Dr Robert Pirrie WS gave a paper in early April at a Symposium of senior academic historians held at King’s College London in memory of Professor Arthur Burns, one of the two professors who supervised Robert’s PhD. Robert’s paper was entitled Community, Church and King in Scotland, 1746-1830 in which he presented evidence of how church forms of worship, particular occasions of special national worship (thanksgiving days, fasts, special prayers), encouraged communities to see themselves as both Scottish Presbyterian and British. The Symposium was held to co-ordinate contributions to a volume of essays to be published by Boydell & Brewer in honour of Professor Burns. Robert is contributing a chapter to the book.
MEMBER SPOTLIGHT
Stuart Clubb WS
This month’s Member Spotlight features Stuart Clubb WS, a Society Council member and Partner and Joint Head of Shoosmith’s Dispute Resolution & Litigation team in Scotland.
Sarah Leask spoke to Stuart about being a commercial litigation lawyer, career highlights and his work in building and promoting a diverse and inclusive workplace.
SEALS AND SURVEILLANCE
A major addition to the WS Society’s Heritage Portal was posted on 14 April. This essay by the Signet Library’s conservator, Jo Hockey, traces the use of the historic wax seals used to close letters and how they were covertly broken by those wishing to look inside the envelopes. Hockey’s research highlights the key role played by the Post Office in intercepting and opening letters deemed to be sensitive: “The Post Office and its predecessors had always operated some form of espionage, indeed the earliest systems for the purpose of Royal communications were carefully monitored to ensure security of information and intelligence of potential threats”.
Hockey also considers key examples and cases of letters being opened, such as Entick v Carrington [1765] EWHC KB J98, and the ‘Mazzini case’, where a political activist for the unification of Italy brough a case against the Home Secretary, Sir James Graham, to protest the tampering of his correspondence. As knowledge of espionage against letter writers in the 19th century grew, reports into Post Office practices encouraged moves to respect writers’ privacy and balance the interests of State security against personal privacy.
The materials used to research this essay are held at the Signet Library, including reports, newspapers and, of course, many historic wax seals. Hockey’s research shines a light on the collections of the Signet Library and the previous scandals involving the Post Office, which continue to resonate in the 21st century.
UPCOMING CPD
The Society is delighted to be collaborating with some fantastic partners to bring you conferences on agricultural law, private client and professional negligence. These conferences are designed to equip you with the latest knowledge, skills, and strategies to excel in your field. All conferences are held in person at the Signet Library. Find more details in the links below.
ALA/WS Society 28th Joint Annual Conference on Agriculture | Friday 6 June, 9:00 am 4:30 pm
STEP/WS Private Client Conference | Thursday 9 October, 9:30 am 1:00 pm
PNLA/ WS Professional Negligence Conference | Thursday 23 October, 9:00 am 5:00 pm | Keynote address by The Hon Lord Lake
Please contact Sophie Mills WS with any questions.
ANNUAL DINNER 2025
Booking is now open for the highlight of the legal year, the Society’s Annual Dinner on Friday 14 November in the splendour of the Signet Library. The individual ticket price is £140 (plus VAT) or £1,400 (plus VAT) for a table of 10.
You can book here or email Sarah Leask on sleask@wssociety.co.uk
If you have already requested tickets or tables, we have your booking and no further action is required.
The guest speaker for the dinner will be announced soon.
WS SPECIAL INTEREST GROUPS
The modern WS Society supports legal careers and well-being. We aim to enrich life both inside the legal world and in outside interests, such as history, literature, arts, and culture. This is what it means to belong to a lawyers’ institution where law, history and culture converge.
We therefore encourage all members — from student to employment to retired — to join our Special Interest Group (SIG) initiative.
We are pleased to be hosting six SIGs and welcome proposals for others.
Simply register via the link below for any meeting you would like to attend. FAQs are answered here.
ART
Next meeting date: Tuesday 13 May, 18.00 – 18.30
Register for the Zoom meeting here.
Join us for a short but stimulating half-hour meeting where we will:
Discuss Two Artworks
The selected pieces will remain a surprise until the session to keep perspectives fresh. No prior art knowledge is needed. New and curious minds especially welcome!Plan Upcoming Outings
Help us choose the best dates over the next three months for:A private gallery viewing on the East Coast near Elie.
A guided visit to the Glasgow Art Club, including lunch
(just a 10-minute walk from Glasgow Queen Street station).
Bring your calendar, your curiosity, and an open mind!
BOOK CLUB
Next meeting: Tuesday 27 May, 17.30 – 18.30
Fifth book: On Earth We’re Briefly Gorgeous by Ocean Vuong
Register for the Zoom meeting, here.
CHARITY AND THIRD SECTOR
Next meeting date: Thursday 29th May, 12.30 – 13.30
Meeting theme: 'The view of the CEO - common charity board challenges'
Guest speaker: Lucinda Godfrey, Chief Executive of ACOSVO, who will share her insights.
Register for the Zoom meeting, here.
*NEW* STUDENT
First meeting date: Tuesday 3 June, 16.30 – 17.30
Register for Zoom meeting, here.
Theme: This SIG will provide a forum for student members to prepare for life in the profession, network with lawyers and learn how The WS Society can facilitate collaboration amongst its members.
AI
Next meeting date: Wednesday 25 June, 12.30 – 13.30.
Register for the Zoom meeting, here.
HISTORY
Next meeting date TBC.
Note interest in joining this group: email membership@wssociety.co.uk
If you have an idea for a new SIG or would like to become involved in leading a SIG, please contact Sarah Leask.
YOUR WS MEMBERSHIP
Contact details
We kindly ask all members to keep their contact details up to date with us to ensure you don't miss out on important Society news, events, and opportunities. Please let us know if there are any changes to your information so we can stay connected.
Please contact Sarah Leask or Sandra Morel with any changes to contact details.
We are keen to stay updated on your professional journey. If you've experienced a change in your career or recently graduated, please let us know so we can keep your details current and continue to support you. Career changes may also mean your membership category has changed, if you would like to discuss the transition to another membership category please contact Sarah Leask.
Member benefits
We want to ensure that members fully benefit from their membership. Members can enjoy access to designated working space in the renowned Signet Library, subject to availability, and can participate in a variety of Special Interest Group meetings and sessions.
Additionally, members benefit from discounted rates for CPD conferences and other events, along with regular updates through the Signet magazine and monthly Signet Post e-bulletins. Writers to the Signet and Associate members also enjoy reduced rates for venue hire at the Signet Library.
The Signet Library is a world class centre of knowledge and learning in law and legal practice. We offer Writers to the Signet and other members of the Society a law library and research services, both online and hard copy. They are at your disposal.
If you would like to learn more about your membership benefits, please contact Sarah Leask.
HAMILTON PALACE
THE TREASURES OF HAMILTON PALACE
Wednesday 21 May 2025, 6:00 pm - 7:00 pm, Signet Library
Hamilton Palace in South Lanarkshire was once one of the premier country houses in the British Isles, replete with fabulous collections of outstanding works of art, furniture, and furnishings.
Beginning in the 16th century, leading authority Dr Godfrey Evans (Principal Curator of European Decorative Arts at National Museums Scotland) traces the architectural development of the palace down to the 19th, when extraordinary interior works of black marble, copious gilding, vibrant furnishing, and exotic ornamentation created a truly majestic whole. This fascinating talk will explain and illustrate how the Dukes of Hamilton — premier peers of Scotland — enlarged the palace and amassed their great collections to create one of Europe’s grandest, most ostentatious statements of power, wealth and taste.
The Virtual Hamilton Palace Trust’s project is to bring the palace alive online for scholars, researchers, and everyone to marvel at this lost magnificence.
There is still time to book. The event is free to attend, however a voluntary donation can be made to support the work of the Trust.
Please note the event is held in the Upper Library which is only accessible by stairs.
Please contact 0131 220 3249 if you have any questions about the event or venue.
EMPLOYEE SPOTLIGHT
Matthew Bruce
Matthew Bruce is a trainee solicitor at the WS Society.
Sarah Leask sat down with Matthew to discuss why he decided to pursue law as a career path, his experiences and impressions as a member of the WS Society and his advice to any lawyer considering the WS membership.
NEW SIGNET LIBRARY MAP DIGITIZATIONS
Sayer’s 1789 New Map of the Roads of England and Scotland
A new tranche of the Signet Library’s map collection has been digitised and made free-to-view online as part of the WS Society’s ongoing collaboration with the National Library of Scotland’s Map Library. This new set is made up of 137 maps in two categories – maps of places beyond Scotland, and larger maps which could not be scanned without specialised equipment, bringing the total of Signet Library maps digitized under the scheme to 494.
Among the new digitisation’s are a number from the first edition of the Ordnance Survey’s one-inch-to-a-mile maps of England and Wales, some of which are not present in the national collection.
Significant examples include
Taylor’s 1816 Map of Dublin: https://maps.nls.uk/towns/rec/12525 and
Forrest’s Survey of the County of Lanarkshire: https://maps.nls.uk/counties/rec/12519
SUMMER SCHOLARS PROGRAMME
Applications for the Society's Summer Law Scholarship programme 2025 are now open.
Designed for law students to enhance their professional and personal development, this is a unique opportunity for participants to spend two weeks as a WS Summer Scholar with the resources of the Signet Library at their fingertips.
Now a well-established programme empowering participants to raise their profile and sharpen their research and presentation skills in preparation for the world of legal work.
Participants will join a team-based research project on a contemporary legal issue, working towards a digital presentation to external delegates and written report for publication.
The programme is open to third and fourth year students from the four year LLB undergraduate degree, second year students from the accelerated LLB Degree and Diploma students.
For further information and how to apply please see here.
YOUR WS SOCIETY MEMBERSHIP
Contact details
We kindly ask all members to keep their contact details up to date with us to ensure you don't miss out on important Society news, events, and opportunities. Please let us know if there are any changes to your information so we can stay connected.
Please contact Sarah Leask or Sandra Morel with any changes to contact details.
We are keen to stay updated on your professional journey. If you've experienced a change in your career or recently graduated, please let us know so we can keep your details current and continue to support you. Career changes may also mean your membership category has changed, if you would like to discuss the transition to another membership category please contact Sarah Leask.
Member benefits
We want to ensure that members fully benefit from their membership. Members can enjoy access to designated working space in the renowned Signet Library, subject to availability, and can participate in a variety of Special Interest Group meetings and sessions.
Additionally, members benefit from discounted rates for CPD conferences and other events, along with regular updates through the Signet magazine and monthly Signet Post e-bulletins. Writers to the Signet and Associate members also enjoy reduced rates for venue hire at the Signet Library.
The Signet Library is a world class centre of knowledge and learning in law and legal practice. We offer Writers to the Signet and other members of the Society a law library and research services, both online and hard copy. They are at your disposal. If you would like to learn more about your membership benefits, please contact Sarah Leask.
SPECIAL INTEREST GROUPS
WS Society – Special Interest Groups (SIGs)
Details of the WS Society’s SIGs and the launch of our Student SIG!
AI SIG
AI SIG had their first meeting at the end of 2024, the second meeting is TBA. Please note interest in joining this group by emailing membership@wssociety.co.uk.
Art SIG
The Spring schedule is being prepared and will be communicated shortly. In the meantime, please note your interest by emailing membership@wssociety.co.uk.
Book Club
Book Club will meet on Tuesday 15 April, 17:30 – 18:30, to discuss their fourth book: Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck. Register for the Zoom meeting here or note interest in joining this group by emailing membership@wssociety.co.uk.
We can also confirm the fifth book will be On Earth We’re Briefly Gorgeous by Ocean Vuong. The fifth meeting will be held at the end of May – exact date TBA.
Charity and Third Sector SIG
Charity and Third Sector SIG will also meet at the end of May, date TBA. Future meeting discussions will include the following topics, with expert guest speakers:
AI, Ethics and Third Sector Governance
View of the CEO - challenges of a Board
Fraud and cyber security
Community Wealth Building
Trustee Recruitment and Induction
To note interest in joining this group, please email membership@wssociety.co.uk.
History
Future History SIG dates are TBA. Please note interest in joining this group by emailing membership@wssociety.co.uk.
History SIG members may be interested in Scotland's Greatest Palace - A talk by Dr Godfrey Evans.
Student SIG
We are pleased to launch the WS Society’s Student SIG. This is open to all our student members and offers the opportunity to network and support one another. The Student SIG will be led by Matthew Bruce, Trainee Solicitor at the WS Society. If you would like to join the Student SIG, please email membership@wssociety.co.uk.
For general SIG enquiries, please direct any questions to Sarah Leask, sleask@wssociety.co.uk.
CHARLES KIRKPATRICK SHARPE MUSIC
The discovery at the Signet Library of a previously unrecorded manuscript written in the hand of the Scottish artist and antiquary Charles Kirkpatrick Sharpe (1781-1851) promises to throw new light on Sharpe’s thinking on musical history and development. Sharpe was a famous eccentric of his day, who retained the clothing fashions of his youth long into his life. He was a friend and contemporary of Sir Walter Scott and contributed material Scott’s Border Minstrelsy and in 1823 published his own Ballad Book.
The new manuscript consists of eight leaves and presents a concise history of Scottish song from the earliest times until the late sixteenth century, along with notes and comments about other historical accounts including that of the Writer to the Signet William Tytler (d. 1792).
WS SOCIETY WELCOMES ITALIAN LAWYERS AT THE SIGNET LIBRARY
On Wednesday 26 March, a group of six Italian lawyers arrived at the Signet Library for a visit of the building and of Parliament Hall. Diana Stoica, Solicitor, who grew up in Italy, gave the group a guided tour in Italian.
The visit focussed on the history and role of the WS Society as the historic legal institution privileged to supervise the use of the King's Signet, (the private seal of the early Kings of Scots) since the early 14th century, up to the modern-day life at the Society, now a hub for conferences, exhibitions, legal education, and home office to a team of lawyers working in the governance and charities sector.
The lawyers discussed the modern role of a Solicitor working in the Society’s Governance and Charities team and the differences between the Italian and Scottish legal professions, covering qualification entry routes and the day-to-day life of a lawyer in the two respective countries.
The group stopped at Parliament Hall to hear about the history of Parliament House - the world’s first purpose-built parliament -from when it was built in 1637 to its present use within the Court of Session and the College of Justice.
The visit closed with a mini-exhibition on Italian books and manuscripts held at the Signet Library, curated by Principal Researcher James Hamilton. A few highlights of the exhibition were Lelio Torelli’s Florentine Pandects of 1533 (one of the finest juridical works of the time and one of the greatest ornaments of the Western press); The story of Mary Stuart, Queen of Scots by the Jesuit Nicolas Caussin, confessor of Louis XIII, as translated into Italian by the Jesuit Carlo Antonio Berardi and published as a separate book in Bologna and Milan; and De origine, moribus, et rebus gestis Scotorum libri decem, a history of Scotland by John Lesley, Bishop of Ross, the first book to contain a map of Scotland.
The visit was part of a broader initiative by the Italian Consulate to promote and foster good relations between Italy and Scotland and their legal professions.
Jean Guild Award Funding for WS Society’s John Watson’s Institution Archive
The Signet Library is delighted to announce that it has been awarded one of the 2025 round of Jean Guild Award grants from The Old Edinburgh Club to fund research, conservation and publication of its archive of the Society’s former school for orphaned children, John Watson’s Institution (1828-1975).
John Watson’s Institution opened in the autumn of 1828, paid for by a fund set up by the last will and testament of a wealthy Scottish lawyer, the Writer to the Signet John Watson (d. 1762). The school building, overlooking the banks of the Water of Leith and now home to the National Galleries of Scotland Modern One , was the work of the WS Society’s architect William Burn. Over the course of the next 150 years, it became for its pupils not just a school but a home and an anchor for life. It closed in 1975, and is remembered now by the members of the John Watson’s Club and in the form of the modern charity John Watson’s Trust (SC014004).
This project takes its origins from a seminar at the University of Edinburgh in 2015 which centred on Professor Richard Rodger’s MESH (Mapping Edinburgh’s Social History) initiative. We have known for a long time that these records are ideal for a study along the lines laid out by Professor Rodger and MESH, and we are grateful to the Old Edinburgh Club for opening up this marvellous opportunity for us.
RAILWAY EXHIBITION
2025 sees both the 135th anniversary of the building of the Forth (railway) Bridge and the 200th anniversary of the opening of the Stockton and Darlington Railway. There is a small exhibition of material on show in the Upper West Library of the Signet Library to commemorate both events.
These include two early albums of images of the Forth Bridge under construction, Grant and Son’s vast and luxurious commemorative publication and engineer William Westhoven’s more cerebral and detailed account for The Engineer.
Also on show are David Octavius Hill’s 1832 lithographs of the opening of the Glasgow and Garnkirk Railway – down which the Garnkirk vase would travel on its way to the Upper Library in 1841 (the gift of Thomas Sprot, whose family were involved in the financing of the line).
This is accompanied by a copy of one of the very earliest of Bradshaw’s Railway Guides, published in 1842 and showing the first years of operation of the Garnkirk line, the Edinburgh to Glasgow Railway and the first Dundee and Fife railways. The pocket diary of the Lord Advocate John Murray (d.1859) from 1841 shows his handwritten notes on the timetable of the Glasgow and Greenock Railway, on which he would have been one of the very earliest passengers.
WS CPD
The Society’s leading CPD programme continues this year across a wide range of practice areas. Events are open to all, with discounted rates for WS members. All events will take place, in person, at the Signet Library. Further information on speakers, timings and online booking will be available on our event page.
SPRING
WS Charities & Third Sector – 3 April 2025, 9.00 am - 1.00 pm
WS Intellectual Property – 24 April 2025 , 9.00 am - 1.00 pm
WS Personal Injury – 1 May 2025, 9.00 am - 1.00 pm
ALA/WS Joint Agricultural Law – 6 June 2025, 9.00 am - 1.00 pm
AUTUMN
WS Commercial Dispute Resolution Conference – 4 September 2025, 9.00 am - 1.00 pm
WS Employment Law Conference – 25 September 2025, 9.00 am - 1.00 pm
WS/STEP Joint Conference for Private Client Advisers – 9 October 2025, 9.00 am - 1.00 pm
WS/PNLA Joint Conference on Professional Negligence Law – 23 October 2025, 9.00 am - 1.00 pm
WS Sports Law Conference – 30 October 2025, 9.00 am - 5.00 pm
Please contact Sophie Mills WS if you have any questions.
STUDENT SERIES
On Tuesday 25 March, the WS Society hosted the first student event of the year with the return of Speed Networking.
This popular format saw eleven Writers to the Signet and Affiliates network with pairs of students 5-minute meetings. The aim of the evening was to introduce the students to a wide range of legal careers as well as the opportunity for them to increase their professional network.
There were lively discussions throughout the evening about studying and practicing law. We are grateful to all who contributed to an excellent evening.
Student member Kaitlin Bastow from Abertay University said after the event:
“Speed Networking was a fantastic opportunity to meet lawyers from different backgrounds. It demonstrated that there are so many different routes to follow and it allowed me to meet with other law students too.”
For future student events, keep an eye on our membership page.
MEMBER SPOTLIGHT
Kelly Hardman WS
This month’s Member Spotlight features Kelly Hardman WS. Kelly tells us about her role as a Director at Fragomen LLP where she leads the firm’s UK Energy Sector Group, as well as the UK Space Industry Group, and how becoming a WS was a deeply meaningful moment of connection to history, tradition, and legacy. Read on to learn more!
