Trial diet

The trial diet is the date fixed for a criminal trial, when witnesses give evidence and a verdict is reached.

A trial diet is the court date set for the trial itself. At the trial, the prosecutor leads evidence from witnesses and produces other evidence, and the defence can cross-examine and call its own witnesses, although it does not have to, because the prosecution must prove guilt beyond reasonable doubt. In a summary case a sheriff, summary sheriff or justice of the peace decides the verdict; in a solemn case a jury of 15 does. Since 1 January 2026, the verdict for trials starting on or after that date is either guilty or not guilty. Trials sometimes cannot go ahead on the day, for example because a witness is ill, and a new date is then fixed. An accused who fails to appear can be arrested on a warrant.

Checked as at 25 September 2026. General information only, not legal advice.