THIS ISSUE
Accelerated package of measures could end impasse
Internet companies should bear more responsibility in stopping online sexual offences, law reform and human rights group JUSTICE has said
The prison population would need to reduce by 20,000 inmates for current funding to match running costs, the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) has told MPs
Plans to establish an online court give ministers too much power, raising constitutional concerns, a parliamentary committee has warned
The Supreme Court has given an important ruling on the ‘serious harm’ test for libel.
The Law Society has welcomed the signing of a continuity free trade agreement with Korea that will allow English and Welsh solicitors to continue to practise there after Brexit
Barristers volunteering through Advocate (the new name for the Bar Pro Bono Unit) in 2018 gave more than 10,000 hours of legal help, amounting to nearly £2.25m in fees if they had charged
Solicitors will pay £30 less and firms will pay £530 less towards the Compensation Fund next year
QC, judge and president of the ‘spies tribunal’, Sir Michael Burton has been awarded a knighthood in the Queen’s Birthday Honours List
Security for costs: Rakesh Kapila reports on the forensic accountant's role
MOVERS & SHAKERS
Cripps—Radius Law
Commercial and technology practice boosted by team hire
Switalskis—Grimsby
Firm expands with new Grimsby office to serve North East Lincolnshire
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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