Education & Professional Career to Date

Appointments

• Judge of the Sir Alexander Stone Scottish Intervarsity Moot Court Competition (2025)
• Associate Writer to the Signet
• Member of the Stair Society
• Lord Reid Scholar - Faculty of Advocates (2021–2022)
• Tutor - University of Edinburgh Willem C. Vis International Commercial Arbitration Mooting Team (2021–2022)

Selected Cases

• Personal Injury

• SL v. RL [2023] CSOH 91

  Junior counsel for the pursuer (with senior) in a successful debate regarding whether a Minute of Agreement in a divorce action precluded the pursuer from raising proceedings for damages under the Protection from Harassment Act 1997.

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• Consumer Rights

• Portman Motors v Christie [2024] SAC (Civ) 10

  Appeared for the respondent in successfully resisting a Sheriff Appeal Court appeal against a Sheriff's decision to award expenses to a pursuer who had obtained a settlement in respect of one crave and abandoned the remainder of the action.

• Herron v Motonovo Finance Limited (January 2023)

  Appeared for the pursuer in a successful proof relating to rejection of a nine-year-old vehicle. The case involved conflicting expert evidence regarding whether a fault with the vehicle was present at the point of sale or developed afterwards.

• Adam v. Moneybarn No. 1 Limited [2025] SC DUM 6

  Appeared for the pursuer in a proof relating to rejection of a car. The case concerned the impartiality of an expert witness.

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• Crime

• Procurator Fiscal, Airdrie v. Rea [2025] SAC (Crim 2)

  Appeared for the respondent in a crown appeal against sentence. The Sheriff Appeal Court used this case to provide guidance to Sheriffs on the proper approach to sentencing when the offender had been subject to electronic monitoring on bail.

• Samba Saye v. His Majesty's Advocate [2025] HCJAC 8

  Appeared as junior counsel for the appellant in an appeal from a preliminary hearing concerning an appellant who sought to argue special defences of both consent and incrimination.

• Gardiner & Anderson v. His Majesty's Advocate [2024] HCJAC 44

  Appeared as junior counsel for the first appellant in this 7-judge decision clarifying the distinction between murder and culpable homicide in art and part liability.

• Smith, Petitioner [2024] HCJAC 34

  Appeared for the petitioner in a petition to the nobile officium seeking suspension of a warrant which had not been executed.

• Moffat v. His Majesty's Advocate [2024] HCJAC 24

  Drafted the note of appeal and written submissions in a successful High Court appeal on the basis that the Sheriff had erred by not identifying which elements of a cumulo sentence were in respect of sexual offences.

• HMA v Paterson & Sweeney (March 2023)

  Crown Junior in the successful 7-week prosecution of two accused for being concerned in the supply of cocaine and heroin as part of serious organised crime. The first accused was sentenced to 14 years imprisonment. The second accused was sentenced to 5 years imprisonment.

• HMA v Hood (October 2022)

  Crown Junior in a 5-day trial for abduction, assault and rape to injury and danger of life. The accused was sentenced to an extended sentence of 25 years.

• HMA v Harley (July 2022)

  Crown Junior in the prosecution of historical sex abuse committed against multiple residents of Merkland Children's Home in the late 1970s to early 1980s.

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• Administrative Law

• GDFC Assets Limited v. Heaney [2024] UKUT 345 (AAC)

  Appeared pro bono as junior counsel for the respondent in the Upper Tribunal. This was a test case and the first case in the Upper Tribunal relating to mis-selling of green deal plans.

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• Public Law

• Brown, Petitioner [2025] CSOH 4

  Appeared for the petitioner on a pro bono basis as junior counsel in a judicial review action against a grant of a certificate of lawfulness for a fence restricting access to a public park.

• Brown, Petitioner [2024] CSOH 76

  Appeared for the petitioner on a pro bono basis as leading junior counsel in a judicial review action against a grant of planning permission for a fence restricting access to a public park . It was successfully argued that the local authority had failed to have regard to their duty to uphold access rights.

• Rae, Petitioner [2025] CSIH 1

  Junior counsel for the petitioner in a further judicial review action in both the Outer House and Inner House of the Court of Session challenging a decision by a local authority that an environmental impact assessment was not required for the demolition of a housing estate.
  
  

• Rae, Petitioner (September 2023)

  Junior counsel for the petitioner in the a successful judicial review action relating to a decision by a local authority that an environmental impact assessment was not required for the demolition of a housing estate.

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• Executry

• Barclay v. Thorntons Trustees Limited [2024] CSOH 18

  Appeared for the pursuer in a 6-day proof in the Court of Session for reduction of a will on the basis of forgery.

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• Housing

• Horne v. Slash Property Ltd [2024] UT 36

  Appeared for the appellants in an Upper Tribunal appeal relating to the fairness of a rent review clause. The Upper Tribunal provided guidance in relation to section 71 of the Consumer Rights Act 2015 regarding the duty of a court to consider the fairness of a contractual term.

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• Family

• Hafthorsdottir v. Eyvindsson [2025] CSOH 6

  Appeared for the pursuer in a successful action for reduction of a decree of divorce. The decree had been granted in absence. The defender unsuccessfully argued that the pursuer had an alternative remedy in a negligence claim against her solicitors.