Alexandra Braun (University of Edinburgh School of Law) recently published Trusts in Scotland, 2026. Provided below is the Abstract:
Scotland has a fascinating and, in many ways, unexplored history of trust law. Scotland is a mixed legal system that combines elements both of civil law and common law. And yet trusts thrive in Scotland and have done so for many centuries. This paper provides an overview of the development of trust law in Scotland. It aims to show that Scottish trust law represents a fascinating case study for any comparative legal scholar. While there has been inevitable cross-fertilization between England and Wales and Scotland, which might explain some of the significant structural and practical similarities in their law of trusts, trusts in Scotland have their own distinct history and their own distinctive features. This paper will further illustrate that Scotland has recently overhauled its trust law partly drawing on foreign source material or transplanting new foreign concepts into its own jurisdiction. At the same time, Scotland and, in particular, the way in which it conceptualises trusts through the dual patrimony theory has also influenced debates elsewhere.