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05 January 2026
Categories: Movers & Shakers , Profession
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Freeths—Suzanne Porter

Firm launches trusts, estates and tax practice in the north with senior hire

Freeths has appointed director Suzanne Porter to its trusts, estates and tax (TeT) team, marking the launch of the practice in the North. The hire reflects the firm’s strategy to expand its private client offering nationally.

Porter has more than 20 years’ experience advising private clients, landed estates, business owners and entrepreneurs. Her expertise spans estate and tax planning, trusts and advising vulnerable clients, and she has acted as trustee for a number of high-value charitable and family trusts.

Louise Lewis, partner and head of TeT, said the appointment is ‘a pivotal moment for Freeths’ as it expands into Yorkshire, adding that Porter’s ‘wealth of experience and regional insight’ will help deliver ‘a truly national service, with local expertise’.

Porter said: ‘Joining Freeths is an exciting opportunity to shape something new and special in the north.’ She added: ‘I’m passionate about helping families, business owners and estates plan for the future.’

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Switalskis—Grimsby

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Firm expands with new Grimsby office to serve North East Lincolnshire

Slater Heelis—Will Newman & Lucy Spilsbury

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Property team boosted by two solicitor appointments

NEWS
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
Recent allegations surrounding Peter Mandelson and Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor have reignited scrutiny of the ancient common law offence of misconduct in public office. Writing in NLJ this week, Simon Parsons, teaching fellow at Bath Spa University, asks whether their conduct could clear a notoriously high legal hurdle
A landmark ruling has reshaped child clinical negligence claims. Writing in NLJ this week, Jodi Newton, head of birth and paediatric negligence at Osbornes Law, explains how the Supreme Court in CCC v Sheffield Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust [2026] UKSC 5 has overturned Croke v Wiseman, ending the long-standing bar on children recovering ‘lost years’ earnings
A Court of Appeal ruling has drawn a firm line under party autonomy in arbitration. Writing in NLJ this week, Masood Ahmed, associate professor at the University of Leicester, analyses Gluck v Endzweig [2026] EWCA Civ 145, where a clause allowing arbitrators to amend an award ‘at any time’ was held incompatible with the Arbitration Act 1996
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