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Introduction To The Nature and Sources of Scots Law
- Module
- Law in Business
- Institution
- Glasgow Caledonian University (GCU)
Overview of the nature and sources of Scots law including sources of Scots law and how laws are made
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Law in BusinesWhat is Law?
The law consists of millions of legal rules that govern society which then leads to a
civilised society. Law also sets out individual’s rights and duties. It is enforced
legally through specialist courts with areas of the law having their own assigned
court i.e youth court or criminal court.
Businesses have set legal rules that are developed, regularly updated and made
known to them in advance. Companies must abide by legal rules which will have
set business structures.
It is important for managers and employees to have a degree of knowledge of the
law. Businesses may enter disputes or be bound by contracts which, if broken,
could lead to legal implications thus managers will need to be aware of what
remedies can be sought. Also there are criminal laws in existence to ensure that
companies operate in a safe manner and various legal implications if businesses
are involved with disputes.
Legal Rules and Non Legal Rules
Legal Rules are governed by the state and are sanctionable in court. Breaches of
civil law may result in an enforcement mechanism being used to provide a remedy
whereas breaches of criminal law will lead to state punishment i.e prison sentence.
Non legal rules (informal rules) are not governed by state but by moral obligations,
expectations from friends and family, expectations from employers/colleagues or
religious codes. These may have sanctions such as loss of friendship or
banishment from religious activities.
History of Scots Law and its Development
In Scotland legal systems are separate from the law in England. The initial
development of Scots Law was heavily in uenced by Roman Law and English Law.
Due to this law in Scotland is often described as a hybrid system containing
elements of civilian law (based on Roman Law) and common law (based on English
law).
Scottish Legal History
Not much is known about Scots Law during the Celtic Period between 79AD and
400AD. During that period the country was inhabited by Celtic Tribes who would
have had their own sets of rules. The Romans, upon their arrival in Scotland,
attempted to install Roman Law however this was not a success.
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, After the Roman era, Scotland was divided into four sets of people; the Picts, the
Britons, the Scots and the Angles. The Picts inhabited the area between the Forth
to the Peatland Firth, the Britons dominated Strathclyde, the Scots resided in
Dalriada (now Argyllshire) and the Angles were based in Lothian.
In 843AD the Picts and the Scots were joined together to form Scotia by the then
incumbent King of the Scots Kenneth MacAlpin. In 1066 after Malcolm the Second,
King of Scots and Owen the Bald, King of Strathclyde jointly defeated the Angles
during the Battle of Carham, Scotland became one kingdom.
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The European Union
In 1956 the European Community was created and was made up of six member
states. It was initially concerned with the creation of the internal market and
European integration however this soon develop further into the European Union.
The UK joined the EU in 1973 and by 2015 there was 28 member states. The EU
legislates through the European Parliament which compliance with from member
states is mandatory. EU legislation is prioritised over the member state’s own
legislation.
The Scottish Parliament
Due to dissatisfaction regarding the lack of parliamentary time and resources
assigned to Scottish Legislation, a referendum on whether there should be a
Scottish parliament was held in 1997 and (after the unsuccessful referendum in
1979) resulted in a majority vote for a parliament for Scotland. Subsequently the
Scottish Executive, renamed as Scottish Government, was formed and is based in
Holyrood, Edinburgh. The Scottish Parliament has 129 MSPS representing various
constituencies and regions around Scotland. It has the powers to legislate on
issues that have been devolved from the UK Parliament in Westminster. These
powers were increased following the introduction of the Scotland Act 2012 including
the power to set income tax rates. This parliament is a completely new parliament
and is not a reinstatement of the previous Scottish Parliament from 1707.
Categories of Law
Public Law and Private Law
Public law refers to the relationship that exists between state and citizens. It can be
divided into three sections - constitutional law, administrative law and criminal law.
Constitutional law is concerned with the state’s constitution and the running of the
executive (government), legislature (parliament) and the judiciary (courts).
Administrative law protects citizens of a state from abuse of power and authority by
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