For the very first time ever the UK Supreme Court (what used to be called the House of Lords for legal appeals purposes) will sit outside London, and it has chosen to visit Edinburgh.
Using the setting and technology of the City Chambers, the Court will hear three appeals this week.
The historic sitting will include appeals against sham marriages, national planning policy and the rehabilitation of determinate sentence prisoners.
And to mark the occasion the UK Supreme Court is joining Instagram to show off the set up and proceedings.
For a number of years now council meetings held in the City Chambers and in the Dean of Guild Court Room have been webcast, so the judges will know that their every move will be broadcast to an outside audience. This is what they are used to when sitting in the Supreme Court in London, and the recording will be live streamed to the Supreme Court website.
The schedule is that the court will hear Sadovska and another v Secretary of State for the Home Department on Monday 12 June 2017 from 11:00.
On Tuesday 13 June 2017 the court will hear the appeal of Aberdeen City and Shire Strategic Development Planning Authority v Elsick Development Company Limited which relates to the correct legal test to be applied when assessing planning obligations, and the extent to which planning authorities are bound to comply with national planning policy.
On Wednesday 14 June 2017 the case is Brown v The Scottish Ministers which relates to the obligation on the state to rehabilitate determinate sentence prisoners. Lord Carloway who is both a Scottish advocate and judge as well as the most senior judge of the Supreme Courts of Scotland and head of the Scottish Judiciary, will sit on the panel of judges to hear this appeal.
As well as hearing the appeals the court will receive educational visits. exhibitions and special events.
Mark Ormerod, the Court’s Chief Executive, said: “This channel will serve as a window into the life of the Supreme Court beyond the courtroom. Rather than focusing on the cases heard here, it will showcase the work we do with schools and universities from around the world, and our role as a popular visitor attraction in Parliament Square.”
Mark will be giving a free public talk during the Edinburgh sittings, offering those who come to observe proceedings an overview of the Supreme Court building and how the Court uses its accommodation in central London. The presentation will begin in the Council Chamber after court has risen on Wednesday 14 June, at 4.15pm.
On a daily basis there are 120 seats which members of the public can occupy and attend the hearings. These will be allocated on a first come, first served basis.
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