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Sheriff court records
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The National Archives of Scotland (NAS) receives regular deposits
of records from the Scottish sheriff courts, the earliest of which
is from Cupar Sheriff Court written in 1515.
Early development
The sheriff was a royal official appointed to help the king establish
control in the localities. The first mention of a sheriff in Scotland
occurs in the reign of David I (1124-53). Sheriffs performed a wide
variety of duties, administrative, financial, military as well as
judicial. Judicially, the sheriffs dealt with both civil and criminal
cases and appeals as well as first-time cases. Unfortunately, the
Crown's practice of appointing powerful barons to the office meant
the barons used the office to profit themselves, not the king. Increasingly
the office became hereditary. A further problem was the development
of a competing system of courts, principally the courts of regality
or 'little kingdoms' in which Scottish lords could try any crime except
treason and in whose running the sheriffs played no part. |
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The sixteenth century to the Act of Union
The period is characterised by the frustrated attempts of the Crown
to remedy the abuses and inefficiencies of the sheriffs. An act
of 1506 declared that the king had the power to create sheriffdoms
as he saw fit. A further act of 1540 attempted with some success
to professionalise the workings of the court by ordering that the
sheriffs follow the procedure of the Court of Session. In 1587 and
intermittently throughout the following century, the Crown tried
to use justices of the peace to bring law and order to the localities.
Unfortunately, the relative weakness of the Crown in Scotland allied
to the intense conservatism of the Scottish legal system meant that
most of these reforms lacked teeth. The granting of heritable sheriffdoms
actually increased during the reign of Charles II (1660-85) in gratitude
for his restoration to the throne.
The Act of Union to 1975
By 1700 sheriffs heard most of the civil and criminal cases in Scotland,
yet 21 out of 33 sheriffdoms were held on a hereditary basis. The
government lacked the will to intervene until the Jacobite rising
of 1745-6, which prompted it, from 1748, to abolish most hereditary
offices and heritable (i.e. non-royal) jurisdictions. Salaried sheriff
deputes who were qualified advocates (i.e. members of the Scottish
Bar) were now placed in charge of sheriff courts, aided by their own
deputies, the sheriffs-substitute. Neither office was new but they
came to form the backbone of the county judicial system. Although
the criminal powers of sheriffs were reduced during the nineteenth
century, particularly in some types of capital cases, the growth of
the Scottish population, allied to growing pressures on the Court
of Session, Scotland's supreme civil court, led to new legal and
administrative responsibilities being given to sheriffs. Jurisdiction
in small debt cases, testamentary matters, maritime cases and bankruptcies
were all added to the sheriffs' workload during the nineteenth century.
The deputes and substitutes were the forerunners of the modern sheriffs
and sheriffs principal who currently preside over 6 sheriffdoms and
49 sheriff court districts. Sheriffs have continued to acquire new
functions during the twentieth century, most notably in recent times
in the field of divorce.
For information on the modern Sheriff Courts visit the Scottish Court Service website (link available under Other Websites on left hand side of this page).
The records
Sheriff courts in Scotland are second only in importance to the supreme
civil and criminal courts. Their records, dating from the 16th century,
contain an enormous range of civil, criminal and administrative material
(material that is often overlooked). A summary of the main records
is listed below.
Court books, registers and processes
Brief details of cases coming before the court as well as records of
administrative matters. Processes later than 1860 are weeded in terms
of a statutory instrument.
Workmen's compensation
The Workmen's Compensation Act, 1897 (c.37) awarded compensation
to employees injured in the course of employment. The system was
ended by the National Insurance (Industrial Injuries) Act, 1946
(c.67).
Fatal accident inquiries
In Scotland Fatal Accident Inquiries have been held since 1895 into
fatal accidents in the workplace and cases of sudden death where
public interest was involved, but not into deaths by suicide. Not
all records of sheriff court fatal accident inquiries have survived.
The records of each inquiry are gradually being individually listed
as part of a recataloguing programme.
Sequestration records
Sheriff courts were given jurisdiction along with the Court of Session
in bankruptcy procedure (sequestration) by the Bankruptcy (Scotland)
Act, 1839 (c.41).
Criminal records
Records of criminal cases are in the main series of registers and
processes until the end of the 19th century. The records also contain
the registers of Juvenile Courts set up by the 1908 Children Act
(c.67).
Registers of deeds and protests
These contain legal documents registered for preservation and execution.
In older courts they generally start in the seventeenth century.
Commissary records
From the 1820s wills and related papers were registered at the sheriff
courts. The registers contain wills, inventories of the deceased's
goods and the court's confirmation of the executors.
Services of heirs
Sheriff courts held inquests to determine claimants' rights to heritable
property and the decisions were sent to chancery. Some records of
these inquests survive showing the relationship between claimant
and deceased.
Register of improvements to entailed estates
Under the Montgomery Act of 1770 (c.51), owners of entailed estates
were allowed to charge their estates with three-quarters of the
cost of improvements made. Intimation of intended improvements and
a record of expenditure on them had to be registered in the sheriff
court.
Fiars courts
Fiars were the official prices of grain fixed by the sheriffs. The
records begin in the 17th century and include lists of jurors, notes
of their evidence and the prices struck. Prices, Food and Wages
in Scotland, 1550-1780 by A J S Gibson and T C Smout (1994).
Corn law returns
Between 1773 and 1821 sheriffs were required to convene a number
of local people periodically to decide grain prices in the county.
The records give names of jurors and prices returned.
Private legislation papers: public utilities
Under the Commissioners' Clauses Act, 1847 (c.16), commissioners
of public undertakings were required to lodge a copy of their annual
accounts with the sheriff court. Such records as survive usually
result from applications by local authorities relating to railways,
water and electricity supplies.
Freeholders' records
Details of freeholders, men who owned land or other heritable property
and were entitled to vote before the 1832 Reform Act, are kept and
for some courts survive from the 17th century.
Post 1832 electoral records
Electoral registers for the following:
| NAS Reference |
County |
Dates |
| SC14/64 |
Caithness |
1832-60 |
| SC64/63 |
Clackmannan and Kinross |
1832-62 |
| SC24/21 |
Cromarty |
1832-3 |
| SC29/71 |
Inverness |
1832-72 |
| SC16/68 |
Kirkcudbright |
1832-62 |
| SC41/99 |
Linlithgow |
1837 |
| SC31/60 |
Nairn |
1847-73 |
| SC42/44 |
Peebles |
1832-61 |
| SC62/73 |
Roxburgh |
1832-46 |
| SC63/61 |
Selkirk |
1832-61 |
| SC67/61 |
Stirling |
1832-62 |
| SC19/64 |
Wigtown |
1832-61 |
Other rolls are in burgh records.
Commissioners of supply
Set up in 1667 to collect the cess (land tax) although they also dealt
with roads and bridges. Abolished in 1930, they effectively ceased
with the reform of local government and the establishment of county
councils in 1889.
Lieutenancy and militia records
Under the Militia Acts of 1797 (c.103) and 1802 (c.91), the lords
lieutenants were responsible for raising local militia. Sheriff court
records may contain minutes of lieutenancy meetings, muster rolls
and returns of militia.
Records of heritable jurisdictions
Under the Heritable Jurisdictions Act of 1746 (c.43), most courts
of heritable jurisdiction such as regality courts were abolished and
their jurisdiction and records transferred to sheriff courts. Records
of several regality courts and some bailie courts survive in the sheriff
court series. The catalogue of the local court series (RH11) contains
an appendix of such material in other record groups and is available
in the Historical Search Room.
Plans (NAS ref. RHP)
Information on plans from sheriff court records and other collections
can be found in the guide to topographical, architectural and engineering
plans.
Not all sheriff court records are preserved, as current legislation
allows for the weeding (i.e. selective destruction) of some types
of records. However, the NAS does try to keep a record in some form
of each case heard in sheriff courts. With the exception of a few
minor administrative papers, the records of Linlithgow Sheriff Court
(NAS ref. SC41) are preserved as a specimen whole as are to a lesser
degree the records of the island courts (Kirkwall - NAS ref. SC11;
Lerwick - NAS ref. SC12; Lochmaddy - NAS ref. SC30; Portree - NAS
ref. SC32; and Stornoway - NAS ref. SC33). The records for Orkney
and Shetland are held by the archive services there. Note that most
records are transferred to the NAS after 25 years and are otherwise
held by the sheriff court.
| County |
Sheriff court |
NAS references |
Notes |
| Aberdeen |
Aberdeen |
SC1 |
|
| |
Peterhead |
SC4 |
|
| Angus(Forfar) |
Arbroath |
SC43 |
|
| |
Dundee |
SC45 |
|
| |
Forfar |
SC47 |
|
| Argyll |
Campbeltown |
SC50 |
|
| |
Dunoon |
SC51 |
|
| |
Fort William (Argyll) |
SC52 |
closed 1938 |
| |
Inveraray |
SC54 |
closed 1903 |
| |
Oban |
SC57 |
|
| |
Tobermory |
SC59 |
closed 1905 |
| Ayr |
Ayr |
SC6 |
|
| |
Kilmarnock |
SC7 |
|
| Banff |
Banff |
SC2 |
|
| Berwick |
Duns |
SC60 |
|
| Bute |
Rothesay |
SC8 |
|
| Caithness |
Wick |
SC14 |
|
| Clackmannan |
Alloa |
SC64 |
|
| Dumfries |
Dumfries |
SC15 |
|
| Dunbarton |
Dumbarton |
SC65 |
|
| East Lothian (Haddington) |
Haddington |
SC40 |
|
| Edinburgh City |
Edinburgh |
SC39 |
|
| |
Leith |
SC69 |
closed 1920 |
| Fife |
Cupar |
SC20 |
|
| |
Dunfermline |
SC21 |
|
| |
Kirkcaldy |
SC23 |
|
| Glasgow City |
Glasgow |
SC36 |
|
| |
Paisley |
SC58 |
|
| Inverness |
Fort William (Inverness-shire) |
SC28 |
|
| |
Inverness |
SC29 |
|
| |
Lochmaddy |
SC30 |
|
| |
Portree |
SC32 |
|
| Kincardine |
Stonehaven |
SC5 |
|
| Kinross |
Kinross |
SC22 |
closed 1975 |
| Kirkcudbright |
Dumfries (Kirkcudbright) |
SC17 |
closed 1941 |
| |
Kirkcudbright |
SC16 |
1623-1961 |
| Lanark |
Airdrie |
SC35 |
|
| |
Glasgow |
SC36 |
|
| |
Hamilton |
SC37 |
|
| |
Lanark |
SC38 |
|
| Midlothian (Edinburgh) |
Edinburgh |
SC39 |
|
| Moray (Elgin) |
Elgin |
SC26 |
|
| Nairn |
Nairn |
SC31 |
closed 1977 |
| Orkney |
Kirkwall |
SC11 |
held in Kirkwall |
| |
Orkney & Shetland |
SC10 |
17th century only |
| Peebles |
Peebles |
SC42 |
|
| Perth |
Dunblane |
SC44 |
closed 1975 |
| |
Perth |
SC49 |
|
| Renfrew |
Greenock |
SC53 |
|
| |
Paisley |
SC58 |
|
| Ross and Cromarty |
Cromarty |
SC24 |
closed 1934 |
| |
Dingwall |
SC25 |
|
| |
Stornoway |
SC33 |
|
| |
Tain |
SC34 |
|
| Roxburgh |
Hawick |
SC61 |
|
| |
Jedburgh |
SC62 |
|
| Selkirk |
Selkirk |
SC63 |
|
| Shetland |
Lerwick |
SC12 |
held in Lerwick |
| |
Orkney & Shetland |
SC10 |
17th century only |
| Stirling |
Falkirk |
SC66 |
|
| |
Stirling |
SC67 |
|
| Sutherland |
Dornoch |
SC9 |
|
| West Lothian (Linlithgow) |
Linlithgow |
SC41 |
|
| Wigtown |
Stranraer |
SC18 |
|
| |
Wigtown |
SC19 |
closed 1975 |
Using the records of sheriff courts
With the exception of adoption records, which are closed for 100 years,
all sheriff court papers are open to the public.
Certain series are searchable, such as the registers of testaments
up to 1901, which have been digitally imaged and are available through
the ScotlandsPeople website as well as in the NAS search
rooms. (There is a guide
to wills and testaments which gives more information on using
the records). Post-1860 civil actions are gradually being individually
listed as part of a recataloguing programme. Searching other court
records can be frustrating because most remain unindexed.
There can be large gaps within individual series, particularly for
earlier periods. Additionally, sometimes a particular type of record
(such as the ejection of tenants from estates) is logged in a special
register at a later date, but lumped in with other types of records
for earlier years. There can also be a degree of overlap with Court
of Session cases, for example in the records of people appointed to
handle the affairs of lunatics and minors.
Some sheriff courts have now closed and their functions were absorbed
by neighbouring courts. If no trace of a case is initially found,
bear in mind that the jurisdictions of sheriff courts varied at different
periods, eg the overlap of the boundaries of the Argyll and Inverness-shire
sheriff courts at Fort William (NAS ref. SC28 and SC52).
Further reading
Isabel A Milne, 'The sheriff court: Before the sixteenth century'
and C A Malcolm, 'The sheriff court: Sixteenth century and later'
in 'An Introduction to Scottish Legal History' (Stair Society, 1958)
Richard Muir, 'The Development of Sheriffdoms' in Peter McNeill and
Ranald Nicholson (eds), 'An Historical Atlas of Scotland c.400 - c.1600'
(Atlas Committee of Scottish Medievalists, 1975)
Sheriff David B Smith, 'The sheriff court' in Stair Memorial Encyclopaedia,
6, (The Law Society of Scotland, 1988)
Ann E Whetstone, 'Scottish county government in the eighteenth and
nineteenth centuries' (Edinburgh, 1981)
National Archives of Scotland
Crown Copyright 2006
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