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08 September 2023 / Stephen Gold
Issue: 8039 / Categories: Features , Procedure & practice , Civil way , Costs
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Civil way: 8 September 2023

Invest in Chalk; non-mol update; costs in a FIX; trade goes electronic; jabs for the incapacitated.

VERY SPECIAL

Out with the scissors. The Lord Chancellor, reacting to the latest Bank of England base rate rise of .25%, has hiked the Court Funds Office special account rate by a stonking 1.5%. As from 23 August 2023, the rate is now 6.00%. Those special losses are looking particularly attractive as they generally earn interest of one-half of the special account rate—except for trainees, as they smash their calculators against the wall in trying to work out how much to claim for the crash helmet which was battered three years ago. The base rate could be in for another overhaul on 21 September 2023.


THE MODERN NON-MOL

The Family Division president has replaced the non-molestation practice guidance issued on 18 January 2017 with fresh guidance, a nod to controlling or coercive behaviour, and what he describes as an example of a simplified ex parte order. This stops at the

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MOVERS & SHAKERS

Cripps—Radius Law

Cripps—Radius Law

Commercial and technology practice boosted by team hire

Switalskis—Grimsby

Switalskis—Grimsby

Firm expands with new Grimsby office to serve North East Lincolnshire

Slater Heelis—Will Newman & Lucy Spilsbury

Slater Heelis—Will Newman & Lucy Spilsbury

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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