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20 February 2026 / David Locke
Issue: 8150 / Categories: Features , Legal services , Risk management , Artificial intelligence , Profession
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Book review: The Law Firm of 2030: How the future law firm might look

© Copyright LexisNexis 2026. All Rights Reserved.
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"The next board meeting of every law firm should have on its agenda the following item: why have we not read this book?"
  • Editor: Alex Davies
  • Publisher: Globe Law and Business
  • ISBN: 9781837230853
  • RRP: £159.00

The legal services industry has entered a period of change with such radical potential that it would be disingenuous for anyone to claim a reliable insight very far into the future. Nonetheless, as it is not unknown for such claims to be made, it is a mark of integrity that the various contributors to The Law Firm of 2030 restrict their projections, and even the name of their book, to the immediate/short-term. Even so, the range of issues they address is expansive, and while the anticipated impact of artificial intelligence (AI) integration features heavily, the discussion is much wider, demonstrating the range of issues that should be—but often are not—on the agenda for every law firm’s next board meeting.

Wake-up call

The

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MOVERS & SHAKERS

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Bellevue Law—Lianne Craig

Bellevue Law—Lianne Craig

Workplace law firm expands commercial disputes team with senior consultant hire

EIP—Rob Barker

EIP—Rob Barker

IP firm promotes patent attorney to partner

Muckle LLP—Ryan Butler

Muckle LLP—Ryan Butler

Banking and restructuring team bolstered by insolvency specialist

NEWS
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NLJ this week: Tightening the screws on JCT terminations
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
NLJ this week: Old rules, fresh warnings in employment law
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
NLJ this week: The rise of the ‘ChatGPT client’ rattles the profession
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
NLJ this week: Surrogacy children caught in succession gap
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’
NLJ this week: Online safety law at a crossroads
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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