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Publication - Factsheet

Public appointment: Member appointed to Scottish Legal Aid Board

Published
17 August 2026
Directorate
People Directorate

Public appointments news release

Part of

The Minister for Victims and Community Safety Kirsten Oswald MSP, today announced the appointment of Simon Brown as a Member of the Scottish Legal Aid Board.

Member

Simon Brown has worked as a solicitor in a high street practice for almost 30 years, specialising exclusively in criminal defence work. He obtained rights of audience in the High Court of Justiciary in 2006 and served as a Council Member of the Law Society of Scotland from 2013 to 2019, during which time he also sat on its Board.Mr Brown was a founding member of the Scottish Solicitors' Bar Association in 2021 and has served as its President since 2024. In this role, he has been actively involved in extensive discussions with the Scottish Government on legal aid and matters affecting the criminal Bar, and has appeared before the Justice Committee of the Scottish Parliament on several occasions.He is currently a member of the working group on Independent Legal Representation for rape complainers and has represented the Scottish Solicitors' Bar Association on the group tasked with implementing an Independent Fee Review Mechanism for legal aid.

Appointment

This appointment will be for 4 years and will run from 7 August 2026 and end on 31 March 2030.

This appointment is regulated by the Ethical Standards Commissioner.

Remuneration

This appointment is part-time and attracts a remuneration of £249 per day for a time commitment of 42 days per year.

Other ministerial appointments

Simon Brown does not hold any other public appointments.

Political activity

All appointments are made on merit and political activity plays no part in the selection process.  However, in accordance with the original Nolan recommendations, there is a requirement for appointees’ political activity within the last five years (if there is any to be declared) to be made public.   

Simon Brown has had no political activity within the last five years.

Background

The Scottish Legal Aid Board (SLAB) was set up in 1987 to manage legal aid in Scotland and is a non-departmental public body responsible to the Scottish Government. Legal aid allows people who would otherwise not be able to afford it, to get help for their legal problems.

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