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20 October 2023 / Stephen Gold
Issue: 8045 / Categories: Features , Procedure & practice , Civil way
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Civil way: 20 October 2023

Situations vacant; Revised CPR forms; Enforcement fees to rise; Child report crisis; Social landlords watch out; Fighting against divorce

LAWBITES

Be alright, JAC I’ve found some jobs for you. On offer now or upcoming from the Judicial Appointments Commission—and remember, no sleeping or advocate bullying during hearings—are sign-ups for deputy insolvency and companies court judge (four); High Court family judge (three); King’s Bench master (one); and Police misconduct hearing chairs in London (15 and thick skins required).

On form Directions questionnaire N181 has been updated in honour of fixed recoverable costs. The intermediate track is introduced at para 2 as a destination for allocation (see ‘Civil way’, NLJ 8 September 2023) and, at para 4, litigants are interrogated in fast and intermediate track cases as to which of the four bands of complexity—there is an ascending scale of allowable costs proportionate with the complexity of the claim—the case should be assigned. And they are keeping a welcome in the hillside for the amendments to the small claims directions questionnaire

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MOVERS & SHAKERS

Bellevue Law—Lianne Craig

Bellevue Law—Lianne Craig

Workplace law firm expands commercial disputes team with senior consultant hire

EIP—Rob Barker

EIP—Rob Barker

IP firm promotes patent attorney to partner

Muckle LLP—Ryan Butler

Muckle LLP—Ryan Butler

Banking and restructuring team bolstered by insolvency specialist

NEWS
The Supreme Court has delivered a decisive ruling on termination under the JCT Design & Build form. Writing in NLJ this week, Andrew Singer KC and Jonathan Ward, of Kings Chambers, analyse Providence Building Services v Hexagon Housing Association [2026] UKSC 1, which restores the first-instance decision and curbs contractors’ termination rights for repeated late payment
Secondments, disciplinary procedures and appeal chaos all feature in a quartet of recent rulings. Writing in NLJ this week, Ian Smith, barrister and emeritus professor of employment law at UEA, examines how established principles are being tested in modern disputes
The AI revolution is no longer a distant murmur—it’s at the client’s desk. Writing in NLJ this week, Peter Ambrose, CEO of The Partnership and Legalito, warns that the ‘AI chickens’ have ‘come home to roost’, transforming not just legal practice but the lawyer–client relationship itself
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
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