All change for the Journal in 2024

From January 2024 the Journal of the Law Society of Scotland will have a new editor, a new production company – and a new digital-only look.

Rebecca Morgan will take up the role as editor in January 2024, following the retirement of Peter Nicholson at the end of December after two decades at the helm.

Think Publishing has been appointed following a competitive tender process. They take up the reins from Connect, which has delivered the Journal every month for more than 25 years, winning many awards along the way, and launching the first digital Journal in 2004.

Rebecca Morgan has been writing and editing legal-related content for more than 14 years. She has experience working in law as well as creating content and delivering talks on a variety of legal and content related topics. She has worked with students and academics, lawyers, advocates, in-house, legal tech companies and more.

Under Think Publishing, the Journal will move from print and online to fully digital from January 2024. The magazine previously moved fully online for 10 months during the Covid-19 pandemic, returning to a limited print run in March 2022.

The Society hopes the digital based approach will enable content to be provided faster with more flexibility, while retaining the thought-provoking articles and features that the Journal is known for. The Society’s legal recruitment website Lawscotjobs will also be developed to ensure it remains a key hub for legal recruitment in Scotland.

Diane McGiffen, chief executive of the Law Society of Scotland, commented: “The Journal plays a hugely important role at the heart of the legal profession in Scotland – keeping our members well informed and up to date on developments in law and legal practice. It has provided a forum for debate and discussion since it was first published almost 70 years ago. We are very excited by the proposals from Think and their compelling vision for the Journal and plans for our Lawscotjobs website.

“I want to thank outgoing editor Peter Nicholson for making the Journal such a success through its powerful and relevant content for an increasingly diverse profession. He has been an exceptional editor over the past 20 years and in June this year we were delighted to award him honorary lifetime membership of the Law Society, the highest accolade we can bestow on one of our members, in recognition of his work.

“Our 75th anniversary year marks the start of an exciting new era for the Journal. It continues to be a much-valued resource for our members and we’re very much looking forward to working with new editor Rebecca Morgan and the team at Think on the next stage in its evolution.”