image

Year of Call: 1992
Year of Silk: 2003

Areas of Practice:
- Family Law
- Criminal Law

Johanna M Johnston QC

Johanna has a general criminal practice and has conducted cases at first instance and in the Court of Criminal Appeal. She has conducted the prosecution and the defence of a large number of trials and has extensive experience of leading evidence from children and vulnerable witnesses. She has been involved in murder cases involving the death of very young children and has developed a high level of expertise in the presentation of complex medical evidence. She also appears in proofs on referrals from the Children's Hearings system.

Johanna was appointed as an Advocate Depute on 14th February 2000 and selected to serve as a Senior Advocate Depute in 2003. In 2004 she returned to practice at the defence bar. She sits as a Part-time Sheriff and as a Sheriff Convenor of Mental Health Tribunals.

She has been involved in a number of high profile cases and reported cases, including the following:

  • 2001 HMA v Graeme Donaldson Led for the Crown - murder charge
  • 2001 HMA v Pauline Elliot Led for the Crown - attempted murder by asphyxiation of her baby
  • 2002 HMA v Johnston & Kennedy Led for the Crown -] murder charge
  • 2002 HMA v Paul Goodwin Led for the Crown - charge of embezzlement
  • 2003 HMA v Susan Hamilton Led for the Crown - attempted murder by salt poisoning of her child
  • 2006 HMA v Jennifer Lienhe Led for the Crown - charge of murder 25 years earlier by asphyxiation of her baby

Appeal Cases

  • 1999 Montgomery & Coulter v HMA Appeared with senior counsel for the first appellant - appeal against decision on a devolution minute in relation to pre-trial publicity
  • 2002 Gilbert Nulty Represented the Crown. The law applicable to section 259 of the Criminal Procedure (Scotland) Act 1995 was considered and the relevant European law with reference to the European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights
  • 2003 Alan Dominick & Gillian McLean Represented the Crown. Bench of five judges. The Court reviewed the law relating to the crime of shameless indecency in light of the rights of the accused under the European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights.