Scotland has overhauled how criminal cases run and how abuse‑linked deaths are examined. The Criminal Justice Modernisation and Abusive Domestic Behaviour Reviews (Scotland) Act 2025 passed at Holyrood on 7 October and now has Royal Assent, bringing permanent digital procedures into court business and creating a new national system for reviewing domestic homicides and suicides.

For people and organisations across the North who work with Police Scotland and the Borders courts, the changes are practical. Paper-heavy tasks move online, routine hearings can run by video where judges consider it fair, and evidence will be handled digitally end‑to‑end-reducing travel and speeding up disclosure.

Electronic signatures are now valid on core criminal court documents and warrants, and documents can be served electronically-including to an accused person’s solicitor. The Lord Justice General can carve out exceptions. Ministers say this makes permanent the practices embedded during the pandemic.

Judges can direct remote attendance where it would not prejudice fairness or the interests of justice. Trials still default to in‑person, but virtual participation remains possible in specific situations. When the only party is a public official (for example, warrant applications), remote is the default unless the court orders attendance. The Lord Justice General can issue determinations to widen virtual hearings for particular lists.

Parliamentary scrutiny has been clear‑eyed about the limits. “We have seen that virtual court attendance can deliver improvements … but practical availability of resources and locations must be clarified,” Criminal Justice Committee convener Audrey Nicoll warned.

Evidence rules shift too. Images of physical items can stand in for the items themselves unless a judge orders otherwise. A new provision also lets verified police body‑worn video count as sufficient proof of time, date and place unless it’s disputed within seven days of disclosure-timely as Police Scotland’s national rollout gathers pace.

Digital Evidence Sharing Capability (DESC) is named in law as the secure store for documentary evidence. That matters to Northern retailers, logistics firms and councils operating on both sides of the border: CCTV and phone footage for Scottish cases can be uploaded once and shared across the justice partners, cutting delays and repeat requests. Police Scotland calls DESC “a secure shared platform to store and access digital evidence before the start of a trial”.

Fiscal fixed penalties are set at a higher ceiling of £500, with power for ministers to raise the cap later by regulation. Government papers note that use of the £500 level to date has been limited and only issued to adults.

Custody callings get a national footing: first appearances from police custody can be taken in any sheriff court, and in set circumstances the same court can keep the case moving. The legislation also extends this flexibility into JP courts. Partners argue this supports virtual custody lists and helps during severe weather or building closures-useful for cross‑border policing around Northumberland and Cumbria.

The Act also creates Scotland’s first statutory domestic homicide or suicide reviews, led by a new oversight committee which commissions case review panels. Core agencies-including police, prosecutors, councils and health boards-must cooperate. Reviews are about learning lessons, not attributing blame, with a focus on abuse within intimate or family settings and suicides where abuse was a factor.

Families’ privacy is central. Published material will avoid identifying victims, relatives or others, and the Lord Advocate must consent to any report being published. Ministers will issue a two‑yearly digest of themes and actions so lessons do not gather dust.

For readers in the North, there’s a familiar reference point. England and Wales have run Domestic Homicide Reviews since 2011, with Home Office guidance and an oversight process-so there’s scope for shared practice where lives routinely cross the border.

Timings matter. The first tranche of digital measures begins from 1 December 2025 or the day after Royal Assent (whichever is later), with other sections phased in by regulations. Ministers must review the virtual‑attendance rules after two years-so the system will be tested against fairness as well as speed.