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Employment law brief: 17 April 2026

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After too much Easter nibbling, Ian Smith hops through a flurry of legislative activity & case law
  • Legislative developments dominate, with uprated social security benefits, new measures under the Employment Rights Act 2025 and revised Vento bands for injury to feelings awards.
  • Recent case law, though limited in number, delivers key clarifications on whistleblowing motives, the distinction between reason and motive in discrimination, the scope of COT3 settlements, and the increasingly adversarial approach of employment tribunals.

In spring, a young employment lawyer’s fancy turns to… the statutory instruments containing the uprating of social security benefits, the employment protection maxima and the national minimum wages, along with not one but two commencement orders for the Employment Rights Act 2025. To cap this off we have, not Easter bunnies and chocolate eggs, but the employment tribunal (ET) presidential increases of the Vento scales for awards for injury to feelings. A heady mix indeed.

Perhaps to compensate for this frenetic activity on the legislative front,

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MOVERS & SHAKERS

Thomson Hayton Winkley—Jordan Wallace

Thomson Hayton Winkley—Jordan Wallace

Thomson Hayton Winkley strengthens family law team

Ward Hadaway—Barnaby Rosenthall

Ward Hadaway—Barnaby Rosenthall

Construction lawyer returns to Ward Hadaway in Teesside role

Bird & Bird—Shahin Baghaei

Bird & Bird—Shahin Baghaei

Bird Bird hires leading legal transformation expert

NEWS
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.

How forcefully can a litigant criticise a public authority before robust advocacy crosses the line into unreasonable conduct? 
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