THIS ISSUE
Veronica Cowan explains why the Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority is in the dock
Increase in number of cohabiting families underscores need for reform
Cogent evidence & sound reasons needed to support applications
A man who stabbed a police dog in the face has become the first person to receive a prison sentence under Finn’s Law.
Law firm owners or co-owners with EEA or EFTA qualifications will need to re-qualify, re-register or restructure their business before Brexit if the UK leaves with no deal, the government has warned.
The FDA trade union, which represents lawyers in the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS), has handed the prime minister nearly 900 letters from the public calling on him to save the UK’s criminal justice system.
Bar Council elections will go electronic only in October.
The Judicial Diversity Committee has launched a support programme for those interested in applying to be s 9(4) Deputy High Court Judges.
Despite ongoing global economic uncertainties, the UK’s legal services sector boomed in the first six months of 2019, according to Office for National Statistics data published last week.
The Law Society is urging solicitors to write to the new Lord Chancellor about access to justice.
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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