George Street is a major street in the New Town section of Edinburgh.

George Street is located in the capital of Scotland, Edinburgh. Specifically, within its New Town Section. George Street has come to be important both in a practical and geographical sense, harboring valuable commercial properties and commonly accessed thoroughfare.

George Street was planned by James Craig, as an integral part of his New Town design. The street was laid in 1767,and named after King George III. The road runs West-East through Edinburgh, with Charlotte Square on one end St. Andrews square on the other. George Street is intercepted by Fredrick Street, Hanover Street and Castle Street. Along its length, George Street has numerous significant buildings like the Assembly Rooms, St Andrews and St Georges Church.

George Street used to hold a concentration of financial industry offices and buildings. In recent years the balance has shifted towards lease offices, delis, cafes, and bars. Some firms like Standard Life Investments have retained their offices along George Street. The Church of Scotland offices can still be found on George Street. Over 400 lighthouses and becons are remotely controlled from George Street, at the Northern Lighthouse Board headquarters.

1937-2000

Donald Dewar was the first holder of the First Minister of Scotland position.

Donald Dewar was born in Glasgow, on the 21st August 1937. He was the only child to successful but health stricken parents. His mother died early in his life, from a brain tumor, and his father suffered from tuberculosis. Donald Dewar began his education at the Glasgow Academy. In 1957 he began a degree at the University of Glasgow and graduated with a MA in History in 1961, and a Bachelor of Laws in 1964.

The political career Donald Dewar began during his studies when he chaired the the Glasgow University Labour Club and held the position of the President of the Glasgow University Union. Until he was elected to the Parliament of the United Kingdom in 1966, Donald Dower worked as a solicitor of in Glasgow. Donald Dower took a break from politics in the 1970s, yet came back to parliament in 1978. By 1984 Donald Dower had attained a role in the Shadow Cabinet. During the 1997 as leader of the majority winning Labour Party, Donald Dower was given the role of Secretary of State of Scotland.

Doanld Dower was once again elected to a majority position during the first election of the devolved Scottish Parliament. On the 17th of May 1999 Donald Dower received the Queens official appointment for the position of First Minister of Scotland.

On the 10th of October 2000, at the age of 68, Donald Dower died from a brain hemorrhage. He was suffering from heart problems at the time.

The Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service is a department of the Scottish Government which deals with criminal prosecutions.

The Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service is charged with the investigation and prosecution of criminal offenses, the assessment of treasure troves (assets which are discovered and believed to belong to someone who is now deceased), investigations of deaths with sudden or suspicious circumstances, assessment of land that has been vacated and being possessed by the government and also internal investigation of police behavior.

The Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service is headed by the Scottish Lord General, who is assisted by the Solicitor General of Scotland. The employees of the department are considered to be civil servants and carry out the administrative side of its business, although solicitors and advocates are also employed to represent the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service in court.

Due to poor record keeping and loses of administrative documents over time, the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service is a difficult aspect of the Scottish law system to define and ascertain in origin. The task of discovering its origins is made all the more difficult as it seems that the Lord's Advocate position and the procurator fiscal position were not always one. The earliest reference to a Lord's advocate is dated 1462, and a specified Lord's Advocate office is on record in 1478. In 1492 it is adamantly clear that the position had reached a point as it stands now, with only one advocate being present for the monarch. Similarly, the position of Procurator Fiscal is recorded for the first time in 22 August 1584, with several being named for the Edinburgh area.

Bute House is the official residence of the First Minister of Scotland, equivalent to England's 10 Downing Street.

Bute House is officially regarded as the residence of the First Minister of Scotland, although it serves multiple purposes beyond that capacity. Bute House is employed as the meeting place of Scottish Government's Cabinet. Press conferences, ministerial receptions and meetings with dignitaries also take place at the residence. The employment and dismissal of Government ministers also occurs at Bute House. Besides this, the house is equipped with kitchens, offices, accommodation and other facilities relating to it serving as a residence.

Bute House is located at 6 Charlotte Square, in the New Town area of Edinburgh. Currently it is under the ownership of the National Trust of Scotland, it is under the legal supervision of the Bute House Trustees. Previous to serving as the residence of the First Minister of Scotland, Bute House was the residence of Secretary of State of Scotland, although this changed with the devolution of the Scottish Parliament in 1999.

Bute House passed to the National Trust for Scotland in 1966, as a means of payment for the duty owed by the 5th Marquee of Bute. Originally, the land upon which Bute House was built was purchased by an Edinburgh shoemaker, Orlando Hart, for a mere £290, in 1792. He sold it in 1806 for £2,950.

The Justiciar is an outdated legal and political position from Scotland.

In modern day terms, the Justiciar is equivalent to a contemporary Prime Minister. Their prevalent purpose was to act as the monarch’s chief minister. In Scotland there were typically two people in these positions, Justiciar of Scotia (the kingdom above the River Forth) and Justiciar of Lothian (area below the River Ford), although for some time in the 13th century there was also a Justiciar of Galloway. In each area, the Justiciar was the highest legal officer and charged with the administrative duties that this had associated with it.

The position of Justiciar is thought to have been created in the 12th century by Alexander I, or David I. The position is believed to have stemmed from the pre-12th century practice of Scottish justices travelling around the country in a circuit and hearing court cases. By 1524, the position of Justiciar had evolved into having a permanent base in Edinburgh. Thus the College of Justice was created from the Justiciar. The title of Lord Justice-General is today’s direct equivalent of the Justiciar. Interestingly, the Duke of Argyll still posses the title of High Justiciar of Argyll, although this does not bear any responsibility or job with it.

Arthur Hamilton is currently Scotland’s highest judge.

Arthur Hamilton holds the positions of Lord Justice General and Lord President of the Court of Session, making him the head of Scotland’s judicial system. With the exception of the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom, Arthur Hamilton has authority over any Scots Law established court. He attained the position after the retirement of William Douglas from the role, in the November 2005.

Arthur Hamilton, who came to be known as Lord Hamilton, was born in Glasgow on the 10th of June 1942. He attended the Glasgow High School, along with the University of Glasgow, both Oxford and Edinburgh University, and Worcester College. In 1967 he attained a Bachelor of Laws. In 1968 he achieved admittance into the Faculty of Advocates. Previous to being appointed Senator of the College of Justice in 1995, Arthur Hamilton held the position of Judge of the Courts of Appeal of Jersey and Guernsey, he was also the President of the Pensions Appeal Tribunal.

Arthur Hamilton served as a commercial judge with primary concerns in commercial law, for his first years in the College of Justice. In 2002 he was appointed to be a Judge of the Inner House of the Court of Session. He continued in this position until it was announced in the November of 2005 that he would be appointed the highest legal position in the land. Arthur Hamilton took office on the 2nd of December, 2005.

The Faculty of Advocates is the name given to the independent body of lawyers who are able to plead in front of the courts of Scotland.

The Faculty of Advocates was officially established in 1532 by an Act of the Parliament of Scotland, it was created concurrently to the College of Justice. Although there are no official records proving it, the use of a certified body of lawyers is thought to predate the creation of the Faculty of Advocates. Unlike the Bar association of England and Wales, the Faculty of Advocates operates on a voting system and not a standing council, meaning that all serving positions are subject to voting to attain.

The Faculty of Advocates is led by the Dean of the Faculty of Advocates. The lower positions are Vice-Dean, Treasurer, Clerk and Keeper of the Library and Chairman of Faculty Services Ltd. The lawyers servings within the Faculty of Advocates are called Advocates. As a Court of Sessions mandate, the Faculty of Advocates is charged with the preparation of Intrants (entrant lawyers) for admission to the title of Advocate. The process of admission requires a structured program of training (called devilling). As part of an effort to provide legal aid for all who need it, the devilling process requires a time of serving on the Free Legal Services Unit. The Faculty of Advocates also maintains Scotland’s Advocate’s Library, which is regarded as the highest quality law library in the United Kingdom.

The High Court of Justiciary is the highest criminal court in Scotland.

The High Court of Justiciary is analogous to the Court of Sessions, for the criminal section of the Scottish law system. The High Court of Justiciary is part of the College of Justice, as in the Court of Sessions. In fact, the two are so closely related that the High Court of Justiciary and the Court of Sessions share many of there members, it is common for the judges on both to be the same. The Court of Session's Lord President is the Lord Justice General of the High Court of Justiciary, the highest position on both.

The High Court of Justiciary is both the court of first instance and appeal for Scotland's criminal system. Typically a first instance case will be seen by one judge and fifteen jury members, although more difficult cases will warrant the attention of two judges. The High Court of Justiciary often has sole jurisdiction over serious crimes like murder, bypassing the lower court system.

The High Court of Justiciary is presided over by three judges if an appeal to a conviction is seen, in the case of an appeal on a sentence only two judges will be present. In the Scottish law system there are no courts higher than the High Court of Justiciary , so no further appeals are possible.

The College of Justice is the name given to the Supreme Courts of Scotland.

The founding of the College of Justice came under a papal bull from Pope Clement VII, it was later created by King James V in 1532. Pope Clement VII provided a clause in the papal that required 10,000 gold ducats for the funding of the College of Justice from Scotland's church institutions. Having been ordered and funded by the church, it was also mandated that the College of Justice be made up half of "eclastical dignity", meaning people of the church.

Scottish parliament passed an act on the 17th of May 1532, authorizing the creation of the College of Justice. Ten days later, on the 27th of May, the College of Justice met for the first time. Originally the College of Justice had a total of 14 Lord Chancellors and variable numbers of supernumery judges.

The proceedings of the College of Justice also led to the creating of various legal precedents in Scotland. Previous to the inception of the College of Justice, the concepts of law came from books on the Acts of Parliament of Scotland, Common Law, Civil and Canon Law, while this provided a basis it still gave no precedent for judgment in Scotland as a unified body. Though, the judgments of the judges of the College of Justice were recorded in the "Books of Practicks", leaving behind a verifiable record of previous judgments and standards.