header-logo header-logo

02 January 2026
Issue: 8144 / Categories: Legal News , Profession
printer mail-detail

Lawyers feature in New Year Honours List

Former Law Society president, I Stephanie Boyce has been awarded a CBE for services to the legal profession, diversity and access to justice, in HM The King’s New Year Honours List 2026

Boyce, who made history by becoming the Law Society’s first Black president and first person of colour president, led the team at Chancery Lane from March 2021 to October 2022.

CBEs also went to Judge Patrick Peruško, designated family judge at the Family Drug and Alcohol Court, and, north of the border, Lady Rita Rae, solicitor, advocate, former sheriff at Glasgow and former judge at the Court of Session.

Paul Lewis, firmwide managing partner, Linklaters, received an OBE for his work with Business in the Community in Newport.

In a LinkedIn post, Lewis said he was ‘extremely proud’ to receive the award, which ‘recognises the collective work of many’, and had been privileged to ‘help tackle poverty, unlock new opportunities for skill development and to position Newport as a beacon of economic development while protecting its natural assets’.

He recommended that any CEO join a Business in the Community Seeing is Believing (SIB) programme—‘I can attest that it is genuinely life-changing.’ The programme connects senior business leaders with communities to support growth across the UK.

OBEs also went to Judge Jeff Blackett, a former Judge Advocate General of the Armed Forces, and to corporate lawyer Barry O’Brien, who was a partner at Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer before moving in-house.

Judge Jeff Blackett, a rugby player and judicial officer in three Rugby World Cups, received his award for services to justice and to charitable causes. O’Brien, a former Glamorgan chairman and chair of the England and Wales Cricket Board, received his award for services to the law, to cricket and to charity.

Issue: 8144 / Categories: Legal News , Profession
printer mail-details

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
back-to-top-scroll