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12 March 2020
Issue: 7879 / Categories: Legal News , Profession
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LexisNexis Legal Awards: the winners

Baroness Hale, who retired earlier this year as President of the Supreme Court, received the prestigious Lifetime Contribution Award at the LexisNexis Legal Awards 2020

The event (formerly the Halsbury Legal Awards) in central London last week celebrates those firms, companies and individuals that have advanced the rule of law through brilliant practice and innovation.

Baroness Hale said: ‘My message is that nothing is impossible if you want it hard enough and try hard enough.’

Ryan Whelan, associate at Gibson Dunn, was voted Legal Personality of the Year for his successful pro bono campaign to make ‘upskirting’ a criminal offence. Doughty Street won International Team of the Year for its work protecting vulnerable journalists.

The P.R.I.M.E Finance Foundation took the Rule of Law award for its work training judges on complex financial products. Dechert’s pro bono representation of prisoners of conscience was also recognised.

LexisNexis Managing Director UK, Ireland & Pacific, Christian Fleck, said: ‘It is inspiring to see so many outstanding entries.’

For more, see www.lexisnexislegalawards.co.uk.

Issue: 7879 / Categories: Legal News , Profession
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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
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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