Scottish Land Court
| Scottish Land Court | |
|---|---|
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Royal Court of Arms of the United Kingdom as used by the Courts in Scotland
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| Established | 1911 |
| Jurisdiction |
 Scotland
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| Location | Edinburgh |
| Coordinates | 55°57′07″N 3°12′18″W / 55.952°N 3.205°WCoordinates: 55°57′07″N 3°12′18″W / 55.952°N 3.205°W |
| Composition method | Appointed by Monarch of the United Kingdom |
| Authorized by | Small Landholders (Scotland) Act 1911, as amended by the Scottish Land Court Act 1993. |
| Decisions are appealed to | Inner House of the Court of Session |
| Website | http://www.scottish-land-court.org.uk/ |
| Chairman of the Scottish Land Court | |
| Currently | Lord Minginish |
| Since | 2014 |
| Deputy Chairman | |
| Currently | Iain F Maclean |
| Since | 2015 |
The Scottish Land Court is a Scottish court of law based in Edinburgh with subject-matter jurisdiction covering disputes between landlords and tenants relating to agricultural tenancies, and matters related to crofts and crofters. The Scottish Land Court is both a trial court and an appeal court; hearings at first-instance are often heard by a Divisional Court of one of the Agricultural Members advised by the Principal Clerk. Decisions of the Divisional Court can be appealed to the Full Court, which will consist of at least one legally qualified judicial member and the remaining Agricultural Member. Some cases are heard at first-instance by the Full Court, and these cases may be appealed to the Inner House of the Court of Session.
The Chairman of the Scottish Land Court is ranked as a Senator of the College of Justice, and is required to be meet the same eligibility criteria as a Senator. The Scottish Land Court has a legally qualified Deputy Chairman, with several Agricultural Members. The Agricultural Members (also called "practical Members") are lay (not legally qualified) members of the Court with significant experience of agriculture. They deal with many crofting cases, and sit in the Divisional Court, where they are supported by the Principal Clerk as legal assessor. However, the decisions of the Divisional Court rest with the Agricultural Member. The Court holds hearings throughout Scotland, and cases can be heard before a divisional court (consisting of one of the Agricultural Members), or the full court (consisting of the Agricultural Members and the legally qualified members.)
The court was established on 1 April 1912 under section 3 of the Small Landholders (Scotland) Act 1911, which was amended by the Scottish Land Court Act 1993. As of April 2017[update] the Chairman of the Scottish Land Court was Lord Minginish, who was also the Gaelic-speaking member of the Court, as required by Section 1(5) of the Scottish Land Court Act 1993.
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