Lawford Kidd's Blog

Understandably, the focus of much of the debate around this year's General Election is the economy. A large part of this debate is relevant to those requiring legal advice. Cuts to legal aid, the budgets of Courts and the streamlining of legal processes to save money are regularly discussed by all political parties. With the general election but hours away, what impact might the outcome have for those seeking compensation for their injuries?

For information, personal injury law in Scotland is different from the rest of the United Kingdom, even if it is broadly similar (our view is that Scots law is fairer, simpler and more just for claimants, however!). Any changes made to the law south of the border may not necessarily have any impact in Scotland.

During the previous Parliament, the Conservative Party undertook a substantial modernisation of the courts service in England & Wales, including the closures of some courts. They have pledged in their manifesto to continue the modernisation process. While a more modern process is to be welcomed, closing of courts restricts access to justice for many people. In Northern Ireland, the Social Democratic and Labour Party (SDLP) have committed to fighting the closure of courts.

The Scottish Parliament’s Justice Committee has begun hearing evidence on the Inquiries into Fatal Accidents and Sudden Deaths etc (Scotland) Bill.

One of the key people to give evidence before the Committee is Lord Cullen of Whitekirk, who led the 2009 Review of Fatal Accident Inquiry legislation. The Committee also heard from Julie Love from ‘Death Abroad – You’re Not Alone’, Louise Taggart from ‘Families Against Corporate Killers’ and, Jimmy Jones, a retired RAF flight lieutenant who is now a campaigner.

The Bill’s main objective is to reform and modernise the law governing the holding of fatal accident inquiries (FAIs) in Scotland, and to implement the recommendations made in Lord Cullen’s 2009 Review.

This year’s Workers’ Memorial Day took place on Tuesday 28th April. The day is an internationally recognised event that gives people across the world the chance to remember those who were killed or seriously injured while doing their job, or who suffer from work-related ill health, such as asbestos-related conditions.

This year, the theme was “removing exposure to hazardous substances in the workplace”, and dozens of events took place in the UK in honour of those who have suffered. The events also provided an opportunity to reflect on the reasons why these injuries occured, and what can be done differently going forward.

“Some of the memorials commemorate high-profile disasters that claimed the lives of many workers while others remember lesser-known accidents,” explained Karen McDonnell, RoSPA’s occupational safety and health policy adviser. “In each case, there are lessons to be learned about how to prevent these happening again. We need to stop “new” people having “old” accidents by continuing to campaign for improvements in health and safety standards in businesses across the UK, and spread the good practice we have developed in the UK across the wider world.”

Members of Cycle Law Scotland have called for reforms to the claims system when cyclists are involved in accidents with motorists. The campaign group are seeking the presumption of liability against motorists in civil cases following figures from a Freedom of Information request revealing that only a small number of drivers get reported to prosecutors following an accident.

According to the Institution of Occupational Safety and Health (IOSH), more needs to be done to reduce the risk of injuries and illnesses amongst fashion industry factory workers.

Encouragingly, steps have already been taken with fire safety courses, which are funded and accredited by IOSH, having been rolled out in garment factories. Additionally, more safety inspections are being carried out in supply chain factories in a bid to improve working conditions for factory employees.