Solicitors (Scotland) Act 1980

Restriction on rights of practising

26 Offence for solicitors to act as agents for unqualified persons

(1) Any solicitor to whom this subsection applies who upon the account or for the profit of any unqualified person—

(a) acts as agent in any action or proceedings in any court, or

(b) permits or suffers his name to be made use of in any way in any such action or proceedings ; or

(c) draws or prepares any writ to which section 32 applies, or

(d) permits or suffers his name to be made use of in the drawing or preparing of any such writ; or

(e) does any other act to enable that person to appear, act or practise in any respect as a solicitor or notary public,

knowing that person not to be a qualified solicitor or notary public, as the case may be, shall be guilty of an offence.

(2) Subsection (1) applies to any solicitor, not being a solicitor who is employed full-time on a fixed salary by a body corporate.

(3) In this section " person " includes a body corporate.

27 Offence for solicitors to share fees with unqualified persons

(1) Subject to subsection (2) any solicitor who shares with an unqualified person any profits or fees derived from any solicitor's business transacted by him shall be guilty of an offence.

(2) Subsection (1) does not apply to a solicitor sharing the profits or fees derived from such a business with—

(a) a person who has ceased to practise as a solicitor if such share—

(i) is in respect of the price or value of the business transferred by that person to him; or

(ii) is a voluntary or other allowance made to that person as a former partner in the business; or

(b) the widow, heirs, executors, representatives, next of kin, or dependents of any deceased solicitor who was a partner in the business at the date of his death, or whose business he has purchased or succeeded to; or

(c) any clerk or assistant who is wholly employed by him if such share is a salary partly or wholly paid on the basis of a percentage of those profits; or

(d) any public officer if such share is in respect of work done in the course of his duty; or

(e) a person qualified to act as a solicitor in some part of the United Kingdom other than Scotland or in any British possession if such share is paid in accordance with an agreement between them for sharing fees.

(3) In paragraph (e) of subsection (2), " British possession " means any part of Her Majesty's dominions outside the United Kingdom as at 1st March 1934.

28 Offence for solicitors who are disqualified to seek employment without informing employer

—Any person who—

(a) has been struck off the roll; or

(b) suspended from practice as a solicitor,

and while so disqualified from practice seeks or accepts employment by a solicitor in connection with that solicitors practice without previously informing him that he is so disqualified, shall be guilty of an offence.

29 Restriction on borrowing processes

(1) A solicitor shall not be entitled to borrow the process in any proceedings depending before the Court unless he has a place of business in Edinburgh.

(2) A solicitor shall not be entitled to borrow the process in any proceedings depending before an inferior court unless he has a place of business within the jurisdiction of that court.

30 Liability for fees of other solicitor

Where a solicitor, authorised by and acting for a client employs another solicitor he shall (whether or not he discloses the client) be liable to the other solicitor for that other solicitor's fees and outlays, unless at the time of the employment he expressly disclaims any such liability.