THIS ISSUE
An open and rigorous process of accountability of the 22,000 judges in England & Wales is essential if public trust is to be maintained, John Gould, senior partner at Russell-Cooke, writes in this week’s NLJ
The career freedom on offer to lawyers today would have been unrecognisable 25 years ago
Politicians love to look tough on crime and penal policy, but it’s a lamentable tradition, NLJ columnist Jon Robins writes this week
The Law Commission is extending its timetable for choosing its 14th Programme of law reform after receiving about 500 responses covering nearly 200 possibilities for law reform
2021 broke recruitment records for employment lawyers, according to research by market analytics firm Vacancysoft
Low-income individuals with ‘trapped capital’ are unable to access legal aid in 30% of cases, research by the Public Law Project has found
The cap on the number of days the Crown Court can sit during a financial year has been lifted for a second year, in order to tackle the backlog of cases
Proposed clinical negligence costs reforms are ‘unfair’ to injured patients and families of patients who have died, and would act as a barrier to access to justice, personal injury lawyers have warned
The majority of solicitors grew fee income during the pandemic, according to the Law Society’s annual Law Management Section Financial Benchmarking Survey
Targets should be set for the length of time to complete certain criminal cases, such as rape, MPs have told ministers
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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