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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

Clarke Willmott—Matthew Roach

Clarke Willmott—Matthew Roach

Partner joins commercial property team in Taunton office

Farrer & Co—Richard Lane

Farrer & Co—Richard Lane

Londstanding London firm appoints new senior partner

Bird & Bird—Sue McLean

Bird & Bird—Sue McLean

Commercial team in London welcomes technology specialist as partner

NEWS
What safeguards apply when trust corporations are appointed as deputy by the Court of Protection? 
Disputing parties are expected to take part in alternative dispute resolution (ADR), where this is suitable for their case. At what point, however, does refusing to participate cross the threshold of ‘unreasonable’ and attract adverse costs consequences?
When it comes to free legal advice, demand massively outweighs supply. 'Millions of people are excluded from access to justice as they don’t have anywhere to turn for free advice—or don’t know that they can ask for help,' Bhavini Bhatt, development director at the Access to Justice Foundation, writes in this week's NLJ
When an ex-couple is deciding who gets what in the divorce or civil partnership dissolution, when is it appropriate for a third party to intervene? David Burrows, NLJ columnist and solicitor advocate, considers this thorny issue in this week’s NLJ
NLJ's latest Charities Appeals Supplement has been published in this week’s issue
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