
1 
These Regulations may be cited as the First-tier Tribunal for Scotland Local Taxation Chamber and Upper Tribunal for Scotland (Composition) Regulations 2023 and come into force on 1 April 2023.
2 
In these Regulations—
 “Chamber President” means the Chamber President of the First-tier Tribunal,
 “council tax reduction case” means proceedings relating to an appeal against a determination on a council tax reduction application under—
(a) regulation 90B of the Council Tax Reduction (Scotland) Regulations 2012,
(b) regulation 70B of the Council Tax Reduction (State Pension Credit) (Scotland) Regulations 2012, or
(c) regulation 94 of the Council Tax Reduction (Scotland) Regulations 2021,
 “First-tier Tribunal” means the First-tier Tribunal for Scotland Local Taxation Chamber,
 “non-list appeal case” means proceedings relating to an appeal specified in Part III of the Council Tax (Alteration of Lists and Appeals) (Scotland) Regulations 1993,
 “the Upper Tribunal” means the Upper Tribunal for Scotland.
3 

(1) Subject to paragraphs (2) and (3), the First-tier Tribunal, when convened to decide any matter in a case, must consist of—
(a) either—
(i) the Chamber President,
(ii) a legal member, or
(iii) a judicial member, and
(b) either—
(i) one ordinary member, or
(ii) two ordinary members.
(2) The First-tier Tribunal, may consist of either the Chamber President, a legal member, or a judicial member acting alone when—
(i) convened at a hearing to decide any matter in a non-list appeal case or a council tax reduction case, or
(ii) disposing of a council tax appeal on the basis of written representations under rule 9(2) of the First-tier Tribunal for Scotland Local Taxation Chamber (Rules of Procedure) Regulations 2022.
(3) The authority to determine the composition of the First-tier Tribunal in respect of the alternative compositions referred to in paragraph (1) is delegated to the President of Tribunals, who may sub-delegate the authority to the Chamber President.
(4) If, at or after the beginning of a hearing in which there are two ordinary members, a member of the First-tier Tribunal other than the legal member is absent, the hearing may, with the consent of the parties, be conducted by the legal member and the remaining member and in that event the First-tier Tribunal shall be deemed to be properly constituted, and the decision of the First-tier Tribunal shall be taken by the legal member and that member.
4 

(1) Except where paragraph (4) applies, the Upper Tribunal, when deciding a case appealed from the First-tier Tribunal, must consist of—
(a) a member of the Upper Tribunal acting alone,
(b) two or three members of the Upper Tribunal,
(c) the Chamber President (except a temporary Chamber President), acting alone or with no more than two members of the Upper Tribunal,
(d) the President of Tribunals, acting alone or with the Chamber President or with no more than two members of the Upper Tribunal, or
(e) the Lord President, acting alone or with the Chamber President or with no more than two members of the Upper Tribunal.
(2) The Chamber President referred to in paragraph (1) must not have had any involvement in the case prior to the appeal of the case to the Upper Tribunal.
(3) For the purposes of paragraph (1)(a), a member of the Upper Tribunal acting alone may be a legal member or a judicial member but may not be an ordinary member.
(4) The Upper Tribunal, when exercising functions under section 1(3A) or (3BA) of the Lands Tribunal Act 1949, shall consist of three members of the Upper Tribunal.
(5) For the purposes of paragraph (1)(b) and (4), at least one of the members of the Upper Tribunal must be a legal member or a judicial member and at least one member must be an ordinary member.
(6) The authority to determine the composition of the Upper Tribunal in respect of the alternative compositions referred to in paragraph (1) is delegated to the President of Tribunals, including determining whether a member is to be a legal member or a judicial member.
ELENA WHITHAM
Authorised to sign by the Scottish Ministers
St Andrew’s House,
Edinburgh
21st February 2023