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09 May 2019 / David Dolding , Martin Parish
Issue: 7839 / Categories: Features , Profession , Pensions
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Financial stress: most law firms agree they have a role in financially educating their staff, say David Dolding & Martin Parish

  • What can law firms and individuals do?
  • Self-employment and retirement savings.

An overwhelming 93.6% of law firms agree, according to recent research, that they have a role in financially educating their staff beyond pensions guidance (see ‘HR in Law and Aon 2019 Employee Benefits Survey’, April 2019). This is positive, but are they acting on it?

In our view as advisers, action can’t come soon enough from firms and individuals. It’s been a long-held perception that financial pressures are solely the preserve of lower earners, but it’s become clear that financial stress overwhelmingly impacts the well-paid too. Large houses and mortgages, private school education for kids, holidays, cars; the expenses are high and can create constant, often hidden, pressures.

It doesn’t take much to scratch the surface and see how acute financial pressures impact an individual’s emotional wellbeing. Keeping a certain standard of living can be a concern—wealthy

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Cripps—Radius Law

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Commercial and technology practice boosted by team hire

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Firm expands with new Grimsby office to serve North East Lincolnshire

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Property team boosted by two solicitor appointments

NEWS
A High Court ruling involving the Longleat estate has exposed the fault line between modern family building and historic trust drafting. Writing in NLJ this week, Charlotte Coyle, director and family law expert at Freeths, examines Cator v Thynn [2026] EWHC 209 (Ch), where trustees sought approval to modernise trusts that retain pre-1970 definitions of ‘child’, ‘grandchild’ and ‘issue’
Fresh proposals to criminalise ‘nudification’ apps, prioritise cyberflashing and non-consensual intimate images, and even ban under-16s from social media have reignited debate over whether the Online Safety Act 2023 (OSA 2023) is fit for purpose. Writing in NLJ this week, Alexander Brown, head of technology, media and telecommunications, and Alexandra Webster, managing associate, Simmons & Simmons, caution against reactive law-making that could undermine the Act’s ‘risk-based and outcomes-focused’ design
Recent allegations surrounding Peter Mandelson and Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor have reignited scrutiny of the ancient common law offence of misconduct in public office. Writing in NLJ this week, Simon Parsons, teaching fellow at Bath Spa University, asks whether their conduct could clear a notoriously high legal hurdle
A landmark ruling has reshaped child clinical negligence claims. Writing in NLJ this week, Jodi Newton, head of birth and paediatric negligence at Osbornes Law, explains how the Supreme Court in CCC v Sheffield Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust [2026] UKSC 5 has overturned Croke v Wiseman, ending the long-standing bar on children recovering ‘lost years’ earnings
A Court of Appeal ruling has drawn a firm line under party autonomy in arbitration. Writing in NLJ this week, Masood Ahmed, associate professor at the University of Leicester, analyses Gluck v Endzweig [2026] EWCA Civ 145, where a clause allowing arbitrators to amend an award ‘at any time’ was held incompatible with the Arbitration Act 1996
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