Secretariat senior team

Ondine Tennant

Director of the Council

Ondine was appointed in October 2014.

Ondine is part of the senior management team of the Scottish Courts and Tribunals Service and previously had responsibility for establishing the Scottish Civil Justice Council. In prior roles with the Scottish Government, Ondine has worked on major programmes to reform both the civil and criminal justice systems and on healthcare improvement. She gained a LLB (Hons) in Law and Politics from the University of Edinburgh in 2007, which involved a year’s study at the University of New South Wales in Sydney.

David Dickson

Principal Legal Officer to the Council

David was appointed in October 2017 as Principal Legal Officer to the Council.

David was seconded to the Council from the Scottish Government. In the past he has worked as a criminal defence solicitor, a procurator fiscal depute, and for the Law Society of Scotland. While at the Scottish Government he was involved with summary justice reform, court efficiency, and the greater use of technology in the justice system. He graduated from the University of Glasgow in 1989 with an honours degree in law.

Valerie MacGregor

Principal Policy Officer (Engagement)

Valerie was appointed in May 2022 as Principal Policy Officer (Engagement) to the Council.

Valerie has been working with the Council as a principal policy officer since May 2022. She has previously worked as the Head of Judicial Communications and as the Council’s Communications Manager. Before joining the court service, she worked as a journalist for a national news agency. She graduated from the University of Edinburgh with a master’s degree in History and studied journalism at Napier University.

David Ross

Principal Policy Officer (Corporate)

David was appointed in May 2022 as Principal Policy Officer (Corporate) to the Council.

David was appointed in September 2018 as Senior Policy Officer to the Council. He was previously a policy officer with the Scottish Civil Justice Council. He graduated from the University of Glasgow with a joint honours degree in English Literature and Scottish History before joining the Scottish Courts and Tribunals Service in 2009, where he has worked in a variety of roles, including as a clerk of court in the Sheriffdom of South Strathclyde, Dumfries and Galloway.

Dr Nicole Vidal

Principal Research Officer

Nicole was appointed in October 2023 as Principal Research Officer to the Council.

Nicole joined the Council in October 2019 as the Senior Research Officer. Before assuming her current position, she worked as a Research Fellow and Lecturer, specialising in health and social policy, alongside engaging in research consultancy both nationally and internationally. She earned her doctorate in Global Health and Development from Queen Margaret University and holds master’s degrees in Social Policy and Anthropology from the University of Edinburgh.