THIS ISSUE
With civil and family courts sitting at the Hilton and Holiday Inn hotels, former District Judge Stephen Gold consults the Tripadvisor Court Accommodation Reports and finds some unfavourable reviews, in this week’s Civil Way
Nick Hall, barrister at Red Lion Chambers, considers the relevance of inquest proceedings in fitness to practise proceedings in professional discipline law, in this week’s NLJ
The options for injunctive relief against unlawful stop and search are narrow, Neil Parpworth, of Leicester De Montfort Law School, writes in this week’s NLJ
In the third instalment of his series on access to justice and digital technologies, Roger Smith asks whether the Lord Chancellor is tilting his hat at high-fee international commercial work at the expense of smaller domestic claims
To what extent does the right to be forgotten apply to blockchain, the technology behind Bitcoin and other ledger-based systems? Not only is it technically impossible but, following the end of the post-Brexit transition period, the EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) no longer strictly applies (although the GDPR’s provisions have been incorporated into domestic law).
These are difficult times for free legal advice charities, but lawyers have been putting their best foot forward to garner additional funds
Remote hearings have an unseen psychological impact on court users, a report has found
Some 61 offenders had their sentences increased last year under the Unduly Lenient Sentence scheme, the Attorney General’s Office has confirmed
Nicholas Hall considers the relevance of inquest proceedings in fitness to practise proceedings in professional discipline law
Mastercard has lost its bid to stop a gigantic £15bn class action going ahead, in a landmark decision on opt-out claims
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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