THIS ISSUE
Rakesh Kapila explains how forensic accountants can help when disputes arise from the administration of estates
Sarah Rushton & Sophie Georgiou address the thorny issue of vaccine mandates in the workplace
Andrew Wilkinson considers the implications of Hirachand v Hirachand for lawyers & probate practitioners
Feeling starstruck? Dominic Regan sizes up the Master of the Rolls & takes shelter from recent grenades tossed into the world of costs management
Peter Mansfield reveals the shocking truth about a popular Christmas film
Neil Parpworth interprets the latest Home Office figures on stop and search
Kim Beatson & Victoria Brown return to discuss what happens after a fact finding hearing, Scott Schedules and recent case law
The number of solicitors working in-house has risen ‘significantly’ in the past decade, amid a UK-wide boost in legal services output
Professor Dominic Regan explains why he is ‘smitten’ by the Master of the Rolls, Sir Geoffrey Vos, in this week’s NLJ
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
The Supreme Court has delivered a decisive ruling on termination under the JCT Design & Build form. Writing in NLJ this week, Andrew Singer KC and Jonathan Ward, of Kings Chambers, analyse Providence Building Services v Hexagon Housing Association [2026] UKSC 1, which restores the first-instance decision and curbs contractors’ termination rights for repeated late payment
Secondments, disciplinary procedures and appeal chaos all feature in a quartet of recent rulings. Writing in NLJ this week, Ian Smith, barrister and emeritus professor of employment law at UEA, examines how established principles are being tested in modern disputes
The AI revolution is no longer a distant murmur—it’s at the client’s desk. Writing in NLJ this week, Peter Ambrose, CEO of The Partnership and Legalito, warns that the ‘AI chickens’ have ‘come home to roost’, transforming not just legal practice but the lawyer–client relationship itself
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
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