THIS ISSUE
Lewisham Council appoints new director of law
Professor Mayson’s ‘Reforming Legal Services’ report was ‘too generous about the Byzantine structures’ of professional regulation, John Gould, senior partner, Russell Cooke, writes in this week’s NLJ
While letting may seem an easy way to make money, tenants could find themselves in legal difficulty.
The High Court has made two unusual pre-trial orders within the space of a fortnight, indicating that parties ‘need not resign themselves to the cost and delay’ of side issues, barristers Daniel Lightman QC & Stephanie Thompson, of Serle Court, write in this week’s NLJ
Judges are ‘making decisions that should be made by a democratically elected parliament or government’, barrister and author Dr Michael Arnheim argues in this week’s NLJ
The widespread misery caused to society’s poorest by the COVID-19 crisis is highlighted in this week's issue by Keith Wilding, a retired fee-paid tribunal judge, and Sue Bent, chief executive of the Central England Law Centre
First-ever legal executive appointed chair of national family justice body
Daniel Lightman QC & Stephanie Thompson put the case for a robust approach to costly side issues
John Gould applauds Professor Mayson for his attempt to detangle the regulation of title & the regulation of activity
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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