Seen, Heard and Respected?

Currently an elected Member of the United Nation Committee on the Rights of the Child since 2019. Former Director General of the Icelandic Government Agency for Child Protection 1995 to 2018. Former Chair of the Council of Europe Lanzarote Committee 2014 to 2016. First elected Chair of the Council of the Baltic Sea (CBSS) Expert Group on Children at Risk  Pioneer in the establishment of Barnahus (Children´s House) in Iceland 1998, a child-friendly and multiagency agency to respond to child sexual abuse. The Barnahus has been a role model for more than 20 states in Europe and beyond and is currently operated in more than 60 cities. Honorary founding member of the Promise Project for implementing the Barnahus model operated by the Council of the Baltic Sea States with the support of the European Union. Bragi has received multiple awards for his contribution to children´s rights including: Premios Centenario, presented in Madrid on the 100th Anniversary of Save the Children in 2019; Children´s Rights Defender Award, by the international institution Hopes for Children UNCRC Policy Center, 2018.

Watch Bragi’s opening message

Sheriff Principal Anwar was admitted as a solicitor in 2000. From 2009 to 2012 she became a partner and head of litigation for Scotland in a global law firm.  She specialised in commercial litigation and white collar crime.

She was appointed as a part-time sheriff in 2011 and as a sheriff at Glasgow Sheriff Court in 2014 where she was a designated family law and commercial law sheriff.

In 2017, Sheriff Anwar’s letter to the children involved in a contact dispute, which explained her decision in plain simple language, attracted a great deal of interest (Patrick v Patrick), being described as “the Scottish Courts at their best”. The letter featured in a performance of Letters Live, during the Edinburgh International Festival.

She was appointed Sheriff Principal of South Strathclyde, Dumfries and Galloway in 2020 and thereafter Sheriff Principal of Glasgow and Strathkelvin in March 2023.

Sheriff Principal Anwar was appointed President of the Sheriff Appeal Court in May 2023.  She was appointed a Temporary Judge in 2024.

She was also appointed Honorary King’s Counsel in 2024.  Honorary King’s Counsel is an honorary award unique to the legal profession. It recognises those in the profession who have made a major contribution to the law of Scotland or the legal profession and how it is advanced, outwith practice as an advocate or solicitor advocate.

She co-authored the Civil Bench Book for Sheriffs on behalf of the Judicial Institute and is a contributor to the new edition of Macphail on Sheriff Court Practice.

Sheriff Principal Anwar served on the Judicial Appointments Board for Scotland between 2021-2023.  She currently serves on the Board of the Scottish Courts and Tribunal Service and chairs the Summary Case Management Board.

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Janys M Scott KC is ranked as a star individual in Chambers Directory 2024, family: children and in family: matrimonial finance. She is described as “an outstanding silk who is recognised for her roles in leading cases.”  Janys is also ranked in administrative and public law and in relation to civil liberties and human rights. She regularly appears in the Inner House and Outer House of the Court of Session and has made successful appeals to the Supreme Court. Her remit spans high-value financial provision in addition to complex child law cases. Janys has been described as “the gold standard of advocacy”, “set on a different level by her knowledge of the law”.

Janys was featured in The Times Newspaper as “Lawyer of the Week” on 2 August 2012, following victory in the Supreme Court for Jessamine Gow, who was claiming financial provision after the breakdown of a cohabiting relationship.

She is accredited as an arbitrator by the Family Law Arbitration Group Scotland (FLAGS) and a member of the Faculty of Advocates Dispute Resolution Service.

As well as family law, Janys M Scott KC is a recognised expert in education law. She is the author of “Education Law in Scotland” the second edition of which was published in 2016.

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Gillian Black is Professor of Scots Private Law at Edinburgh University, and a Commissioner at the Scottish Law Commission. Her research focuses primarily on family law, with a particular focus on adult relationships and the parent/child relationship. At the Scottish Law Commission, she is leading the Aspects of Family Law Project, which is currently examining civil remedies for domestic abuse in Scots law.

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Mary started her career as a Social Worker specialising in child protection and her experience to date includes 15 years as a social worker, leader and trainer in a number of  Scottish Local Authorities, and a further 18 years in leadership roles in the children’s  charity sector. Throughout her career, Mary has specialised in creating teams and models of service that focus on the prevention of harm and the delivery of whole family support to uphold children’s right to live safely in their own families and communities.

Mary is a passionate advocate for children’s rights in policy and practice. She is the Chair of Together, the Scottish Alliance for Children’s Rights, and is a former trustee of Starcatchers, Scotland’s arts and early years organisation. She was formerly on the Board of Social Work Scotland and is Chair of the Children and Families committee of the Coalition of Care Providers in Scotland. Mary has a particular interest in the impact of childhood trauma and is a passionate campaigner for trauma responsive and relationship-based approaches to supporting children and their families recover from adversity.

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Karen has extensive experience covering the spectrum of family law case types, including complex financial provision matters both in divorce (often including a cross-border element) and cohabitation cases. She regularly negotiates and assists clients in entering into separation agreements. In addition, she is regularly instructed to assist clients who wish to put in place pre- or post-nuptial and cohabitation agreements.

She is an experienced litigator, with many years litigating in both the Sheriff Court and Court of Session. Karen receives regular appointments from Edinburgh Sheriff Court to act as a child welfare reporter in private child law cases. She recognises that in some cases, litigation will be appropriate. However, in the majority of cases, she is able to help clients reach a positive outcome without the need for court proceedings.

Karen receives regular instructions in complex cases relating to children, particularly those arising following the breakdown of relationships, including residence and contact cases, as well as relocation cases. She has particular experience in dealing with cases where there has been the rejection of a parent following a separation, recognizing that such situations are often very complex and deeply distressing. Her child law practice also includes cases with an international element as well as child abduction cases.

She has many years of experience in dealing with cases where domestic abuse is, or is alleged to be, a feature. She recognizes the complexity of such cases and the need for sensitivity. She is a keen proponent of the use of mediation in family law cases, recognizing the benefits the process can bring to many family law cases. She offers mediation in all types of family cases.

Karen is a member of Consensus, IACP (the International Academy of Collaborative Professionals), CALM Scotland, and the Family Law Association of Scotland (FLA). Karen has now worked exclusively in the area of family law for more than 15 years. She is accredited by the Law Society of Scotland as a specialist in family law and in family mediation. She is also trained in Collaborative Practice.

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Alison was enrolled as a solicitor in 1996. She worked in civil litigation in private practice for four years before being employed as a Reporter to the Children’s Hearings. Having recognised the need for a specialist, outreach, legal representation service for children and young people in Scotland, Alison co-founded Clan Childlaw in 2008 and continues to be employed as its Chief Executive. Alison is a member of the Scottish Civil Justice Council Family Law Committee.

She is a court reporter and curator ad litem in relation to contact and residence disputes in the sheriff court and a curator ad litem and reporting officer in relation to adoption and permanence proceedings. Until recently she was also a safeguarder in the children’s hearings system, a member of the Law Society of Scotland’s Access to Justice Committee and a member of the City of Edinburgh Council’s Child Protection Committee. In 2021, Alison became a Law Society of Scotland Certified Specialist in Trauma Informed Practice.

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Juliet is Director of Together (Scottish Alliance for Children’s Rights).Over the past decade, Juliet has led work to progress the human rights of children across legislation, policy and practice.

She is Vice Chair of the Children’s Parliament, a Trustee of the Environmental Rights Centre Scotland and is a founder member of the Observatory of Children’s Human Rights Scotland. She sits on numerous Scottish Government Advisory Groups, including the UNCRC Strategic Implementation Board and the Human Rights Bill Advisory Board. She is the current chair of the Rights of the Child UK Coalition and has played an active role of a number of UN Taskforces, including UN Committee’s Day of General Discussion on Children as Human Rights Defenders.

Download Juliet Harris’s slides

B.A Degree 1971; LLB Degree 1974 both Strathclyde University

Legal Apprenticeship with Hughes, Dowdall and Co. Solicitors 1974-1976

Qualified as a solicitor in 1976 and began a career in the Procurator Fiscal Service, leaving in October to begin “devilling” at the Scottish Bar.

Admitted to the Faculty of Advocates in June 1985, specialising in criminal law.

In 1991, Junior Counsel for the Crown in the Lockerbie Inquiry.

Temporary Sheriff 1991 to 1997 then Advocate Depute from 1997 to 2000.

Appointed Queen’s Counsel July 1998 and in 2000 returned to criminal defence work, mostly in the High Court and mostly involving murder, rapes and other serious sexual offences, many involving children, as well as drugs supply and trafficking cases.

Senior Woman at the Scottish Bar, although retiring imminently

Other appointments include:

• Director of Faculty Services Ltd 1993-1996
• Visiting Lecturer at the Scottish Police College 1991-2013
• Member of Court of Strathclyde University 2005-2009
• Honorary Doctorate from Strathclyde University 2009
• Director of The Merchants House of Glasgow 2016 – present
• Member of the Audit Committee of the Police Investigations and Review Commission 2018 – 2021
• Board Member of the Scottish Criminal Cases Review Commission from 2010-2019 and, since 2020, their Consultant Legal Adviser
• Member of Lord Bonomy’s Post Corroboration Safeguards Review Group 2014-2015 (Reported 2015)
• Member of the Lord Justice Clerk Lady Dorrian’s Review Group on the Management of Sexual Offences 2019-2021 (Reported April 2021)
• Member of the Scottish Government Working Group on Joint Investigative Interviews 2020-2022.
• Member of the Scottish Government’s Governance Group on the Management of Sexual Offences 2021-present
• Member of the Criminal Courts Rules Council (2023- present)
• Judge in Herald Law Awards 2013-2023
• Speaker at various Law Conferences