Record turnout for Law Society Council elections
Record numbers of solicitors across Scotland, England and Wales have voted in this year’s Law Society of Scotland Council elections.
17 solicitors put themselves forward to sit on the Council, the Society’s principle decision making body, and voting turnout for the 2015 elections was 27% across the five contested constituencies, up from an average of 17% in previous years.
Lorna Jack, chief executive of the Law Society, said: "It’s great to see more of our members making their voices heard this year, whether that’s by voting for their preferred candidate or putting themselves forward to help their professional body lead and support a successful respected Scottish legal profession.
“I would like to congratulate our newly elected Council members. This is an exciting time for the Law Society and I look forward to working with them over the coming years.
"I offer my commiserations to those not elected this time round and want to pay a particular tribute to Janet Hood, who has served on Council for the last 17 years and has made an enormous contribution to the work of the Society. I hope Janet and the other candidates will continue to stay involved with their professional body, particularly through the important work of our various committees."
Voting closed at 12 noon, Wednesday 20 May and the successful candidates, including six new faces and four returning Council members, will now sit on the Law Society’s Council for three years with their first Council meeting taking place on Friday 29 May.
The successful candidates for this year's Council elections are:
Dingwall, Dornoch, Elgin, Inverness, Kirkwall, Lerwick, Lochmaddy, Portree, Stornoway, Tain & Wick:
- George MacWilliam, MacArthur & Co, Inverness
- Sheekha Saha, Comhairle Nan Eilean Siar Council, Stornoway
Duns, Haddington, Jedburgh, Peebles and Selkirk:
- Iain Burke, Bannerman Burke, Selkirk
- Patricia Thom, Patricia Thom & Co, Galashiels
Campbeltown, Dumbarton, Dunoon, Fort William, Oban & Rothesay (uncontested):
- Philip Lafferty, Clyde Defence Lawyers Ltd, Clydebank
- Campbell Read, Stewart Balfour & Sutherland, Campbeltown
Arbroath, Dundee & Forfar:
- Murray Etherington, Thorntons Law, Dundee
Alloa, Falkirk, Linlithgow & Stirling:
- Ken Dalling, Dalling Solicitors, Stirling
- John Mulholland, Marshall Wilson Law Group Limited, Falkirk
England & Wales:
- Naomi Pryde, Matthew Arnold & Baldwin, London
The full results and more information about the Law Society Council can be found on the Society’s website at /councilelections.
ENDS 21 May 2015
Notes to editors:
The full results:
|
England and Wales (1 seat) |
Number of votes |
|
Cecilia Parker Aranha |
24 |
|
Naomi Pryde - ELECTED |
39 |
|
Spoilt / non votes |
11 |
|
Total (Turnout 12.7%) |
74 |
|
Arbroath, Dundee & Forfar (1 seat) |
Number of votes |
|
Murray Etherington - ELECTED |
79 |
|
Janet Hood |
43 |
|
Spoilt / non votes |
3 |
|
Total (Turnout 28.2%) |
125 |
|
Alloa, Falkirk, Linlithgow & Stirling (2 seats) |
Number of 1st preference votes |
2nd round |
3rd round |
|
Kirsty Cargill |
15 |
16.94 |
Eliminated |
|
Ken Dalling – ELECTED ROUND 3 |
27 |
29.98 |
33.88 |
|
Roy Lumsden |
17 |
17.45 |
25.04 |
|
John Mulholland – ELECTED ROUND 1 |
38 |
32.33 |
32.33 |
|
Spoilt / non votes |
11 |
|
|
|
Total (Turnout 32.4%) |
108 |
|
|
|
Duns, Haddington, Jedburgh, Peebles and Selkirk (2 seats) |
Number of 1st preference votes |
2nd round |
3rd round |
|
Iain Burke – ELECTED ROUND 3 |
16 |
16 |
17.48 |
|
Struan Ferguson |
12 |
13 |
15.12 |
|
Alan Livingstone |
10 |
Eliminated |
|
|
Patricia Thom – ELECTED ROUND 2 |
14 |
22 |
17.33 |
|
Spoilt / non votes |
2 |
|
|
|
Total (Turnout 38.9%) |
108 |
|
|
|
Dingwall, Dornoch, Elgin, Inverness, Kirkwall, Lerwick, Lochmaddy, Portree, Stornoway, Tain & Wick (2 seats) |
Number of 1st preference votes |
|
Diane Macfarlane |
16 |
|
George MacWilliam – ELECTED ROUND 1 |
65 |
|
Sheekha Saha – ELECTED ROUND 1 |
52 |
|
Spoilt / non votes |
14 |
|
Total (Turnout 36.3%) |
147 |
|
Campbeltown, Dumbarton, Dunoon, Fort William, Oban & Rothesay (2 seats - candidates returned unopposed) |
|
Philip Lafferty |
|
Campbell Read |
Spoilt votes include those where a voter gave the same first preference to more than one candidate. Non-votes are where a voter submits a ballot without expressing a preference for any candidate.
A full list of the Law Society’s Council members is on the Law Society’s website /about-us/who-we-are/council-members/
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION: Journalists can contact Sarah Sutton on 0131 476 8170 sarahsutton@lawscot.org.uk