The Scottish Catholic Interdiocesan Tribunal

The Scottish Catholic Interdiocesan Tribunal is the judicial body for the eight dioceses of the Catholic Church in Scotland. We work on behalf of the bishops to judge the cases that are brought before us – principally marriage nullity cases – and so to be of service to the Catholics of Scotland.

In choosing our staff the bishops try to ensure that we are representative of the Scottish Church – we are priests, deacons, and lay people, men and women, married and single, and we come from all eight Scottish dioceses so we have some understanding of the different social and cultural traditions of the different parts of our country.

In accordance with the requirements of the Church some of our staff have academic qualifications – doctorates or licences – in canon law, and the others have all undergone intensive in-house training, and most of our staff also have years of experience in Tribunal ministry giving them a genuine expertise in the field.

The principal judges of any Catholic tribunal are the local bishops, but since they have so many other responsibilities the day-to-day management is delegated to the Judicial Vicar (also known as the Officialis), under the oversight of the Bishop-Moderator. 

You can learn more about our history on this page, and more about Catholic tribunals in general on this page. You can find out about our funding here.

Bishop-Moderator: Most Reverend Leo Cushley, Archbishop of Saint Andrews and Edinburgh

Judicial Vicar (or Officialis): Very Rev. Paul Canon Gargaro PhB STB JCL

Assistant Judicial Vicars: Rev. Brian McLean PhB STB JCL, Rt. Rev. Francis Dougan, Bishop-Elect of Galloway

Judges:
Rev. Joseph Burke JCL, Mgr. Denis Carlin, Mgr. Daniel Hart, Mgr. Philip Kerr, Rev. Dominic Quinn, Canon Gerard Tartaglia JCL, Rev. Kenneth O'Brien JCL, Rev. Matthew Carlin JCL, Dr Valerie Fleming JCD

Defenders of the Bond: Canon John A. McGee

Promoter of Justice: Mgr Gerard Gallagher JCL

Instructors:
Rev. Kenneth Campbell, Deacon Ronald MacAuley, Rev. Paul Milarvie, Rev. Kenneth O'Brien, Rev. Dominic Quinn, Rev. Matthew Carlin JCL

Advocates/Procurators accredited to the Tribunal:
Mr. Thomas Docherty JCL, Dr Valerie Fleming JCD, Ms. Marie Macdonald, Mrs. Mary Quinn, Mrs. Lesley Ward..

Tribunal Assistants:
Mrs Margaret O’Neill, Mrs Rowena Hutton

A very grateful mention must also be made of the large numbers of committed lay men and women, religious men and women, deacons and priests throughout Scotland who volunteer to undertake the sensitive task of interviewing witnesses. They are called "Auditors" but act in the place of the Judge and under his authority. This means that the respect owed to the Court itself must likewise be shown to the Auditor. Similarly, it means that the Auditor must act with the impartiality and, in due proportion, with the responsibility of the Judge.