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					<dc:identifier>http://www.legislation.gov.uk/asp/2025/12/section/71/enacted</dc:identifier><dc:title>Victims, Witnesses, and Justice Reform (Scotland) Act 2025</dc:title><dc:publisher>King's Printer for Scotland</dc:publisher><dc:modified>2025-11-11</dc:modified>
					
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</ukm:DocumentClassification><ukm:Year Value="2025"/><ukm:Number Value="12"/><ukm:EnactmentDate Date="2025-10-30"/><ukm:ISBN Value="9780105904410"/></ukm:PrimaryMetadata>
					

                    
									<ukm:Notes><ukm:Note IdURI="http://www.legislation.gov.uk/id/asp/2025/12/section/71/notes" DocumentURI="http://www.legislation.gov.uk/asp/2025/12/section/71/notes"/><ukm:Alternatives><ukm:Alternative URI="http://www.legislation.gov.uk/asp/2025/12/pdfs/aspen_20250012_en.pdf" Date="2026-05-19" Title="Explanatory Notes" Size="1336071"/></ukm:Alternatives>       
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				</ukm:Metadata><Primary><Body DocumentURI="http://www.legislation.gov.uk/asp/2025/12/body/enacted" IdURI="http://www.legislation.gov.uk/id/asp/2025/12/body" NumberOfProvisions="148"><Part DocumentURI="http://www.legislation.gov.uk/asp/2025/12/part/7/enacted" IdURI="http://www.legislation.gov.uk/id/asp/2025/12/part/7" NumberOfProvisions="35" id="part-7"><Number>Part 7</Number><Title>Sexual Offences Court</Title><Chapter DocumentURI="http://www.legislation.gov.uk/asp/2025/12/part/7/chapter/1/enacted" IdURI="http://www.legislation.gov.uk/id/asp/2025/12/part/7/chapter/1" NumberOfProvisions="7" id="part-7-chapter-1"><Number>Chapter 1</Number><Title>Establishment, jurisdiction and Judges of the Sexual Offences Court</Title><Pblock DocumentURI="http://www.legislation.gov.uk/asp/2025/12/part/7/chapter/1/crossheading/jurisdiction-and-competence/enacted" IdURI="http://www.legislation.gov.uk/id/asp/2025/12/part/7/chapter/1/crossheading/jurisdiction-and-competence" NumberOfProvisions="2" id="part-7-chapter-1-crossheading-jurisdiction-and-competence"><Title>Jurisdiction and competence</Title><P1group><Title>Jurisdiction: sexual offences</Title><P1 DocumentURI="http://www.legislation.gov.uk/asp/2025/12/section/71/enacted" IdURI="http://www.legislation.gov.uk/id/asp/2025/12/section/71" id="section-71">
<Pnumber>71</Pnumber>
<P1para>
<P2 DocumentURI="http://www.legislation.gov.uk/asp/2025/12/section/71/1/enacted" IdURI="http://www.legislation.gov.uk/id/asp/2025/12/section/71/1" id="section-71-1">
<Pnumber>1</Pnumber>
<P2para>
<Text>The Sexual Offences Court may try any sexual offence which is triable on indictment in any place in Scotland.</Text>
</P2para>
</P2>
<P2 DocumentURI="http://www.legislation.gov.uk/asp/2025/12/section/71/2/enacted" IdURI="http://www.legislation.gov.uk/id/asp/2025/12/section/71/2" id="section-71-2">
<Pnumber>2</Pnumber>
<P2para>
<Text>Where an indictment includes at least one sexual offence when the indictment is served, the Sexual Offences Court may try every offence listed on the indictment.</Text>
</P2para>
</P2>
<P2 DocumentURI="http://www.legislation.gov.uk/asp/2025/12/section/71/3/enacted" IdURI="http://www.legislation.gov.uk/id/asp/2025/12/section/71/3" id="section-71-3">
<Pnumber>3</Pnumber>
<P2para>
<Text>But an indictment in the Sexual Offences Court may not include the offence of—</Text>
<P3 DocumentURI="http://www.legislation.gov.uk/asp/2025/12/section/71/3/a/enacted" IdURI="http://www.legislation.gov.uk/id/asp/2025/12/section/71/3/a" id="section-71-3-a">
<Pnumber>a</Pnumber>
<P3para>
<Text>treason,</Text>
</P3para>
</P3>
<P3 DocumentURI="http://www.legislation.gov.uk/asp/2025/12/section/71/3/b/enacted" IdURI="http://www.legislation.gov.uk/id/asp/2025/12/section/71/3/b" id="section-71-3-b">
<Pnumber>b</Pnumber>
<P3para>
<Text>breach of duty by magistrates.</Text>
</P3para>
</P3>
</P2para>
</P2>
<P2 DocumentURI="http://www.legislation.gov.uk/asp/2025/12/section/71/4/enacted" IdURI="http://www.legislation.gov.uk/id/asp/2025/12/section/71/4" id="section-71-4">
<Pnumber>4</Pnumber>
<P2para>
<Text>In this Part, “<Term id="term-sexual-offence">sexual offence</Term>” means—</Text>
<P3 DocumentURI="http://www.legislation.gov.uk/asp/2025/12/section/71/4/a/enacted" IdURI="http://www.legislation.gov.uk/id/asp/2025/12/section/71/4/a" id="section-71-4-a">
<Pnumber>a</Pnumber>
<P3para>
<Text>an offence listed for the time being in schedule <InternalLink Ref="schedule-4" IdURI="http://www.legislation.gov.uk/id/asp/2025/12/schedule/4" DocumentURI="http://www.legislation.gov.uk/asp/2025/12/schedule/4/enacted">4</InternalLink>,</Text>
</P3para>
</P3>
<P3 DocumentURI="http://www.legislation.gov.uk/asp/2025/12/section/71/4/b/enacted" IdURI="http://www.legislation.gov.uk/id/asp/2025/12/section/71/4/b" id="section-71-4-b">
<Pnumber>b</Pnumber>
<P3para>
<Text>attempting or conspiring to commit an offence listed for the time being in schedule <InternalLink Ref="schedule-4" IdURI="http://www.legislation.gov.uk/id/asp/2025/12/schedule/4" DocumentURI="http://www.legislation.gov.uk/asp/2025/12/schedule/4/enacted">4</InternalLink>,</Text>
</P3para>
</P3>
<P3 DocumentURI="http://www.legislation.gov.uk/asp/2025/12/section/71/4/c/enacted" IdURI="http://www.legislation.gov.uk/id/asp/2025/12/section/71/4/c" id="section-71-4-c">
<Pnumber>c</Pnumber>
<P3para>
<Text>aiding, abetting, counselling, procuring or inciting the commission of an offence listed for the time being in schedule 4.</Text>
</P3para>
</P3>
</P2para>
</P2>
<P2 DocumentURI="http://www.legislation.gov.uk/asp/2025/12/section/71/5/enacted" IdURI="http://www.legislation.gov.uk/id/asp/2025/12/section/71/5" id="section-71-5">
<Pnumber>5</Pnumber>
<P2para>
<Text>The Scottish Ministers may, by regulations, modify—</Text>
<P3 DocumentURI="http://www.legislation.gov.uk/asp/2025/12/section/71/5/a/enacted" IdURI="http://www.legislation.gov.uk/id/asp/2025/12/section/71/5/a" id="section-71-5-a">
<Pnumber>a</Pnumber>
<P3para>
<Text>the definition in <InternalLink Ref="section-71-4" IdURI="http://www.legislation.gov.uk/id/asp/2025/12/section/71/4" DocumentURI="http://www.legislation.gov.uk/asp/2025/12/section/71/4/enacted">subsection (4)</InternalLink>,</Text>
</P3para>
</P3>
<P3 DocumentURI="http://www.legislation.gov.uk/asp/2025/12/section/71/5/b/enacted" IdURI="http://www.legislation.gov.uk/id/asp/2025/12/section/71/5/b" id="section-71-5-b">
<Pnumber>b</Pnumber>
<P3para>
<Text>the list in schedule <InternalLink Ref="schedule-4" IdURI="http://www.legislation.gov.uk/id/asp/2025/12/schedule/4" DocumentURI="http://www.legislation.gov.uk/asp/2025/12/schedule/4/enacted">4</InternalLink>.</Text>
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