University holds mock trial on anniversary of historic Paisley "snail in the bottle" ginger beer case

dailyrecord.co.uk:

Paisley woman May Donoghue unwittingly made worldwide legal history back in the 1920s.And now the University of the West of Scotland (UWS) campus has marked the historic anniversary of May's legal battle by holding a mock trial with professionals, school children and students taking part.The Paisley campus held a mock trail at the university to mark the 90th anniversary of famous Scottish court case that was deemed to have shaped modern consumer law.It all began when May's friend bought her a ginger beer ice cream float in 1928 at the town’s Wellmeadow Café, located on the corner of Well Street and Lady Lane.

Inside the bottle of ginger beer were the decomposing remains of a snail, something Mrs Donoghue was unaware of.Don't miss the latest headlines from around Renfrewshire.

Sign up to our newsletters here.She successfully sued the ginger beer manufacturer Stevenson’s after falling ill when she found the decomposing mollusc, and pursued the action despite being ridiculed in the press.The case was finally settled out of court in 1932, and May’s actions changed the worldwide laws on negligence and gave power to consumers.Students, legal professionals and around 50 schoolchildren recreated Donoghue v Stevenson, more commonly known as the “snail in the bottle” case, at the Paisley campus.Susannah Paul, a lecturer in Law at UWS, said: “This is one of the best known, and most significant, cases in Scottish legal history, and its impact is felt right around the world.“Given the milestone anniversary, it felt appropriate to hold this mini-trial, and I’m delighted that we were able to do so with enthusiastic pupils and members of the legal profession, including the Sheriff Principal of Paisley Sheriff Court.”The case changed