THIS ISSUE
How should family lawyers work with clients who lose or lack capacity?
A recent judgment gave much-needed clarification on costs in probate cases, write Chris Bryden & Ben Haseldine
Ian Smith gets the flags out for the Supreme Court in Tesco Stores, & addresses the age-old issue of unfair dismissal
Jo Sanders on how to keep a cool head in an emergency
“A tour de force of the impact of the Equality Act 2010 on housing law in England”
Christmas has come early for litigators & it’s all about the money! Dominic Regan shows he’s no turkey as he shares a feast of legal gems in this month’s exposé
Without the right systems in place, conveyancing can be a time-consuming & risky process, writes Louise Edwardes, Head of Product at InfoTrack, in this week’s NLJ
Louise Edwardes, Head of Product at InfoTrack, suggests some conveyancing timesavers
In his debut column for NLJ this week, crime silk Jonathan Fisher KC, of Red Lion Chambers, looks at the vexed problem of fraud, now accounting for 40% of all crimes committed in England & Wales
With fraud accounting for 40% of all crime in England & Wales, Jonathan Fisher KC sets out how the new government might tackle it
MOVERS & SHAKERS
Bellevue Law—Lianne Craig
Workplace law firm expands commercial disputes team with senior consultant hire
EIP—Rob Barker
IP firm promotes patent attorney to partner
Muckle LLP—Ryan Butler
Banking and restructuring team bolstered by insolvency specialist
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
Copyright © 2026 LexisNexis
