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05 May 2023 / Stephen Gold
Issue: 8023 / Categories: Features , Procedure & practice , Civil way , CPR , Divorce
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Civil way: 5 May 2023

Nuptial news; coining it in; in favour of juniors; out with the scissors.

NO MOOR

You will remember Radmacher v Granatino [2010] UKSC 42. Held the Supreme Court’s majority: ‘The court should give effect to a nuptial agreement that is freely entered into by each party with a full appreciation of its implications unless in the circumstances prevailing it would not be fair to hold the parties to their agreement.’ And you may remember the Nuptial Agreements Bill recommended by the Law Commission nine years ago (according to Lord Bellamy in the House of Lords last week, the government would not be legislating in this area while the Commission was reviewing financial provision on divorce, but he hoped it would do so during the lifetime of Baroness Deech, if not his own).

Neither Radmacher nor the Bill had been heard of when the parties in M v A [2023] EWHC 613 (Fam), before Mr Justice Moor, entered into their pre-nuptial agreement (PNA). They each had legal advice, the

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MOVERS & SHAKERS

Cripps—Radius Law

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Commercial and technology practice boosted by team hire

Switalskis—Grimsby

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Firm expands with new Grimsby office to serve North East Lincolnshire

Slater Heelis—Will Newman & Lucy Spilsbury

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Property team boosted by two solicitor appointments

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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