header-logo header-logo

Hard at work

rexfeatures_1518232a_4

Ian Smith pays homage to the Law of Sod

In last month’s column I was rash/stupid enough to say that the government’s employment law review seemed to have gone temporarily to sleep. This obviously aroused the ire of the gods in charge of that well known area of British jurisprudence, the Law of Sod, because we have seen this month a veritable outpouring of papers and announcements (most recently in the Chancellor’s Autumn Statement) on proposed and possible reforms.
 

  • The Department for Business, Information and Skills (BIS) and the Courts and Tribunals Service published Resolving Workplace Disputes: Government response to the consultation,
  • the BIS/DWP working party on reforms to sickness absence laws reported,
  • and Underhill P has been deputed to review the Employment Tribunal Rules of Procedure by next spring.

This has been supplemented quite separately by an informal report for the prime minister by a ministerial adviser (Adrian Beecroft—strangely perhaps not Adam Werritty) which argues for a more root and branch approach, and in particular has spawned one

If you are not a subscriber, subscribe now to read this content
If you are already a subscriber sign in
...or Register for two weeks' free access to subscriber content

MOVERS & SHAKERS

Slater Heelis—Oliver Banks

Slater Heelis—Oliver Banks

Manchester firm strengthens Court of Protection expertise with partner hire

Talbots Law—Sara Pickerin & Nicholas Playford

Talbots Law—Sara Pickerin & Nicholas Playford

Agricultural law team expands with senior director appointments

Kingsley Napley—Claire Green

Kingsley Napley—Claire Green

Firm announces appointment of chief legal officer

NEWS
Entries are now open for the 2026 LexisNexis Legal Awards, celebrating achievement and innovation in the law across 24 categories
The London Legal Support Trust (LLST) is calling on the legal community to don aprons and sharpen their pencils for two of its most popular fundraising events—the Great Legal Bake and the Great Legal Quiz. The events, which take place in November, raise vital funds for free legal advice charities across London and the South East
The Ministry of Justice (MoJ) has launched a review of its whiplash policies, including fixed tariffs, statutory definition of the injury, ban on settling cases without medical evidence and small claims limit
Family lawyers have welcomed government plans to repeal the presumption of parental involvement from the Children Act 1989, but emphasised the need for each case to be determined on its facts
Transferring anti-money laundering (AML) and counter-terrorism financing supervision to the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) could create extra paperwork and increase costs for clients, lawyers have warned 
back-to-top-scroll