Dorothy Bain, a bright representative of the Scottish legal community

Edinburgh is a city of talents. There is no other place in the world where so many people demonstrate their potential in different directions. Most of them have achieved fame not only in their native country but also far beyond its borders. Learn more at edinburghski.

Another feature of Edinburgh’s talents is the large scope of their self-realisation. Jurisprudence is no exception.

In this article, we will tell you about Dorothy Ruth Bain, one of the most famous Scottish lawyers. 

Childhood and family

The future star of jurisprudence was born in Edinburgh in 1964. The girl’s parents weren’t involved in the law sphere. Her father was a postman and her mother was a stenographer.

In addition, none of them studied at the university. So, when Dorothy and her two sisters became students at the University of Aberdeen, their parents were incredibly happy.

Having graduated from the aforementioned institution, Dorothy received an LLB degree and a Diploma in Legal Practice.

First steps on the path to a great career

After that, Dorothy Bain began an internship at one of the most famous law firms TF Reid & Donaldson. However, even after completing this stage, the girl still couldn’t decide on the law branch in which she would like to develop.

Then there was a period when Dorothy worked at Dundas & Wilson LLP. Only in 1994 did she realize that she wanted to be an advocate. From 1994 to 2002, Dorothy Bain was engaged exclusively in civil cases.

Important professional mission

Dorothy Bain’s career reached a new level in 2002. Then she took the position of Advocate Depute in the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service. In 2008, she was entrusted with a very important mission of compiling recommendations on the persecution of sex crimes in Scotland. The results of Dorothy’s work led to the creation of Scotland’s National Sexual Crimes Unit.

Professional development and improvement of skills

By that time, Bain had already managed to acquire the status of a talented and promising lawyer. Therefore, her career didn’t stand still.

Thus, she took the position of Principal Advocate Depute in the summer of 2009. Bain’s judicial investigations into high-profile cases turned into real sensations. In particular, this concerns the conviction of the biggest paedophile group in the UK and the large-scale case of 2009 related to child pornography.

Importantly, Dorothy Bain has honed her legal skills at different levels from the Court of Session (Scotland’s highest national court in civil cases) to the European Court of Human Rights (the international court of the Council of Europe, which interprets the European Convention on Human Rights and considers applications alleging violations of human rights by a state).

Best candidate for high office

After holding quite important and large positions, Dorothy returned to private practice in 2011.

However, thanks to her great legal potential, she was offered a high position again.

Thus, Bain was nominated for the position of Lord Advocate in June 2021 and the Scottish Parliament approved her candidacy. Dorothy Bain was sworn into office at the Court of Session.

Importantly, Bain had to take office when all public attention was focused on this position. The reason was that her predecessor James Wolffe was a participant in the trial of the former First Minister of Scotland, Alex Salmond.

In the same 2021, First Minister Nicola Sturgeon said that Dorothy Bain has extensive experience in both civil and criminal law. Therefore, her candidacy for the position of Lord Advocate was the best.

Bain’s participation in drug policy reform

Such a high position allowed Bain to implement many valuable initiatives. All of them contributed to improving the regulation of various social spheres.

In particular, Dorothy announced the reform of Scottish drug policy in September 2021.

After all, in the summer of 2021, the National Records of Scotland published information that drug deaths had increased by 5% in comparison to the previous year.

Bain drew attention to the fact that prosecutors in Scotland mainly play the role of intermediaries and that police officers have to report to the prosecutor about crime cases using a recorded police warning.

In addition, Bain has noted that as Lord Advocate she provides police officers with the extension of special instructions called the recorded police warning guidelines. They clearly state which offences are subject to the aforementioned warnings.

Dorothy said that the previous version of the guidelines gave police officers the power to issue warnings only for possession of Class B and C drugs. Bain decided to expand this document, adding the possession of Class A drugs.

Decisions during a global pandemic

Another Dorothy Bain’s wise decision as Lord Advocate was made during COVID-19 pandemic in Scotland. She directed to report all deaths that occurred due to coronavirus infection.

Dorothy also changed the system for registering deaths from the COVID-19 in Scottish nursing homes.

Thus, Dorothy Ruth Bain can rightly be considered one of the most successful lawyers in Edinburgh. This woman has demonstrated that high positions and valuable professional achievements are important not only for men. Women can be serious competitors too and Bain’s career proves it.