Scottish Government consults on requirment for leave to appeal to the Supreme Court
Currently, Scottish civil cases can be appealed to the Supreme Court without the leave of either the Court of Session or the Supreme Court. The Scottish Government has proposed a requirement for leave, bringing Scotland into line with England, Wales and Northern Ireland.
Introduction
We reported last month on proposals for wide-ranging reform of Scotland's civil court system. The Scottish Government is now consulting on the introduction of a requirement to obtain leave for a civil appeal from the Court of Session to the Supreme Court.
At present, cases can be appealed under section 40 of the Court of Session Act 1988 to the Supreme Court without the leave of either the Court of Session or the Supreme Court, although the appeal must be certified by two counsel as being "reasonable". The current arrangements have been the subject of adverse comment in a number of cases, most recently in Uprichard v Scottish Ministers, a planning case concerning the adoption of the Fife Structure Plan. Lord Reed observed:
"Although of importance to those affected by the outcome, the appeal did not on examination raise any arguable point of law of general public importance. It was not an appropriate use of the time of this court." 2
Proposals
The Scottish Government proposes that appeals to the Supreme Court require the permission of the Inner House of the Court of Session or, failing this, the permission of the Supreme Court.
The requirement for leave would ensure that only cases of real and general significance are appealed to the Supreme Court. The Scottish Government believes this will reinforce the standing of the Court of Session as the highest civil court in Scotland, while also ensuring that the Supreme Court resources are not expended on inappropriate appeals. The change would also bring appeals from the Court of Session into line with appeal procedures in the rest of the UK.
Responses to the consultation are invited by 23 August 2013.
