Courts

In Scotland, criminal matters are prosecuted in the District Courts, Sheriff Courts and the High Court of Justiciary. The district courts are currently in the process of being replaced by Justice of the Peace Courts, a process which is expected to be completed by the end of 2009. Further details of the timetable for this process can be found here.


Criminal cases are prosecuted under either summary or solemn procedure, depending on the seriousness of the crime, and any previous convictions of the accused. Minor offences are usually prosecuted under summary procedure, where the accused will be summoned to appear before a Justice of the Peace/Sheriff court. More serious cases will usually be prosecuted ‘on indictment’, that is, under solemn procedure, where the procurator fiscal will seek a warrant from a sheriff to arrest the accused. For more information on the criminal justice procedure in Scotland visit the Scottish Government website.  

With the exception of very serious crimes (e.g. murder, attempted murder, rape, attempted rape and culpable homicide) which must be prosecuted under solemn procedure, the decision whether to prosecute under either summary or solemn procedure is at the sole discretion of the procurator fiscal. For more information on the role and function of the procurator fiscal visit the Prosecution page of the CJSW website.  

The Justice of the Peace Courts deal with minor offences, such as breaches of the peace, and are presided over by a lay Justice of the Peace (except in Glasgow where some courts are presided over by a legally qualified Stipendiary Magistrate). Details of the maximum sentences that a Justice of the Peace Court can impose can be found here.  

The Sheriff Court deals with more serious offences, except those that are reserved for the High Court (see below). There are 49 Sheriff Courts in Scotland, located within one of the 6 regions, known as Sheriffdoms; each presided over by a judge or Sheriff. In the Sheriff court, less serious cases are dealt with under summary procedure, while more serious offences under solemn procedure. If a Sheriff feels that his or her powers are too limited in a particular case, the convicted person can be sent to the High Court for sentence. For details of the sentencing powers of Sheriffs, please visit the Scottish Courts website.  

The High Court is the supreme criminal court in Scotland, dealing with serious criminal cases (e.g. murder, rape) and criminal appeals. Trials are always held before a judge and a jury. In Scotland a jury consists of fifteen people, selected for each trial by means of a ballot. Although the Court is based in Edinburgh, trials are held in towns and cities throughout Scotland as a means of reducing inconvenience to witnesses, jurors and court users. Further details on the High Court can be found here.  

The Scottish Courts website contains useful information on civil and criminal courts in Scotland. The Scottish Law Online portal provides links to other websites and resources on the web.

The Centre holds a small number of books on the Courts, details of which can be found here.