THIS ISSUE
The Legal Services Board (LSB) has said it anticipates a significant call on resources in the next financial year
The UK’s legal services sector generated £43.7bn in 2023 (up 5.6% on the previous year), according to research by industry lobby group TheCityUK
Barristers have been told they must remove wigs and gowns before leaving the Old Bailey, as this has been highlighted as a security concern
Inappropriate or unacceptable behaviour, bullying, harassment and discrimination at the Bar is a ‘systemic issue’, the Bar Council has said, after research uncovered shocking levels of abuse at work
MPs have passed the controversial Safety of Rwanda (Asylum and Immigration) Bill despite concerns expressed by lawyers
The High Court was due to hear a judicial review this week brought by the Law Society against the Lord Chancellor’s decision not to increase criminal defence solicitors’ legal aid rates by 15%
Increasing numbers of deprivation of liberty orders are being made against children, family law campaigners have warned. Yet, in the majority of cases, the parents or carers concerned have no access to legal advice
Baroness Carr, the Lady Chief Justice, and senior judiciary have issued guidance advising that judicial office holders ‘must be alive to the potential risks’ of artificial intelligence (AI)
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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