Perverting the course of justice

McBratney, Luke (2018) Perverting the course of justice. LL.M(R) thesis, University of Glasgow.

Abstract

This thesis is concerned with the Scottish offence of perverting the course of justice.

Perverting the course of justice is a well-established and commonly charged offence, but one which is poorly understood and whose development has been the subject of sceptical treatment in the major work on Scottish criminal law. This thesis traces that development, from the institutional writers to the modern day, and asks whether it was in accord with the norms of Scots law. It also asks whether that development has resulted in an offence, the elements of which can be described with confidence, or not. Drawing on comparisons with corresponding offences from other jurisdictions, this thesis sets out where the Scottish offence is unclear on certain questions and suggests possible answers.

This thesis concludes that the manner in which the offence developed in Scotland, rather than being notable for its abnormality, is best understood as a typical example of the development of Scottish criminal law, and as an offence which serves an essential function in upholding the rule of law.

• Item Type: Thesis (LL.M(R))
• Qualification Level: Masters
• Subjects: K Law > KD England and Wales > KDC Scotland
• Colleges/Schools: College of Social Sciences > School of Law
• Supervisor's Name: Chalmers, Professor James
• Date of Award: 2018
• Depositing User: Mr Luke W McBratney
• Unique ID: glathesis:2018-81721
• Copyright: Copyright of this thesis is held by the author.
• Date Deposited: 14 Oct 2020 14:51
• Last Modified: 14 Oct 2020 14:59
• URI: https://theses.gla.ac.uk/id/eprint/81721