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28 November 2025 / Stephen Gold
Issue: 8141 / Categories: Features , Procedure & practice , Civil way , CPR
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Civil way: 28 November 2025

Back to school for housing; commercial litigators beware; latest fee hikes; longer with ACAS; more Help with Fees.

UNDER STARTER’S ORDERS

You may have heard. The Renters’ Rights Act 2025 (spot the apostrophe) is here, and its first main tranche of reforms will be brought into force on 1 May 2026. Just think of the conferences, textbooks, endless articles by former district judges, subordinate legislation, forms, county court logjams. You could take a small boat to Utopia. What you may not have heard is that I am running at a loss. I’ve printed out the whole Act. 241 pages and four paper jams.

The vote-winning abolition of assured shortholds and s 21 Housing Act 1988 notices (later for social tenancies) and new and revised possession grounds are among the first tranche of inclusions. Some stuff comes in on 27 December 2025 (s 145(5)): long tenancies* and financial services products (s 31); accommodation for homeless people and students (s 32); abandoning premises under assured shortholds in England;

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MOVERS & SHAKERS

NLJ Career Profile: Stephen Ward, The Barrister Group

NLJ Career Profile: Stephen Ward, The Barrister Group

From mowing lawns to life at the Bar: Stephen Ward reflects on an unconventional career

Clarke Willmott—Ben Loosemore

Clarke Willmott—Ben Loosemore

Commercial property partner joins Clarke Willmott in Southampton

Ellisons—Robert Tiffen

Ellisons—Robert Tiffen

Robert Tiffen joins Ellisons as Partner in growing Norwich office

NEWS
The Law Society RFC Festival of Sport returns next month, bringing together legal and financial services professionals for one of the sector’s largest annual sporting events
Legal aid deserts leave almost one in four without adequate access to justice
The Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) has warned solicitors and law firms that using artificial intelligence does not alter their professional obligations, amid concerns over inaccurate legal material and client confidentiality
From forgotten interest claims to case-management appeals, a string of procedural developments offers useful—and occasionally cautionary—lessons for practitioners

Jonathan Fisher KC highlights that it now accounts for around 40% of criminal offences, with roughly 70% involving technology, and argues that the UK cannot simply prosecute its way out of the problem. Detection, investigation and prosecution all require improvement, while different fraud types demand tailored responses.

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