Research and analysis
Involvement in Cases
Updated 2 November 2023
© Crown copyright 2023
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1. Judicial Committee of the Privy Council (AGS Intervention)
| Case name | Origin | Date of judgment | |
|---|---|---|---|
| David Shields Montgomery and Andrew Alexander Marshall Coulter v. Her Majesty’s Advocate and The Advocate General for Scotland | High Court of Justiciary | 19 October 2000 | |
| Procurator Fiscal, Dunfermline and Her Majesty’s Advocate General for Scotland v. Margaret Anderson Brown | High Court of Justiciary | 05 December 2000 | |
| Her Majesty’s Advocate and Her Majesty’s Advocate General for Scotland v. Robert McIntosh | High Court of Justiciary | 05 February 2001 | |
| Norman McLean and Peter McLean v. Procurator Fiscal, Fort William and Her Majesty’s Advocate General | High Court of Justiciary | 24 May 2001 | |
| Karl Anderson, Alexander Reid and Brian Doherty v. The Scottish Ministers and Advocate General for Scotland | Inner House, Court of Session | 15 October 2001 | |
| Kenneth Anthony Paton Mills v. Her Majesty’s Advocate and The Advocate General for Scotland | High Court of Justiciary | 22 July 2002 | |
| “R” v. Her Majesty’s Advocate and The Advocate General for Scotland | High Court of Justiciary | 28 November 2002 | |
| “DS” v Her Majesty’s Advocate | High Court of Justiciary | 22 May 2007 | |
| David Spiers, Procurator Fiscal v. Kevin Gerald Ruddy (Scotland) and Her Majesty’s Advocate General for Scotland | High Court of Justiciary | 12 December 2007 | |
| McDonald, Dixon and Blair v. Her Majesty’s Advocate | High Court of Justiciary | 16 October 2008 | |
| George Burns v. Her Majesty’s Advocate | High Court of Justiciary | 03 November 2008 | |
| John Murtagh v. Her Majesty’s Advocate | High Court of Justiciary | 03 August 2009 |
2. House of Lords Cases (AGS representing HM Government)
| Case name | Appeal from: | Date of judgment |
|---|---|---|
| Tehrani v. Secretary of State for the Home Department | Inner House Court of Session | 18 October 2006 (HL) |
| Somerville (AP) and others v. Scottish Ministers | Inner House Court of Session | 24 October 2007 (HL) |
| Common Services Agency v. Scottish Information Commissioner | Inner House Court of Session | 9 July 2008 (HL) |
| Fatima Helow (AP) v. Secretary of State for the Home Department | Inner House Court of Session | 22 October 2008 (HL) |
3. UK Supreme Court Cases (AGS Intervention – criminal appeals)
| Case name | Appeal from: | Date of judgment |
|---|---|---|
| Steven Allison v HMA | High Court of Justiciary | 10 February 2010 |
| Paul McInnes v HMA | High Court of Justiciary | 10 February 2010 |
| Sean Martin v HMA | High Court of Justiciary | 03 March 2010 |
| Ross Miller v HMA | High Court of Justiciary | 03 March 2010 |
| Peter Cadder v HMA | High Court of Justiciary | 26 October 2010 |
| BH & anr v Lord Advocate | High Court of Justiciary | 20 June 2012 |
4. UK Supreme Court Cases (AGS representing HM Government - civil appeals)
| Case name | Appeal from: | Date of judgment |
|---|---|---|
| Grays Timber Products Ltd v HMRC | Inner House Court of Session | 3 February 2010 |
| Scottish Widows PLC v Commissioners for HMRC | Inner House Court of Session | 6 July 2011 |
| Blajosse Charlotte Eba v The Advocate General | Inner House Court of Session | 22 June 2011 |
| Axa General Insurance Ltd & Others for Judicial Review of the Damages (Asbestos - Related Conditions) (Scotland) Act 2009 | Inner House Court of Session | 12 October 2011 |
| BH & another v Lord Advocate (extradition) KAS or H & another v Lord Advocate | Inner House Court of Session | 20 June 2012 |
| Imperial Tobacco Ltd v The Lord Advocate & Advocate General | Inner House Court of Session | 12 December 2012 |
| George McGeoch v The Lord President of Council + R(appn of Chester) v Secretary of State for Justice | Inner House Court of Session | 16 October 2013 |
| Zoumbas v SSHD | Inner House Court of Session | 27 November 2013 |
| IA v SSHD | Inner House Court of Session | 29 January 2014 |
| A v BBC (& SSHD) | Inner House Court of Session | 08 May 2014 |
| MN & NY v SSHD | Inner House Court of Session | 21 May 2014 |
| Moohan & Gillon v The Lord Advocate | Inner House Court of Session | 17 December 2014 |
| Khalid Ahmad v SSHD | Inner House Court of Session | Appeal abandoned October 2016 |
| R (Kiarie & Byndloss) v SSHD | Court of Appeal | 14 June 2017 |
| RFC 2021 PLC (in liquidation) (formerly the Rangers Football Club Plc) v Advocate General for Scotland | Inner House Court of Session | 5 July 2017 |
| Sadovska & Malik v AGS for SoS Home Department | Inner House Court of Session | 26 July 2017 |
| AGS for SoS Work & Pensions v MMcK | Inner House Court of Session | 24 August 2017 |
| Brown v Parole Board for Scotland, Scottish Ministers and AGS for SoS Justice | Inner House Court of Session | 01 November 2017 |
| Scotch Whisky Association & others v Lord Advocate & AGS for SoS Health & SoS Home Department | Inner House Court of Session | 15 November 2017 |
| AGS for SoS Home Department v Shelley Romein | Inner House Court of Session | 08 February 2018 |
| Commissioners for HMRC v Taylor Clark Leisure Plc | Inner House Court of Session | 08 February 2018 |
| Monica Allan v AGS for SoS Justice (CICA) | Inner House Court of Session | Appeal allowed by order dated 30 January 2019 |
| Secretary of State for Work and Pensions v MM | Inner House Court of Session | 18 July 2019 |
| R (on the application for Miller) v The Prime Minister Cherry and others v Advocate General for Scotland | High Court England & Inner House Court of Session | 24 September 2019 |
| The Advocate General representing the Commissioners of HMRC v KE Entertainments Ltd | Inner House Court of Session | 24 June 2020 |
| PA v The Secretary of State for the Home Department | Inner House Court of Session | 19 June 2020 |
| Anwar v AGS for SoS for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy | Inner House Court of Session | 13 October 2021 |
| Balhousie Holdings Ltd v Commissioners for HMRC | Inner House of the Court of Session | 31 March 2021 |
| James Craig v The Lord Advocate (for the Government of the United States of America) and Advocate General | High Court of Justiciary Appeal Court | 23 February 2022 |
5. Court of Justice of the European Union (AGS representing HM Government)
| Case name | Date of judgment |
|---|---|
| Case C-428/07, R (oao Mark Horvath) v.Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs | 16 July 2009 |
| European Commission, Council of the European Union, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland v Yassin Abdullah Kadi - Joined Cases C 548/10 P, C 593/10 P and C 595/10 P | 18 July 2013 |
| Petition of the Scotch Whisky Association & Others for judicial review of the Alcohol (Minimum Unit Pricing) Scotland Act 2012 - Preliminary reference from Inner House of the Court of Session | AG Bott Opinion - 3 September 2015 Full Court opinion - 23 December 2015 |
| Petition of Andy Wightman and Others v Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union - Preliminary reference from Inner House of the Court of Session | AG Campos Sanchez-Bordona Opinion - 4 December 2018 Full Court Opinion - 10 December 2018 |
6. Other Cases (AGS representing HM Government)
| Case name | Court | Date of judgment |
|---|---|---|
| Stephen Goatley v. Her Majesty’s Advocate | High Court of Justiciary | 12 July 2006 |
| Smith v. Scott, Electoral Registration Officer for the areas of Clackmannanshire, Falkirk and Stirling | Registration Appeal Court, Scotland | 24 January 2007 |
| Traynor & Fisher, Petitioners for Judicial Review | Court of Session | 20 April 2007 |
| XY v. Scottish Ministers | Court of Session | 27 April 2007 |
| Megrahi v. Her Majesty’s Advocate | Appeal Court, High Court of Justiciary | Appeal Abandoned |
| Duncan MacLean v HMA | Appeal Court, High Court of Justiciary | 10 February 2010 |
| Petition to Wind Up UK Bankruptcy Ltd | Inner House Court of Session | 21 September 2010 |
| Francis v Pertemps (for HMCTS) | Inner House Court of Session | 29 June 2011 |
| Taqa Bratani Ltd v Secretary of State for Environment & Climate Change | Inner House Court of Session | Appeal withdrawn April 2012 |
| Petition of Scottish Coal Co Ltd for liquidation (for DECC/BIS) | Inner House Court of Session | 12 December 2013 |
| Beggs v Electoral Registration Officer (Ayrshire & Aberdeenshire) (for SoS Justice) | Inner House Court of Session | Appeals withdrawn 25 August 2014 |
| Petition of Fox Solicitors for interim suspension of EAT Fees Order 2013 (for SoS Justice) | Inner House Court of Session | Interim orders 9 August 2013 Petition dismissed 26 February 2015 |
| Hair Brothers v SSE Telecommunications Limited & Anr (for DCMS) | Inner House Court of Session | Action settled 24 June 2015 |
| R (Kiarie & Byndloss) v SSHD | Court of Appeal | 13 October 2014 |
| Av B& C (3rd Defender for SoS Health) | Court of Session | 15 February 2016 |
| SSHD v MM (Uganda) and KO (Nigeria) | Court of Appeal | 19 & 20 April 2016 |
| Sara Slezak v Secretary of State for Work & Pensions | Inner House Court of Session | 27 January 2017 |
| Petroineos Manufacturing Scotland Ltd v Clydeport Operations Ltd & Queens Harbour Master (MOD) | Court of Session | 23 March 2017 |
| Andy Wightman MSP and Others v Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union | Inner House Court of Session | 21 September 2018 |
| Petition of Matilda Gifford for Judicial Review | Court of Session | 21 November 2018 |
| Petition of James Craig v The Advocate General and the Scottish Ministers & Petition of Christopher Thomson for Judicial Review | Court of Session | 12 December 2018 |
| The UK Withdrawal From the European Union (Legal Continuity) (Scotland) Bill – a Reference by the Attorney General and the Advocate General for Scotland | UK Supreme Court | 13 December 2018 |
| Petition of the Advocate General for Judicial Review (CICA) | Court of Session | 15 October 2019 |
| Petition of Joylon Maugham for suspension and interdict | Court of Session | Petition refused in terms of Joint Minute 9 January 2020 |
| Petition of Dale Vince and Others v the Right Honourable Boris Johnson & the Lord Keen of Elie | Inner House Court of Session | Reclaiming motion refused 15 January 2020 (no judgment) |
| Petition of Dale Vince and Others v the Right Honourable Boris Johnson & the Lord Keen of Elie | Inner House Court of Session | Petition dismissed 15 January 2020 (no judgment) |
| Shakar Omar Ali v Serco Group and Others | Inner House Court of Session | 03 April 2020 |
| Petition of Graham Nassau Gordon Senior-Milne for Judicial Review | Inner HouseCourt of Session | 2 July 2020 |
| Petition of Compassion in World Farming International for Judicial Review | Court of Session | Dismissed 22 September 2020 |
| Martin Keatings v Advocate General and Lord Advocate | Inner House Court of Session | Reclaiming motion refused and cross appeal allowed 30 April 2020. |
| Application in the appeal against conviction following upon a reference from the SCCRC by the representatives of the Late Abdelbaset Ali Mohamed Al Megrahi for disclosure of documents | High Court of Justiciary Appeal Court | Public Interest Immunity Certificate upheld 20 November 2020 |
| Zengsong Gao v Secretary of State for the Home Department | Inner House of the Court of Session | 2 March 2021 |
| Application for Permission to Appeal to UK Supreme Court by the representatives of the Late Abdelbaset Ali Mohamed Al Megrahi | High Court of Justiciary Appeal Court | Permission Application refused 1 April 2021 |
| Petition of Niall Adrian Finucane for Judicial Review | Outer House of the Court of Session | 14 April 2021 |
| Application for Permission to Appeal to UK Supreme Court by the representatives of the Late Abdelbaset Ali Mohamed Al Megrahi | UK Supreme Court | Permission refused 14 July 2022 |
| The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the child (Incorporation) (Scotland) Bill – a Reference by the Attorney General and the Advocate General for Scotland | UK Supreme Court | 6 October 2021 |
| The European Charter of Local Self-government (Incorporation) (Scotland) Bill - – a Reference by the Attorney General and the Advocate General for Scotland | UK Supreme Court | 6 October 2021 |
| Appeal under Regulation 16 of the Offshore Petroleum Production and Pipelines (Assessment of Environmental Effects) Regulations 1999 by Greenpeace Limited | Inner House Court of Session | Appeal refused 7 October 2021 Permission to appeal to UKSC refused by the Inner House on14 January 2022 And by the UKSC on 25 August 2022 |
| Reference by the Lord Advocate of devolution issues under paragraph 34 of Schedule 6 to the Scotland Act 1998: Scottish Independence Reference Bill | UK Supreme Court | 23 November 2022 |
| Sunbeam Fishing Limited for Judicial Review | Outer House Court of Session | 28 February 2023 |
| X against Y and Others | Outer House Court of Session | 2 March 2023 |
| The Scottish Ministers for Judicial Review of the Gender Recognition Reform (Scotland) Bill (Prohibition on Submission for Royal Assent) Order 2023 | Outer House Court of Session | Hearing Concluded 20 September 2023. Decision awaited. |
7. Cases in which OAG has appeared representing Commissioners of HMRC
| Case name | Appeal from: | Date of judgment |
|---|---|---|
| Scottish Widows PLC v Commissioners for HMRC | Inner House of the Court of Session | 6 July 2011 |
| RFC 2021 PLC (in liquidation) (formerly the Rangers Football Club Plc) v Advocate General for Scotland | Inner House of the Court of Session | 5 July 2017 |
| Commissioners for HMRC v Taylor Clark Leisure Plc | Inner House of the Court of Session | 11 July 2018 |
| Commissioners for HMRC v Frank A Smart & Sons Ltd | Inner House of the Court of Session | 29 July 2019 |
| The Advocate General representing the Commissioners of HMRC v KE Entertainments Ltd | Inner House of the Court of Session | 24 June 2020 |
| Balhousie Holdings Ltd (Appellant) v Commissioners for Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs (Respondent)(Scotland) | Supreme Court | 31 March 2021 |
| DCM (Optical Holdings) Ltd v Commissioners for Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs (Respondent)(Scotland) | Supreme Court | 12 October 2022 |
| Commissioners for His Majesty’s Revenue and Customs (Respondent)(Scotland) v NHS Lothian Health Board (Respondent) | Supreme Court | 19 October 2022 |
| Moulsdale t/aMoulsdale Properties (Appellant) v Commissioners for His Majesty’s Revenue and Customs (Respondent)(Scotland) | Supreme Court | 22 March 2023 |
| Commissioners for His Majesty’s Revenue and Customs (Respondent)(Scotland) v Vermillion Holdings Ltd (Respondent)(Scotland) | Supreme Court | 25 October 2023 |