Eric John Scott

Findings — machine-extracted (anthropic-batch:claude-opus-4-8); verify against the decision

The respondent, an experienced family law solicitor acting for FP, wrote a letter dated 17 March 2022 to SA, an employee of the charity Children 1st, stating that the children required to recover from 'the abuse and trauma that they have suffered as a result of the alienating behaviour on the part of their mother' (JS). The Sheriff's judgment had found that JS deliberately alienated the children from their father and that there was a real risk of long-term damage to their mental health, but made no express finding of 'abuse' or 'trauma'. The Law Society alleged breaches of Rules B1.2 and B1.9.1, arguing the letter misrepresented the Sheriff's findings and showed lack of integrity. The Tribunal found the respondent to be a credible, reliable witness who had given careful consideration to the letter and had a reasonable basis, drawing on the Sheriff's findings of deliberate alienation and his own expertise in triangulation, for describing the children's experience as abuse and trauma. The Tribunal distinguished the case from McGeechan, found the conduct did not meet the Sharp test, and found the respondent not guilty of professional misconduct. The Tribunal concluded the prosecution was misconceived and awarded expenses in favour of the respondent.

⚠ figures not found verbatim in the source were dropped: ["review_dishonesty_finding_cue_present"]