SCOTLAND was "extinguished" as a state by the Treaty of Union in 1707, according to the academics who provided the UK Government's legal advice on the constitutional implications of independence.
Professors James Crawford and Alan Boyle reject the notion that Scottish independence would undo the Treaty of Union, which created the UK, allowing Scotland and England to revert to their pre-1707 status.
They do not reach a view on whether 1707 marked the creation of a new state in international law or the expansion of England under a new name.
But they add: "It is not necessary to decide between these two views of the union of 1707. Whether or not England was also extinguished by the union, Scotland certainly was extinguished as a matter of international law, by merger into either an enlarged and renamed England or into an entirely new state."
The professors conclude an independent Scotland in 2016 would be a new country, needing to negotiate membership of international organisations and its future relationship with the UK.
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