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21 January 2026
Issue: 8146 / Categories: Legal News , Profession
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Supreme Court president to step down

Lord Reed, president of the Supreme Court, has announced he will retire next January

The dual-qualified advocate and barrister replaced Lady Hale as president in 2020, having joined the court in 2012. He previously served as a judge at the Court of Session in Scotland.

Law Society president Mark Evans said: ‘We pay tribute to his service, leadership and dedication and wish him well in the future.’

The Lord Chancellor will now convene an independent selection commission to decide his successor.

Lord Reed said it ‘has been a privilege to serve the citizens of the UK, and the people of the Privy Council jurisdictions’.

His is the latest in a spate of high-profile judicial retirements—both Sir Geoffrey Vos, Master of the Rolls, and Dame Victoria Sharp, president of the King’s Bench Division, step down in October, while Family Division president Sir Andrew McFarlane is due to retire in April.

Last week, Lord Sales was sworn in as deputy president, replacing Lord Hodge, who retired last month. 

Issue: 8146 / Categories: Legal News , Profession
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MOVERS & SHAKERS

Bellevue Law—Lianne Craig

Bellevue Law—Lianne Craig

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EIP—Rob Barker

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IP firm promotes patent attorney to partner

Muckle LLP—Ryan Butler

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Banking and restructuring team bolstered by insolvency specialist

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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