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NLJ this week: Rubenstein’s revolution, summary dismissal, off-piste issues & ‘worker’ contracts

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In days gone by, judges wrote shorter judgments, barrister Ian Smith, emeritus professor of employment law at the Norwich Law School, UEA, writes in his latest employment law update for NLJ. Surely, they can’t have more time on their hands now?

He expresses his admiration, also, for Michael Rubenstein, editor of the Industrial Relations Law Reports, who received a lifetime contribution award at the LexisNexis Legal Awards last month. ‘Not only did Michael revolutionise the coverage of employment cases, but he also developed a radically new and reader-friendly format, which we now take for granted,’ he writes.

Smith covers the latest tranche of important cases, including two Court of Appeal cases, one on cases of summary dismissal in unfair dismissal law, and the other on the extent to which parties in an employment tribunal case should be kept to an agreed list of issues. Thirdly, he covers a case on the importance of a direct contract in the definition of ‘worker’. 

MOVERS & SHAKERS

Carey Olsen—Kim Paiva

Carey Olsen—Kim Paiva

Group partner joins Guernsey banking and finance practice

Morgan Lewis—Kat Gibson

Morgan Lewis—Kat Gibson

London labour and employment team announces partner hire

Foot Anstey McKees—Chris Milligan & Michael Kelly

Foot Anstey McKees—Chris Milligan & Michael Kelly

Double partner appointment marks Belfast expansion

NEWS
The Ministry of Justice (MoJ) has not done enough to protect the future sustainability of the legal aid market, MPs have warned
Writing in NLJ this week, NLJ columnist Dominic Regan surveys a landscape marked by leapfrog appeals, costs skirmishes and notable retirements. With an appeal in Mazur due to be heard next month, Regan notes that uncertainties remain over who will intervene, and hopes for the involvement of the Lady Chief Justice and the Master of the Rolls in deciding the all-important outcome
After the Southport murders and the misinformation that followed, contempt of court law has come under intense scrutiny. In this week's NLJ, Lawrence McNamara and Lauren Schaefer of the Law Commission unpack proposals aimed at restoring clarity without sacrificing fair trial rights
The latest Home Office figures confirm that stop and search remains both controversial and diminished. Writing in NLJ this week, Neil Parpworth of De Montfort University analyses data showing historically low use of s 1 PACE powers, with drugs searches dominating what remains
Boris Johnson’s 2019 attempt to shut down Parliament remains a constitutional cautionary tale. The move, framed as a routine exercise of the royal prerogative, was in truth an extraordinary effort to sideline Parliament at the height of the Brexit crisis. Writing in NLJ this week, Professor Graham Zellick KC dissects how prorogation was wrongly assumed to be beyond judicial scrutiny, only for the Supreme Court to intervene unanimously
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