the Model Law operates in practice.

The Scottish Government is committed to bringing forward reform to identify and prevent SLAPPS in this Parliamentary term.

In 2025, the Scottish Government consulted on strategic lawsuits against public participation (SLAPPs), calling for evidence of SLAPPs in Scotland and including a draft Model Law prepared by interested stakeholders.

The majority view expressed by respondents was that SLAPPs exist in Scotland and need to be tackled. The preferred approach to legislative reform was to resemble the Model Law consulted on.

The Scottish Government agreed and further work is being carried out on aspects of the Model Law, including how it would operate in practice. The Scottish Government is committed to bringing forward reform to identify and prevent SLAPPS in this Parliamentary term.

In 2025, the Scottish Government consulted on strategic lawsuits against public participation (SLAPPs), calling for evidence on the prevalence of SLAPPs in Scotland and seeking views on a draft Model Law prepared by interested stakeholders. This included evidence from journalists and news organisations, legal academics and community campaigners. The Scottish Government is progressing work on the Model Law, including working with a number of stakeholders, and is committed to bringing forward reform to identify and prevent SLAPPS in this Parliamentary term.

Strategic lawsuits against public participation (SLAPPs) are an attempt to abuse the court process and can take a number of different forms, which will determine the availability and type of legal aid required.

Anyone can apply for Scottish legal aid if the case is covered by the law in Scotland, and applications for legal aid are subject to statutory tests which assess both the merits of the case and the financial resources available to the applicant.

Advice & Assistance (a form of legal aid which covers advice from a solicitor) is not dependent on an action having been raised. Generally, solicitors can provide advice & assistance without prior approval from the Scottish Legal Aid Board to qualifying individuals up to an expenditure limit of £155 (or £205 in certain specified circumstances).

Whilst in general solicitors cannot get approval to carry out work in preparation of a case or acting in court until a grant of legal aid is in place, they can seek approval prior to a grant of legal aid in some circumstances if there is urgency to the work. The Scottish Legal Aid Board will decide if the work to be done is needed as a matter of special urgency to protect a client’s position.

The Scottish Government has not had any discussions with COPFS or Police Scotland regarding SLAPPs.

Prosecution of criminal cases is in the public interest, which covers a range of factors, including the interests of victims/witnesses in the individual case. Where a victim/witness, wishes to retract a statement, this is taken into account in the wider public interest consideration which also depends on the crime/facts in the case. The COPFS take steps to help victims/witnesses engage in the justice process through, amongst others, signposting to support agencies, referral to its VIA service and explanation of special measures which can be used to support victims/witnesses when giving evidence.

In 2025, the Scottish Government consulted on strategic lawsuits against public participation (SLAPPs), calling for evidence on the prevalence of SLAPPs in Scotland and seeking views on a draft Model Law prepared by interested stakeholders which included provision on the collection and publication of data on SLAPPs. The Scottish Government is progressing work on the Model Law, including the collection and publication of data, and is committed to bringing forward reform to identify and prevent SLAPPS in this Parliamentary term.

Further to my answer to S7W-02882, work continues with HM Inspectorate of Prisons for Scotland (HMIPS) to establish an initial prison-focused model of the National Oversight Mechanism (NOM) on a phased ‘test-of-change’ basis.

Progress is being made on the governance, staffing and operational arrangements required to establish the initial model. Recruitment for the Head of the NOM is currently underway, with the vacancy having closed on 12 October. Appointment to this role will be an important milestone in establishing the initial model and progressing implementation.

The timing of implementation will depend on the completion of these arrangements and the appointment of key personnel. The Scottish Government and HMIPS are working to establish the initial model as soon as practicable, with learning from the test-of-change phase informing the future development of the NOM.

All answers to written Parliamentary Questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at https://www.parliament.scot/chamber-and-committees/written-questions-and-answers.