Stable congratulates Nicola Gilchrist KC on taking Silk
September 7, 2026
Arnot Manderson Advocates welcomes the news that stable member and current Stable Director Nicola Gilchrist, pictured below, has been appointed King’s Counsel. This brings the number of Senior Counsel in Scotland’s full-service stable to nine.
Nicola called to the Bar in 2011 and before taking her commission as an Advocate Depute with Crown Office in 2022 enjoyed an enviable civil litigation practice with a firm emphasis on family and child law.
In civil practice Nicola was regularly involved in cases in the Court of Session and Sheriff Courts both in cases at first instance and in appeals to the Sheriff Appeal Court, the Inner House and Supreme Court. She has experience across the board in litigation concerning divorce, financial provision, cohabitation and civil partnerships. Her expertise in child law encompasses all of its many facets, including complex jurisdictional issues, international child abduction, permanence orders and petitions for adoption. She has a particular interest in cases that involve sensitive cross-cultural issues, domestic abuse and matters affecting women and girls. She successfully appeared in the first forced marriage case to be heard in Scotland. Nicola was appointed as a lead statement taker at the Scottish Child Abuse Inquiry in 2016.
Nicola was appointed as an Advocate Depute (Ad Hoc) in 2015 and was subsequently instructed as junior counsel in a number of criminal trials and has appeared in the High Court of Justiciary and in the Criminal Appeal Court for both the Crown and the Appellant.
Nicola has served as a full-time Advocate Depute since 2022, gaining considerable experience in dealing with complex and high-profile cases and in the Criminal Appeal Court. Her appointment as senior counsel coincides with the end of her Crown Office Commission in October of this year at which point the stable will welcome her back to general practice.
Nicola has contributed significantly to public life in Scotland having held a number of appointments and directorships. These include having served as serving as a Member of the Equality & Human Rights Commission Panel of Counsel; Vice Chair and Chair of Scottish Women’s Aid; the Faculty of Advocates Equality and Diversity Committee and as Director of Relationships Scotland. Nicola is heavily involved with Disabling Barriers Scotland, a charity that supports disabled and neurodivergent individuals entering careers within the legal profession. She is also a trustee for the Scottish Child Law Centre. She is co-chair of Women at the Bar, an organisation which aims to improve the experience of women advocates in professional life and she is a mentor to younger advocates and those seeking to enter the profession.
She has been ranked by the Legal 500 and Chambers and Partners in relation to all aspects of Family Law work and she is currently the Arnot Manderson Stable Director, which involves chairing the Management Committee and serving on the Board of the Faculty’s service company Faculty Services Limited.
Practice Manager Andrew Sutherland commented “I have worked closely with Nicola for a number of years and can say that the leadership and support she provided to Stable members and in particular to the Clerking team have been invaluable. Understandably we are delighted to see Nicola recognised in this way. This is a well-deserved accolade for our Stable Director and everyone at the stable is extremely proud. Nicola exemplifies the commitment of the Stable to excellence in multiple areas of specialism. I know she will continue to offer the highest standard of advice and representation to solicitors and clients across Scotland, particularly but not exclusively in the fields of Family Law and in cases at the interface between criminal and civil law.”.
The rank of King’s Counsel is generally reserved for those who have distinguished themselves in practice in the Supreme Courts. Advocates and Solicitors with Rights of Audience in the Supreme Courts are eligible to apply to the Lord Justice General, Scotland’s senior judge. Before making nominations to the First Minister, the Lord Justice General consults other judges, the Lord Advocate, the Dean of the Faculty of Advocates and the President of the Law Society of Scotland.
