Margaret Elizabeth Scott, Lady Scott (born 1960,

Nairobi Nairobi ( ) is the capital and largest city of Kenya. The name is derived from the Maasai phrase ''Enkare Nairobi'', which translates to "place of cool waters", a reference to the Nairobi River which flows through the city. The city proper ha ...

Kenya ) , national_anthem = "Ee Mungu Nguvu Yetu"() , image_map = , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Nairobi , coordinates = , largest_city = Nairobi , ...

) is a Scottish lawyer who was appointed a judge in 2012.

Early life and education

Scott was born in 1960 in

Kenya ) , national_anthem = "Ee Mungu Nguvu Yetu"() , image_map = , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Nairobi , coordinates = , largest_city = Nairobi , ...

. She graduated from

University of Edinburgh The University of Edinburgh ( sco, University o Edinburgh, gd, Oilthigh Dhùn Èideann; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in post-nominals) is a public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Granted a royal charter by King James VI in 15 ...

with a

Bachelor of Laws Bachelor of Laws ( la, Legum Baccalaureus; LL.B.) is an undergraduate law degree in the United Kingdom and most common law jurisdictions. Bachelor of Laws is also the name of the law degree awarded by universities in the People's Republic of Chi ...

(LLB) degree and from the

University of Strathclyde The University of Strathclyde ( gd, Oilthigh Shrath Chluaidh) is a public research university located in Glasgow, Scotland. Founded in 1796 as the Andersonian Institute, it is Glasgow's second-oldest university, having received its royal chart ...

with a

Diploma in Legal Practice A diploma is a document awarded by an educational institution (such as a college or university) testifying the recipient has graduated by successfully completing their courses of studies. Historically, it has also referred to a charter or offici ...

(DipLP).

Legal career

Scott was admitted as a

solicitor A solicitor is a legal practitioner who traditionally deals with most of the legal matters in some jurisdictions. A person must have legally-defined qualifications, which vary from one jurisdiction to another, to be described as a solicitor and ...

in 1989, and she was

called to the bar The call to the bar is a legal term of art in most common law jurisdictions where persons must be qualified to be allowed to argue in court on behalf of another party and are then said to have been "called to the bar" or to have received "call to ...

in Scotland (the

Faculty of Advocates The Faculty of Advocates is an independent body of lawyers who have been admitted to practise as advocates before the courts of Scotland, especially the Court of Session and the High Court of Justiciary. The Faculty of Advocates is a constitu ...

) in 1991. She "took silk" (became a

Queen's Counsel In the United Kingdom and in some Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth countries, a King's Counsel (Post-nominal letters, post-nominal initials KC) during the reign of a king, or Queen's Counsel (post-nominal initials QC) during the reign of ...

) in 2002. She has acted as lead counsel in a number of high-profile appeal cases such as the

Lockerbie bombing Pan Am Flight 103 was a regularly scheduled Pan Am transatlantic flight from Frankfurt to Detroit via a stopover in London and another in New York City. The transatlantic leg of the route was operated by ''Clipper Maid of the Seas'', a Boeing ...

and the

Glasgow Ice Cream Wars The ice cream wars were turf wars in the East End of Glasgow, Scotland, in the 1980s between rival criminal organisations selling drugs and stolen goods from ice cream vans. Van operators were involved in frequent violence and intimidation tac ...

, in which she defended

Abdelbaset al-Megrahi ) , birth_date = , birth_place = Tripoli, Kingdom of Libya , death_date = , death_place = Tripoli, Libya , cause = Prostate cancer , nationality = Libyan , race = Arab , g ...

and Thomas "TC" Campbell, respectively. She was also successful in the appeal case of Kim Galbraith, whose murder conviction for shooting her policeman husband was reduced to

diminished responsibility In criminal law, diminished responsibility (or diminished capacity) is a potential defense by excuse by which defendants argue that although they broke the law, they should not be held fully criminally liable for doing so, as their mental f ...

Megrahi's second appeal

On 6 November 2008, Scott applied to the Court of Criminal Appeal for Megrahi's release on

bail Bail is a set of pre-trial restrictions that are imposed on a suspect to ensure that they will not hamper the judicial process. Bail is the conditional release of a defendant with the promise to appear in court when required. In some countries ...

pending the second appeal against his conviction at the

Pan Am Flight 103 bombing trial The Pan Am Flight 103 bombing trial began on 3 May 2000, 11 years, 4 months and 13 days after the destruction of Pan Am Flight 103 on 21 December 1988. The 36-week bench trial took place at a specially convened Scottish Court in the Netherlands set ...

in 2001. The three judges reserved their judgment on the application. A week later, Megrahi's bail application was refused. Megrahi was told he would remain in jail for the duration of his second appeal.

Judicial career

From 2003 to 2012, Scott was a part-time

sheriff A sheriff is a government official, with varying duties, existing in some countries with historical ties to England where the office originated. There is an analogous, although independently developed, office in Iceland that is commonly transla ...

. On 2 November 2012, she was installed as a

Senator of the College of Justice The senators of the College of Justice are judges of the College of Justice, a set of legal institutions involved in the administration of justice in Scotland. There are three types of senator: Lords of Session (judges of the Court of Session); ...

, taking the judicial title Lady Scott.

Controversy

Scott provoked public anger in July 2013 when sentencing a man convicted of several incidences of

rape Rape is a type of sexual assault usually involving sexual intercourse or other forms of sexual penetration carried out against a person without their consent. The act may be carried out by physical force, coercion, abuse of authority, or ag ...

, as she appeared to praise him for having overcome his difficult background and succeeded at running a business. Her comment was viewed as inappropriate, with the Scottish Conservative

Chief Whip The Chief Whip is a political leader whose task is to enforce the whipping system, which aims to ensure that legislators who are members of a political party attend and vote on legislation as the party leadership prescribes. United Kingdom ...

John Lamont John Robert Lamont (born 15 April 1976) is a Scottish Conservative Party politician and solicitor who has served in the British House of Commons as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Berwickshire, Roxburgh and Selkirk since 2017. Lamont previou ...

arguing that, "plenty of people have had tough lives ... but don’t rape anyone." In March 2017, Scott granted a man who confessed to the

of a 12-year-old child an absolute discharge. Although Scott acknowledged that

Scottish law Scots law () is the legal system of Scotland. It is a hybrid or mixed legal system containing civil law and common law elements, that traces its roots to a number of different historical sources. Together with English law and Northern Ireland l ...

dictates an individual under the age of 13 is considered incapable of giving consent in any circumstance, she stated that the victim was not distressed and that all eyewitnesses believed her to be over 16.

Rape Crisis England and Wales Rape Crisis England and Wales is the national umbrella organisation for Rape Crisis Centres across England and Wales. As a registered charity, Rape Crisis also works to raise awareness of sexual violence and campaign for change. Services Rape ...

critiqued Scott's ruling, saying that, as a 12-year-old has no legal capacity to consent, sexual activity with them is always illegal. Moreover, it is an adult's responsibility to ensure that their partner is capable of giving consent. In a letter published after the trial, the victim claimed that she was unconscious at the time of the attack, further calling into question her ability to consent.

Personal life

Scott's partner is Frank Richard Crowe, a

. Together they have one son.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Scott, Margaret 1960 births Living people Scottish King's Counsel Pan Am Flight 103 Members of the Faculty of Advocates Scottish women judges Scott 21st-century King's Counsel Date of birth missing (living people) Alumni of the University of Edinburgh Alumni of the University of Strathclyde Scottish solicitors