THIS ISSUE
The safeguarding role of a High Court judge in the assisted dying bill currently before Parliament has been replaced by the oversight of a panel comprising a psychiatrist, social worker and lawyer. In this week’s NLJ, Sir Mark Hedley, a retired High Court judge, shares his reflections on the loss of the judicial role itself.
Now is the time to take a proactive approach to barristers’ wellbeing, rather than waiting for things to go wrong: Barbara Mills KC sets out the case for better support
The dizzying array of regulatory requirements facing UK businesses is about to increase, with new ‘failure to prevent fraud’ duties in force in September and the proposed duty to prevent sexual harassment. In this week’s NLJ, Kerry Garcia, partner and head of employment, immigration & pensions, and James Evison, partner, at Stevens & Bolton, offer some practical steps for employers.
Thomas R Snider, Dalal Alhouti & Robin Hayden consider the key developments in international arbitration in 2024 & what practitioners should watch for in 2025
In the first part of a new series, Harry Lambert puts social media firms under the spotlight, asking: to what extent are they liable for harm?
What does the rest of 2025 have in store for international arbitration, and what are the key takeaways from 2024? Thomas R Snider, partner and head of international arbitration, Dalal Alhouti, knowledge development lawyer, and Robin Hayden, trainee solicitor, at Charles Russell Speechlys, set out the salient events in this week’s NLJ.
Ciarb’s Virtual Global Diploma offers in-depth training in international commercial arbitration
Failure to prevent fraud, sexual harassment & more: Kerry Garcia & James Evison unpack the increasing number of compliance measures facing UK businesses this year
Could social media firms be sued for harm caused to users? In the first of a three-part NLJ series on social media firms, Harry Lambert, Outer Temple Chambers, looks through ‘the lens of product liability, essentially posing the question: can social media platforms be conceptualised as defective products?’
In the first part of a new series for NLJ, Fern Schofield & Gwyneth Everson set out the facts & the significance of the most noteworthy property cases from the past few months
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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