Explanatory note

These Regulations make provision for the procedure to be followed by and before a tribunal constituted under section 11C of the Sheriff Courts (Scotland) Act 1971. Such a tribunal is constituted to carry out an investigation at the request of the Scottish Ministers in order to ascertain whether a part-time sheriff is unfit for office by reason of inability, neglect of duty or misbehaviour.

Before any investigation by a tribunal commences, the Scottish Ministers must give the sheriff written notice of the investigation and of the reasons why the investigation has been requested (regulation 3). The Scottish Ministers are given the power to pay the members of the tribunal for carrying out their duties (regulation 4).

Subject to the specific provisions made by the Regulations, the tribunal is free to regulate its own procedure (regulation 6). The Regulations make provision for the tribunal to receive oral or written evidence; for the sheriff to make written or oral representations; for such representations to be made personally by the sheriff or anyone acting on behalf of the sheriff, and for the confidentiality of proceedings before the tribunal (regulation 7). The Regulations also make provision for the procedure to be followed where there is a change in the membership of the tribunal after an investigation has commenced (regulation 5).

The Regulations make provision allowing the tribunal to suspend the sheriff from office during the investigation. The tribunal may direct that a sheriff so suspended may remain in office for the limited purpose of continuing to deal with proceedings commenced before the suspension took effect (regulation 8).

The tribunal must send a draft of its findings on the investigation to the sheriff and must give the sheriff the opportunity to make comments on the draft (regulation 9). On completion of the investigation, the tribunal must submit a written report to the Scottish Ministers and send a copy of it to the sheriff. The report must specify the tribunal’s findings on the investigation and its decision on whether to order removal of the sheriff from office (regulation 10).