header-logo header-logo

Home Login E-newsletter About us
02 April 2014 / Dr Jon Robins
Issue: 7601 / Categories: Opinion , Profession
printer mail-detail

A thorny situation

© Copyright LexisNexis 2026. All Rights Reserved.
web_robins_0

As Des Hudson announces his Law Society departure, Jon Robins reflects on his rollercoaster tenure
So it is farewell to Des Hudson. The Law Society chief executive will be lauded by some for providing a strong hand on the tiller that steered the good ship “Chancery Lane” away from its previous course colliding with every iceberg that came its way and denounced by others for selling its criminal defence members down the river.

Hudson insists that his departure date was in the diary last year and definitely not a panicky gesture to appease angry defence lawyers. The official line is that the timing of the announcement of his retirement is not an attempt to stave off yet more damage from a second special general meeting (SGM) challenging the leadership.

Chancery Lane paid tribute to its outgoing boss for having “strengthened” the organisation. “He has led numerous high-profile campaigns including the introduction of a range of new initiatives to help to increase the quality of legal services provision in England and Wales and raise

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
London Solicitors Litigation Association—John McElroy

London Solicitors Litigation Association—John McElroy

Fieldfisher partner appointed president as LSLA marks milestone year

Kingsley Napley—Kirsty Churm & Olivia Stiles

Kingsley Napley—Kirsty Churm & Olivia Stiles

Firm promotes two lawyers to partnership across employment and family

Foot Anstey—five promotions

Foot Anstey—five promotions

Firm promotes five lawyers to partnership across key growth areas

NEWS
Read All
NLJ this week: Divorce ‘nuclear weapon’ freezes assets but entangles outsiders
Freezing orders in divorce proceedings can unexpectedly ensnare third parties and disrupt businesses. In NLJ this week, Lucy James of Trowers & Hamlins explains how these orders—dubbed a ‘nuclear weapon’—preserve assets but can extend far beyond spouses to companies and business partners 
NLJ this week: What counts as ‘rent’? Court says labour alone won’t do
A Court of Appeal ruling has clarified that ‘rent’ must be monetary—excluding tenants paid in labour from statutory protection. In this week's NLJ, James Naylor explains Garraway v Phillips, where a tenant worked two days a week instead of paying rent
Your magistrates’ court needs you!
Thousands more magistrates are to be recruited, under a major shake-up to speed up and expand the hiring process
NLJ this week: Freed but failed—justice system leaves the innocent empty-handed
Three men wrongly imprisoned for a combined 77 years have been released—yet received ‘not a penny’ in compensation, exposing deep flaws in the justice system. Writing in NLJ this week, Dr Jon Robins reports on Justin Plummer, Oliver Campbell and Peter Sullivan, whose convictions collapsed amid discredited forensics, ‘oppressive’ police interviews and unreliable ‘cell confessions’
NLJ this week: Clarity on whistleblowing, settlements and tribunal limits
A quiet month for employment cases still delivers key legal clarifications. In his latest Employment Law Brief for NLJ, Ian Smith reports that whistleblowing protection remains intact even where disclosures are partly self-serving, provided the worker reasonably believes they serve the ‘public interest’ 
Copyright © 2026 LexisNexis
back-to-top-scroll