The Tumbling Lassie Committee event in the Advocates’ Library

Sheriff Maryam Labaki, Chair of The Tumbling Lassie Committee, with Richard Blake in the Reading Room of the Advocates' Library, Edinburgh.

I was delighted to have been invited by The Tumbling Lassie Committee to give a talk in the Reading Room of the Advocates’ Library in Edinburgh on 9 May.

The Committee does great work in raising funds for two charities:

International Justice Mission (IJM)

International Justice Mission is a global team of lawyers, social workers, investigators, community activists and other professionals who protect the poor from violence throughout the developing world. They partner with public justice systems to rescue victims of violence, bring criminals to justice, restore survivors and strengthen justice systems.

Survivors of Human Trafficking in Scotland (SOHTIS)

SOHTIS is an exciting new charity committed to providing medium to long term aftercare services for survivors of human trafficking in Scotland, minimising their risk of re-trafficking and empowering their integration into society.

To date, the Committee has raised in excess of £100,000 and I am very pleased to be contributing in a small way.

The Advocates’ Library, situated behind St Giles Cathedral in Parliament Square, is a wonderful building and the Dean of the Faculty of Advocates gave permission to use the Reading Room for the very well attended talk.

The talk was based around the life of John Grant of Kilgraston, Chief Justice of Jamaica in the eighteenth century, with particular reference to his manuscript record of Court Decisions, which is believed to be the earliest of its kind in the Caribbean. Comparison was drawn to the early manuscript book of Sarawak court decisions, which had been recorded by his great-nephew, Charles Grant of Kilgraston while in the service of Sir James Brooke, the first Rajah. The talk was completed with several references to the Grants of Kilgraston which can today be found in Edinburgh.