Last week the Law Society of Scotland held a special meeting held in Edinburgh’s Murrayfield stadium, to review its support for the Legal Services (Scotland) Bill with a referendum. But it all went horribly wrong.

In favour of reform, the country’s so-called ‘big four’ firms – Dundas & Wilson, McGrigors, Maclay Murray & Spens and Shepherd & Wedderburn. Against – the majority of smaller firms.

It is estimated that more than 2,000 solicitors voted to oppose external ownership of practices in advance of the meeting, while about 900 were in favour. Most of the voting would have been done by proxy…if a vote had gone ahead.

With the referendum not looking like it would go the way reformers wanted, Scotland’s Law Society president tabled a Motion to adjourn. Conveniently, only votes present at the meeting counted in the vote to adjourn so the adjournment motion was carried by 76 of those in attendance to 34 against.

Leaving some really angry Scotsmen.

Powers That Be avoiding a referendum until they get the answer they want. Sound familiar?

Despite the lack of actual result, those opposed to reforms have hailed it as the ‘halting of the Tesco law juggernaut’.

To be continued…