About us

The Judicial Complaints Reviewer was established under The Judiciary and Courts (Scotland) Act 2008 to review the handling of complaints investigations by the    Judicial Office for Scotland into members of the judiciary, to ensure that they have been dealt with in accordance with the Rules.  The Judicial Complaints Reviewer ensures that the Judicial Office follows its own Rules - the Complaints about the Judiciary (Scotland) Rules.

The service is free, independent and impartial. It is open to those who have complained about the conduct of a member of the judiciary, and to those who have been the subject of a complaint.

The Judicial Complaints Reviewer is contracted for up to 3 days per month, with no administrative support.              

Who is the Judicial Complaints Reviewer?                                                                                                                           

The current Judicial Complaints Reviewer is James Mollison, who took up post on 1 September 2022.

Mr Mollison is a Panel Member and Chair for the General Teaching Council for Scotland.

He has considerable experience dealing with professional complaints and undertaking senior roles within the areas of Risk and Quality Assurance.

What powers does the Judicial Complaints Reviewer have?

I review investigations undertaken by the Judicial Office for Scotland to check that they have been carried out in accordance with the Rules and I can make written representations to the Lord President about procedures for handling the investigation of matters concerning the conduct of judicial office holders. The Lord President, who is the head of the judiciary in Scotland, must have regard to my representations.