Two new sheriffs have been appointed to oversee court proceedings in Moray and Highlands.
Olga Pasportnikov will become the residing sheriff in Elgin, after the retirement of Sheriff Susan Raeburn earlier this year.
In Inverness, Chris Dickson has been given the resident post.
The Queen formally appoints both sheriffs on the recommendation of First Minister Nicola Sturgeon.
Ms Sturgeon’s nominations came on the basis of a report by the independent Judicial Appointments Board for Scotland.
Sheriff Pasportnikov graduated from Dundee University and became a solicitor in 1991.
After training at Balfour and Manson, she worked mainly in private practice before joining the Law Society of Scotland in 1998.
She has been with the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service since 2003 and is the current convener of the Fife Young Carers Management Committee.
Sheriff Dickson graduated from Edinburgh University, and was admitted as a solicitor in 2004.
Between 2009 and 2015, he was a partner and head of the Advocacy Unit at Anderson Strathern LLP and he is a qualified
Solicitor Advocate for both civil and criminal cases.
The Judicial Appointments Board for Scotland was established by Ministers in 2002 and became an independent advisory public body in 2009.
Its role is to recommend individuals for appointment to judicial offices within the board’s remit, including judge of the Court of Session, chairman of the Scottish Land Court, sheriff principal, sheriff, and part-time sheriff.
