header-logo header-logo

Home Login E-newsletter About us

The insider: 6 February 2026

© Copyright LexisNexis 2026. All Rights Reserved.
06 February 2026 / Dominic Regan
Issue: 8148 / Categories: Opinion , Legal services , Profession , Costs
printer mail-detail
241917
Who’s coming, who’s going, & what cases are worth watching? Dominic Regan reports from the legal frontlines

I have had the privilege of reading several skeletons adduced for the forthcoming Mazur appeal, listed for 2.5 days on 24 February. Viable arguments abound. On the bench will be the Master of the Rolls, Chancellor of the High Court Lord Justice Birss, and Lady Justice Andrews. It is to be hoped that a judgment will be delivered before Easter.

Our fine Master of the Rolls, Sir Geoffrey Vos, is to retire at the end of October. In November 2024, I was in the audience when the then courts minister Heidi Alexander spoke of her admiration for him, admitting that she had directed her senior civil servants to ‘bring me more Sir Geoffreys’. An hour later, and after less than six months in post, she was moved to become the transport secretary.

I anticipate that the new Master will be female. My money is on Lady Simler, who is as charming

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

Read All
Sponsored by
DWF—Ed Williams

DWF—Ed Williams

Public sector disputes capability bolstered by partner hire in Leeds

Blake Morgan—Scott Hilton, Joan Yu & Melia Hirst

Blake Morgan—Scott Hilton, Joan Yu & Melia Hirst

Firm strengthens corporate, real estate and insolvency teams with partner trio

Seddons GSC—David Seal & Emma Clifford

Seddons GSC—David Seal & Emma Clifford

Consultant and solicitor join commercial real estate team

NEWS
Read All
NLJ this week: What judging really demands
Judging is ‘more intellectually demanding than any other role in public life’—and far messier than outsiders imagine. Writing in NLJ this week, Professor Graham Zellick KC reflects on decades spent wrestling with unclear legislation, fragile precedent and human fallibility
NLJ this week: AI comes for the billable hour
The long-predicted death of the billable hour may finally be here—and this time, it’s armed with a scythe. In a sweeping critique of time-based billing, Ian McDougall, president of the LexisNexis Rule of Law Foundation, argues in this week's NLJ that artificial intelligence has made hourly charging ‘intellectually, commercially and ethically indefensible’
NLJ this week: Civil procedure—sharp elbows & sharper warnings
From fake authorities to rent reform, the civil courts have had a busy start to 2026. In his latest 'Civil way' column for NLJ this week, Stephen Gold surveys a procedural landscape where guidance, discretion and discipline are all under strain
NLJ this week: Getting the facts right in family courts
Fact-finding hearings remain a fault line in private family law. Writing in NLJ this week, Victoria Rylatt and Robyn Laye of Anthony Gold Solicitors analyse recent appeals exposing the dangers of rushed or fragmented findings
NLJ this week: Sporting justice—at sprint speed
As the Winter Olympics open in Milan and Cortina, legal disputes are once again being resolved almost as fast as the athletes compete. Writing in NLJ this week, Professor Ian Blackshaw of Valloni Attorneys examines the Court of Arbitration for Sport’s (CAS's) ad hoc divisions, which can decide cases within 24 hours
Copyright © 2026 LexisNexis
back-to-top-scroll