Sheriff Court

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Sheriff Court

Sheriff courts provide the local court

Court

A court is a body, often a government institution, with the authority to adjudication legal disputes and dispense private law, criminal justice, or administrative law justice in accordance with rules of law....
service in Scotland

Scotland

conventional_long_name = ScotlandAlba|common_name= Scotland|image_flag = Flag of Scotland.svg|flag_width = 130px...
, with each court serving a sheriff court district within a sheriffdom

Sheriffdom

A sheriffdom is a judicial district in Scotland.Since 1 January 1975 there have been six sheriffdoms. Previously sheriffdoms were composed of groupings of counties of Scotland....
.

Sheriff courts deal with a myriad of legal procedures which include:

legal cases which are heard within the Courts are dealt with by a Sheriff

Sheriff

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Encyclopedia

Sheriff courts provide the local court

Court

Scotland

conventional_long_name = ScotlandAlba|common_name= Scotland|image_flag = Flag of Scotland.svg|flag_width = 130px...
, with each court serving a sheriff court district within a sheriffdom

Sheriffdom

Solemn
Indictable offence

In many common law jurisdictions , an indictable offence is an offence which can only be tried on an indictment after a preliminary hearing to determine whether there is a prima facie case to answer or by a grand jury....
and Summary
Summary offence

A summary offence, also known as a petty crime, is a crime act in some common law jurisdictions that can be proceeded with summarily, without the right to a jury trial and/or indictment....
Criminal
Criminal law

The term criminal law, sometimes called penal law, refers to any of various bodies of rules in different jurisdictions whose common characteristic is the potential for unique and often severe impositions as punishment for failure to comply....
cases
Large and Small estate
Estate (law)

An estate is the net worth of a person at any point in time. It is the sum of a person's assets - legal rights, interests and entitlements to property of any kind - less all liabilities at that time....
s upon a death
Fine payments
Civil
Private law

Private law is that part of a legal system that involves relationships between individuals. This includes the law of contracts or torts and the law of obligations....
actions under Ordinary, Summary Cause and Small Claim Procedures
Adoption
Adoption

Adoption is the act of Family law placing a child with a parent or parents other than those to whom they were born. An adoption order has the effect of severing parental responsibilities and rights of the original parent and transferring those responsibilities and rights to the adoptive parent....
Cases
Bankruptcy
Bankruptcy

Bankruptcy is a legally declared inability or impairment of ability of an individual or organization to pay its creditors. Creditors may file a bankruptcy petition against a debtor in an effort to recoup a portion of what they are owed or initiate a restructuring....
Actions

Functions and operation

The legal cases which are heard within the Courts are dealt with by a Sheriff

Sheriff

A sheriff is in principle a legal official with responsibility for a county. In practice, the specific combination of legal, political, and ceremonial duties of a sheriff varies greatly from country to country....
. A Sheriff is a Judge who is usually assigned to work in a specific Court although some work as 'floating Sheriffs' who may work anywhere in Scotland. There are about a hundred and forty full-time Sheriffs in the various Courts and a number of part-time Sheriffs. They are appointed on the recommendation of the Judicial Appointments Board for Scotland

Judicial Appointments Board for Scotland

The Judicial Appointments Board for Scotland is public body responsible for making recommendations on appointments to judge in Scotland. It commenced work in June 2002 as an administrative body of the Scottish Executive....
. Until recently there were also 'temporary sheriffs' who were appointed by the executive year by year and only sat for particular days by invitation; this class of sheriff was abolished as being inconsistent with judicial independence following the decision of the High Court of Justiciary

High Court of Justiciary

The High Court of Justiciary is the Supreme Courts of Scotland criminal justice of Scotland.The High Court is both a court of first instance and a court of appeal....
in Starrs v Ruxton.

Staffing

The Courts are staffed by civil servants who are employed by the Scottish Court Service

Scottish Court Service

The Scottish Court Service is an Scottish Executive agency of the Scottish Government responsible for the administration the of the Courts of Scotland in Scotland....
which is an executive agency of the Scottish Government. The Scottish Court Service publishes an online map, lists of Sheriffs, and the rules of the court under different procedures.

Organisation

There are six Sheriffdom

Sheriffdom

Sheriff Principal

The office of sheriff principal is unique within the judicial structure of Scotland, and it cannot therefore readily be compared with any other judicial office....
. Within each sheriffdom are sheriff court districts, each with a court presided over by one or more sheriffs. The most senior civil servant in each Court is the Sheriff Clerk and he or she is charged directly with the management of the Court. The Sherriffdoms are Glasgow and Strathkelvin, Grampian, Highland and Islands

Grampian

Grampian was a Local government of Scotland Regions and districts of Scotland of Scotland from 1975 to 1996. It is now divided into the Council areas of Scotland of:...
, Lothian and Borders

Lothian

Lothian forms a traditional region of Scotland, lying between the southern shore of the Firth of Forth and the Lammermuir Hills.In Lothian there is Edinburgh City, West Lothian, Mid Lothian and East Lothian....
, North Strathclyde

Strathclyde

Strathclyde is one of nine former Local government in Scotland Regions and districts of Scotland of Scotland created by the Local Government Act 1973 and abolished in 1996 by the Local Government etc Act 1994....
, South Strathclyde, Dumfries and Galloway

Dumfries and Galloway

Dumfries and Galloway is one of 32 Council areas of Scotland of Scotland. To the north, it borders onto South Ayrshire, East Ayrshire and South Lanarkshire; in the east the Scottish Borders; and to the south the county of Cumbria in England....
, and Tayside Central and Fife

Fife

Fife is a council area of Scotland, situated between the Firth of Tay and the Firth of Forth, with inland boundaries to Perth and Kinross and Clackmannanshire....
. There are currently 49 Sheriff Courts in Scotland. Some, in rural areas of Scotland, are small due to the sparse population. Courts such as those in the cities of Edinburgh and Glasgow have a large number of staff and can in one day deal with hundreds of cases. Glasgow Sheriff Court, for example, is the busiest Court in Europe.

Sheriffdom	District
Glasgow and Strathkelvin	Glasgow Glasgow Glasgow is the largest city in Scotland and List of largest United Kingdom settlements by population in the United Kingdom. The city is situated on the River Clyde in the country's Scottish Lowlands.... and Strathkelvin Strathkelvin Strathkelvin is the strath of the River Kelvin in west central Scotland.The name Strathkelvin was formerly used for one of nineteen Local government district s in the Strathclyde region of Scotland....
Grampian, Highlands and Islands Grampian Grampian was a Local government of Scotland Regions and districts of Scotland of Scotland from 1975 to 1996. It is now divided into the Council areas of Scotland of:...	Aberdeen Aberdeen Aberdeen is Scotland's third most populous City status in the United Kingdom and one of Scotland's 32 Local government in Scotland Council areas of Scotland....
	Banff
	Dingwall Dingwall Dingwall is a town and former royal burgh in the Highland of Scotland. It has a population of 5,026. It formerly functioned as an east-coast harbor, but now lies inland....
	Dornoch Dornoch Dornoch is a town and seaside resort, and former Royal burgh in the Highlands of Scotland, on the north shore of the Dornoch Firth, close to where it opens into the Moray Firth to the east....
	Elgin Elgin, Moray Elgin is a former cathedral city and a former Royal Burgh in Moray, Scotland and is the administrative and commercial centre for Moray. The town originated to the south of the River Lossie on the higher ground above the flood plain....
	Fort William
	Inverness Inverness Inverness is a City status in the United Kingdom in northern Scotland. The city is the administrative centre for the Highland Council areas of Scotland, and it is promoted as the capital of the Scottish Highlands....
	Kirkwall Kirkwall Kirkwall is the largest town and capital of the Orkney Islands, off the coast of northern mainland Scotland. The town is first mentioned in the Orkneyinga saga in the year 1046....
	Lerwick Lerwick Lerwick is the capital and main port of the Shetland Islands, Scotland, located more than 100 miles off the north coast of mainland Great Britain on the east coast of the Shetland Mainland....
	Lochmaddy Lochmaddy Lochmaddy is the administrative centre of North Uist in the Outer Hebrides, Scotland.Lochmaddy sits at the end of a sea inlet and, due to the rocky nature, is the only settlement of any size on the east coast — far from the villages in the more populous west of North Uist....
	Peterhead Peterhead Peterhead is a town in Aberdeenshire, Scotland. It is Aberdeenshire's largest settlement, having a population of 19,000 at the United Kingdom Census 2001....
	Portree Portree Portree Portree has a harbour, fringed by cliffs, with a pier designed by Thomas Telford.Attractions in the town include the Aros Centre which celebrate the island's Gaels heritage....
	Stonehaven Stonehaven Stonehaven is a town in Aberdeenshire, Scotland. It lies on Scotland's northeast coast and had a population of 9,577 in 2001 census.Stonehave, county town of Kincardineshire, grew around an Iron Age fishing village, now the "Auld Toon" , and expanded inland from the Seaside....
	Stornoway
	Tain Tain Tain is a royal burgh in the committee area of Ross and Cromarty, in the Scottish Highlands area of Scotland. It is on the A9 road which links the south of Scotland with the far north ....
	Wick Wick, Highland Wick is an estuary town and a former burgh in the north of the Highland Council areas of Scotland of Scotland. Historically, it is one of two burghs within the Counties of Scotland of Caithness, of which Wick was the county town....
Lothian and Borders Lothian and Borders Lothian and Borders is an area in south-east Scotland consisting of the East Lothian, City of Edinburgh, Midlothian, West Lothian areas along with the Scottish Borders....	Duns Duns Duns was created a Burgh of Barony in 1490 by James IV of Scotland, and is a former county town of Berwickshire in the Scottish Borders....
	Edinburgh Edinburgh Edinburgh ; is the Capital city of Scotland, a position it has held since 1437. It is the seventh largest city in the United Kingdom and the second largest Scottish City status in the United Kingdom after Glasgow....
	Haddington
	Jedburgh Jedburgh Jedburgh is a town and former royal burgh in the Scottish Borders and historically in Roxburghshire....
	Linlithgow Linlithgow Linlithgow is a town and former Royal burgh in West Lothian, Scotland. Those born in Linlithgow are sometimes nicknamed Black Bitches, and the town's coat of arms shows a black bitch dog, chained to an oak tree, which grows on an island....
	Peebles Peebles Peebles is a burgh in the committee area of Tweeddale, in the Scotland Scottish Borders, lying on the River Tweed.Initially a market town, Peebles played a role in the woollen industry of the Scottish Borders up until the 1960s....
	Selkirk Selkirk Selkirk, a royal burgh in the heart of the Scotland Scottish Borders, lies on the River Ettrick, a tributary of the River Tweed. At the time of the 2008 census, Selkirk's population was 17,839....
North Strathclyde Strathclyde Strathclyde is one of nine former Local government in Scotland Regions and districts of Scotland of Scotland created by the Local Government Act 1973 and abolished in 1996 by the Local Government etc Act 1994....	Campbeltown Campbeltown Campbeltown is a town and former royal burgh in Argyll and Bute, Scotland, located by Campbeltown Loch on the Kintyre peninsula. Originally known as Kinlochkilkerran - this form is still used in Gaelic....
	Dumbarton Dumbarton Dumbarton is a burgh in Scotland, lying on the north bank of the River Clyde where the River Leven, Dunbartonshire flows into the Clyde estuary....
	Dunoon Dunoon Dunoon is a resort town situated on the Cowal Peninsula in Argyll, Scotland. It sits on the Firth of Clyde beside Holy Loch and opposite Gourock....
	Greenock Greenock Greenock is a large town and former burgh of barony in the Inverclyde council area of western Scotland. It forms part of a contiguous urban area with Gourock to the west and Port Glasgow to the east....
	Kilmarnock Kilmarnock Kilmarnock is a large burgh in East Ayrshire, Scotland, with a population of 44,170. It is roughly equidistant between Glasgow and Ayr, and is the second largest town in Ayrshire....
	Oban Oban Oban is a resort town within the Argyll and Bute council area of Scotland. It has a total resident population of 8,120. Despite its small size, it is the largest town between Helensburgh and Fort William, Highland and during the tourist season the town can be crowded by up to 25,000 people....
	Paisley Paisley Paisley is a town and former burgh in the west-Central Lowlands of Scotland. It is situated on the northern edge of the Gleniffer Braes, straddling the banks of the River Cart....
	Rothesay Rothesay, Argyll and Bute The town of Rothesay is the principal town on the Isle of Bute, in the subdivisions of Scotland of Argyll and Bute, Scotland. It can be reached by ferry from Wemyss Bay which offers an onward rail link to Glasgow....
South Strathclyde, Dumfries and Galloway Dumfries and Galloway Dumfries and Galloway is one of 32 Council areas of Scotland of Scotland. To the north, it borders onto South Ayrshire, East Ayrshire and South Lanarkshire; in the east the Scottish Borders; and to the south the county of Cumbria in England....	Airdrie Airdrie, North Lanarkshire Airdrie is a town within North Lanarkshire, Scotland. It lies on a plateau roughly 400 ft above sea level, and is approximately 12 miles east of Glasgow....
	Ayr Ayr Ayr is a town and port situated on the Firth of Clyde, in south-west Scotland. It has been a royal burgh since 1205 and the county town of the former Counties of Scotland of Ayrshire....
	Dumfries Dumfries Dumfries is a town and former royal burgh within the Dumfries and Galloway council area of Scotland and is situated close to the Solway Firth, near the mouth of the River Nith....
	Hamilton Hamilton, South Lanarkshire Hamilton is a town in South Lanarkshire, in the west-central Lowlands of Scotland. It serves as the main administrative centre of the South Lanarkshire council area....
	Kirkcudbright Kirkcudbright Kirkcudbright, is a town in the south of Scotland in Dumfries and Galloway.The town lies south of Castle Douglas and Dalbeattie, in the part of Dumfries and Galloway known as the Stewartry, situated at the mouth of the River Dee, Galloway, some six miles from the sea....
	Lanark Lanark Lanark is a small town in the central belt of Scotland. Its population of 8,253 makes it the 100th largest settlement in Scotland.Lanark was the county town of the former county of Lanarkshire....
	Stranraer Stranraer Stranraer is a town in the south of Scotland in the west of the region of Dumfries and Galloway and in the county of Wigtownshire.Stranraer lies on the shores of Loch Ryan on the northern side of the isthmus joining the Rhins of Galloway to the mainland....
Tayside Central and Fife Fife Fife is a council area of Scotland, situated between the Firth of Tay and the Firth of Forth, with inland boundaries to Perth and Kinross and Clackmannanshire....	Alloa Alloa Alloa is a small burgh in Clackmannanshire, Scotland, 7 miles to the east of Stirling, on the north bank of the River Forth. The town was a burgh of barony, and at one time of considerable commercial importance but is now relatively insignificant....
	Arbroath Arbroath Arbroath or Aberbrothock is a former royal burgh and the largest town in the Subdivisions of Scotland of Angus in Scotland, and has a population of 22,785....
	Cupar Cupar Cupar is a town and former royal burgh in Fife, Scotland. The town is approximately equidistant between the larger settlements of Dundee and Glenrothes....
	Dundee Dundee Dundee is the fourth-largest City status in the United Kingdom in Scotland and, fully named as Dundee City, one of Scotland's 32 Local government in Scotland Council areas of Scotland....
	Dunfermline Dunfermline Dunfermline is a town in Fife which had official City_status_in_the_United_Kingdom#Pretenders until 1970. It is located on high ground five miles from the northern shore of the Firth of Forth on the route of major road and rail crossings across the firth to Edinburgh and the south....
	Falkirk Falkirk Falkirk The town lies at the junction of the Forth and Clyde Canal and the Union Canal , a location which proved pivotal to the growth of Falkirk as a centre of heavy industry during the Industrial Revolution....
	Forfar Forfar Forfar is a town and former royal burgh of approximately 13,500 people, located in the unitary authority of Angus in Scotland. It is the administrative centre of Angus and was the capital of the former county of Angus ....
	Kirkcaldy Kirkcaldy Kirkcaldy is a town and former royal burgh in Fife, on the east coast of Scotland. It lies on a shallow bay on the northern shore of the Firth of Forth and is the largest settlement between the cities of Dundee and Edinburgh....
	Perth Perth, Scotland Perth is a town and former royal burgh in central Scotland. Sitting on the banks of the River Tay, it is the administrative headquarters of Perth and Kinross council area....
	Stirling Stirling Stirling is a City status in the United Kingdom and former ancient burgh in Scotland, and is at the heart of the wider Stirling .The city is clustered around a large Stirling Castle and medi?val old-town....

Relationship to other courts

Sheriff Courts are above local District Courts

District Courts of Scotland

A District Court is the lowest level of court of law in Scotland. It deals mainly with minor offences and they operate under summary offence....
who deal with very minor offences and below the Supreme Courts. The High Court of Justiciary

High Court of Justiciary

The High Court of Justiciary is the Supreme Courts of Scotland criminal justice of Scotland.The High Court is both a court of first instance and a court of appeal....
deals with serious criminal matters, such as Murder

Murder

Murder as defined in common law countries, is the unlawful killing of another human being with intent , and generally this state of mind distinguishes murder from other forms of unlawful homicide....
, and the Court of Session

Court of Session

The Court of Session is the Supreme courts of Scotland civil court of Scotland. It is both a court of first instance and a court of appeal and sits exclusively in Parliament House, Edinburgh in Edinburgh....
is Scotland's supreme civil court.

Any final decision of a Sheriff may be appealed. There is a right of appeal in civil cases to the Sheriff Principal, and in most cases onwards to the Court of Session

Court of Session

High Court of Justiciary

The High Court of Justiciary is the Supreme Courts of Scotland criminal justice of Scotland.The High Court is both a court of first instance and a court of appeal....
.

So far as civil procedure is concerned, there are different sets of rules for small claims (payment of up to £3000); summary causes (mostly eviction actions)and monetary value between £3000 and £5000; and ordinary causes (the rest). These are all published online, and direct links to them are on .

Sheriff Court

Functions and operation

Staffing

Organisation

Relationship to other courts

See also

External links