David H Sheldon
GENERAL INFORMATION:
Standing Junior to the Scottish Executive (2002 - date)
Lecturer in Scots Law, University of Edinburgh (1990 - 1998)
Legal Assistant to the Scottish Law Commission (1987)
Ll.B (Hons)(Aberdeen) (1987)
Dip.LP(Aberdeen) (1988)
Basic understanding of French, German and Spanish
PRACTICE:
David is experienced in a wide range of civil and criminal litigation. His principal fields of practice include:-
- Reparation
- Health and Safety Prosecutions
- Fatal Accident Inquiries
- Public and Administrative Law
- Child and Education Law
- Criminal Law
David has acquired considerable experience over a wide range of civil and criminal work, including reparation, health and safety prosecutions, fatal accident inquiries, contract and commercial disputes, public and administrative law including human rights, child and education law, and public local inquiries.
As Standing Junior Counsel to the Scottish Executive he has provided advice and representation to the Scottish Ministers in a number of complex and difficult cases, including the so-called "slopping out" litigation, pioneering proceeds of crime work, complex stress at work and harassment cases, and land law.
From 1990 to 1998 David was a lecturer in law in the Department of Scots Law (later the Department of Private Law) at the University of Edinburgh. In 1994 he was appointed Associate Dean (Admissions) for the Faculty of Law. He taught a number of courses at Ordinary, Honours and Masters levels, including aspects of Commercial Law, Delict, Criminal Law and the law of Evidence.
SELECTED CASES:
Reparation
- Rorrison v West Lothian College 2000 SCLR 245 - early stress at work/bullying case, cited in a number of important English cases on this topic.
- Macdonald v Scottish Ministers 2004 Rep LR 16 - reparation/roads.
- Agnew v Scott Lithgow Ltd (No 1) 2001 SC 516 - reparation/time bar.
- David Wedderburn v James Buchan and others 28th May 2004, Lord Bracadale.
Commercial
- West Castle Properties Limited v Scottish Ministers 2004 SCLR 53 - high value dilapidations claim involving very large volume of legal and factual material and necessitating a high degree of organisation
- ITS Drilling Services v Qualitank Services Limited 23rd June 2004, Sheriff Principal Sir Stephen Young - appeal/contract/commercial
- Satchwell v Macintosh 2006 SLT (Sh Ct) 117 - unjust enrichment
- HSBC Gibbs Ltd v Torrance 1999 GWD 3-127 - reclaiming motion/interdict/ restrictive covenants
Criminal
- Scottish Ministers v McGuffie 2006 SLT 401 - proceeds of crime/human rights
- Scottish Ministers v Stirton 2006 SLT 306 - proceeds of crime/procedure
- Mallin v Clark 2002 SLT 1202 - criminal appeal
- Wright v H M Advocate 2000 SLT 1020 - criminal appeal
- Cairns v H M Advocate 1999 SLT 1072 - criminal appeal
Public and administrative law
- William Beggs v The Scottish Ministers 16th March 2006, Extra Division - judicial review/prisons.
- Prison conditions ("slopping out" cases) - numerous slopping out cases in both the Sheriff Court and Court of Session, extensive drafting both in ordinary actions and judicial reviews, made numerous appearances at procedural hearings seeking to defend the Ministers' position in this highly protracted, difficult and complex set of litigations.
- Norman Robert Duncan v The Scottish Ministers 20th July 2004, Lord Macfadyen - complex judicial review on interpretation of statutory provisions in relation to prisons/sentencing.
Other
- Montgomery v H M Advocate [2003] 1 AC 641 - appeal to Privy Council
- DTL Gas Supplies v Protan SRL 1999 SLT 397 - appeal procedure
- D v D (Parent and child: residence) 2002 SC 33 - international private law/child abduction
- EC and another v Miller 2004 SCLR 55 - child law/human rights case
- M74 Public Local Inquiry, Glasgow (lasting three months)
- Upper Forth (Kincardine Bridge) Second Crossing Public Local Inquiry, Alva
- Brent Bravo FAI, Aberdeen (three months), Determination of Sheriff Colin Harris QC, 18th July 2006
- H M Advocate v SP Power Systems and others - very extensive and complex health and safety prosecution
- JS and PS v Authority Reporter for West Lothian 18th July 2001, Extra Division - appeal/childrens' hearings
- Munro and McClure, Applicants 2000 SCLR 920 - ground-breaking case on legal aid regulations
- Leighton v Lord Advocate 2003 SLT 800 - judicial review of FAI determination
- Lord Advocate v Bell 2002 SLT 527 - vexatious litigant/human rights
PUBLICATIONS AND SEMINARS:
- "Scots Criminal Law" (Butterworths) 2nd Ed. 1998, with Prof. R.A.A. McCall Smith;
- "Evidence: Cases and Materials" (W. Green) 2nd Ed. 2002;
- Sections in "Stair Memorial Encyclopaedia: The Laws of Scotland" on the Law of Obligations and Criminal Law;
- Sections in Lexis/Nexis "Court of Session Practice Manual" (ed. The Hon. Lord Macfadyen)
- Articles for Scots Law Times, Journal of the Law Society of Scotland, Juridical Review, Edinburgh Law Review, and Criminal Law Review.
David has spoken at a number of conferences on a variety of legal issues, and given a number of CPD seminars. He has taught in the National University of Lesotho, and audited courses at the University of California at Berkeley.
PROFESSIONAL MEMBERSHIPS:
- Member of the Scottish Criminal Courts Rules Council (1996 -1997)
- Member of the Editorial Board of the International Journal of Evidence and Proof (1996 -1997)