THIS ISSUE
Two rulebooks, both alike in dignity, in fair England’s courts, where we lay our scene.
Family lawyer Jane Craig issues a call for action on cohabitation rights, in this week’s NLJ.
Cybercriminals are getting bolder, smarter and better at what they do. In this week’s NLJ, Kingsley Hayes, head of data and privacy litigation at law firm Keller Postman, offers practical advice to law firms on how to combat this ever-lurking threat and what to do in the nightmarish event of an attack.
As the number of people living together without marrying continues to rise, the time for an ‘opt-out’ cohabitation law regime is now, argues Jane Craig
Failure to prevent fraud… and more? Anita Clifford reports on the broadening scope of the proposed ‘failure to prevent’ offences & the likelihood of their success
Eyeing up further opportunities for improvements to employment law following the revocation of retained EU law, Simon Fennell targets the Working Time Regulations & Agency Workers Regulations
David Burrows delves into the origins of the Family Procedure Rules 2010: how do they overlap with their civil counterparts?
Khawar Qureshi KC outlines key Arbitration Act 1996 cases in 2022
Kellie Simpson shares her future trends for law firms and lawyers
The ‘public interest’ justification for the right of any individual to bring disciplinary proceedings against any solicitor disappeared a long time ago, says John Gould
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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