Court of the Lord Lyon

Rights to arms and pedigree The Lyon Court is directly responsible for the establishment of the rights to arms and pedigree. These can include the granting and regranting of armorial bearings by letters patent and various Birthbrieves, such as Diplomas of Nobility or of the Chiefship (Diploma Stemmatis). All of these actions must begin with a formal petition to the court. When sufficient evidence is attested to these rights, a judicial 'Interlocutor' or warrant will be issued by the Lord Lyon. The warrant will then authorise the Lyon Clerk and Keeper of the Records to prepare Letters Patent of the particular coat of arms or genealogy to be recorded in the: Public Register of All Arms and Bearings in Scotland or in the Public Register of All Genealogies and Birthbrieves in Scotland. Protection of arms The penal aspect of the court is concerned with the protection of the rights of both private individuals and of the Crown (in the form of the Scottish Government) in Scottish armorial bearings. The protection of the rights to arms is of signal importance because persons and corporation have paid fees to the Crown in return for exclusive rights to use those armorial bearings. A coat of arms can only belong to one particular person at a time. Without such protection, a coat of arms would be useless as a form of identification and worthless as a piece of private property. In the Lyon King of Arms Act 1669 the court was given the power to issue letters of horning. As well as the full power: to erase unwarranted arms, to 'dash them furth of' stained-glass windows and to break unwarranted seals. Where the cases involve forfeiture, the Court could grant a warrant for the seizure of movable goods and gear where unwarranted arms are found. ==Judges and office holders==

Officers of the Lyon Court The only judge of the Lyon Court is the Lord Lyon King of Arms. The Lord Lyon is part of the judiciary of Scotland but is not subject to the discipline of the Lord President of the Court of Session. The Lord President's powers of discipline are outlined in the Judiciary and Courts (Scotland) Act 2008 and the Courts Reform (Scotland) Act 2014 – the Lord Lyon is included in neither act. The administration of the court is also separate from the Scottish Courts and Tribunals Service. The other officers of the Lyon Court are the Lyon Clerk and Keeper of the Records whose appointments are made by royal sign-manual, and the Procurator Fiscal who is independently appointed by the Scottish Ministers. Both officers are registered in The Edinburgh Gazette. There is also a Macer to the Lord Lyon who is a senior Messenger-at-Arms. The Macer appears when the court is sitting in public and when proclamations are made by the Lord Lyon. Lord Lyon in his tabard of the Royal Arms, He held the office of the Lord Lyon from 1945 to 1969. The Lord Lyon King of Arms is the chief heraldic officer of Scotland and Great Officer of State and a judge in the judiciary of Scotland. The Lord Lyon's judicial duties concerning Scottish heraldic business and heraldic laws are conducted through the machinery of the Court of the Lord Lyon. The court exercises both civil and penal jurisdiction under the old common law of Scotland and many acts of Parliament. Lyon Clerk and Keeper of Records The Lyon Clerk is responsible for the administration of the Lyon Court. With every submission of application for a grant of arms, a matriculation of arms or the recording of genealogy must be made through the Lyon Clerk. This submission must be done either personally, by an intermediary agent or by correspondence, the Lyon Clerk is required to personally interview and reply to each applicant. As such the Lyon Clerk must take receipt of all documents and evidence submitted by the applicant in each case. Finally after the grant or matriculation has been made the Lyon Clerk must ensure that the resulting patent of arms is properly illuminated and emblazoned for the applicant and for the Lyon Court's register. As Keeper of the Records, the Lyon Clerk is responsible for the maintenance of the Public Register of All Arms and Bearings in Scotland. This is done through the regular addition of new grants and matriculations. The Lyon Clerk must ensure that members of the public have access to the register by facilitating searches and studies of the records. Procurator Fiscal The Procurator Fiscal to the Court of the Lord Lyon is responsible for investigating complaints about usurpation of coats of arms (someone using arms to which they are not entitled) or the use of unregistered homemade coats of arms. The Procurator Fiscal can either issue a letter or warning, and where needed initiate a prosecution before the Lyon Court. The Procurator Fiscal undertakes these prosecutions on behalf of the Lord Advocate. The Procurator Fiscal is legally qualified, must either be an advocate or a solicitor, and is appointed by the Scottish Ministers. Until 2001 the Procurator Fiscal was appointed by the Lord Lyon, but in order to ensure compliance with Article 6 of the European Convention on Human Rights, the power to appoint the Procurator Fiscal was transferred to the Scottish Ministers by the Convention Rights (Compliance) Scotland Act 2001. Hereditary Lord Assessors The Earl of Erroll, and Duke of Hamilton serve as hereditary assessors at the court of the Lord Lyon. Current officers The composition of the Lyon Court as of September 2021 is: ==Officers of arms==

as Finlaggan Pursuivant of Arms, a private herald, to Clan MacDonald in 2006. HM Officers of Arms come under the control of the Lord Lyon and are members of the Royal Household in Scotland, however they are not officers of the Court of the Lord Lyon. They carry out many ceremonial duties in Scotland, such as on state and royal occasions and those in connection with Scottish public life. They may act as professional consultants in the realms of heraldry and genealogy, like an advocate or a law agent for members of the public and could appear for their clients before the Lyon Court as well as in the English Court of Chivalry. Formerly there were: six Heralds of Arms and six Pursuivant of Arms in Ordinary (full-time members) and at various times any number of Extraordinary officers. The Lyon King of Arms Act 1867 reduced the number of Ordinary officers to just three of each rank. The act also set out their salaries and reaffirmed their rights and duties. These officers of arms wear the tabard of the Royal Arms of the United Kingdom, with the Scottish quarter taking precedence. Vacant offices Private Pursuivants ==See also==

• Lyon King of Arms Act 1592 • Lyon King of Arms Act 1669 • Lyon King of Arms Act 1672 • Lyon King of Arms Act 1867 == External links ==