THIS ISSUE
A recent Court of Appeal decision has highlighted the risk that settlement agreements could inadvertently become subject to consumer credit regulation, and thus rendered unenforceable.
On the other side of Brexit and in the midst of a pandemic, the UK’s domestic regulator of medicines and healthcare now stands alone for the first time in almost 40 years.
Could the key to early retirement be taking a job as an Uber driver and using an iPhone and a Volkswagen? If the current trend of class action claims continues, then perhaps so, says Dominic Regan in his latest NLJ column
Human rights at risk under Bill proposals, warn campaigners
Bank to face money laundering accusations in court
Northern Ireland could be placed in the awkward position of having to apply quotas, higher tariffs or other EU trade sanctions on goods arriving from the rest of the UK, the European Scrutiny Committee has warned.
Media start-up Crafty Counsel is partnering with LexisNexis to share a range of content for in-house lawyers.
Lawyers have been asked for their views on product safety laws, as ministers prepare for a legislative overhaul.
The Chancellor of the High Court, Sir Julian Flaux, floated the idea of a four-day sitting week in the Chancery Division, as in other Business and Property Courts, in a speech to the Chancery Bar Association last week.
Sir Geoffrey Vos, Master of the Rolls, reported on legal progress to the International Swaps and Derivatives Association annual forum last week.
MOVERS & SHAKERS
Foot Anstey—Jasmine Olomolaiye
Investigations and corporate crime expert joins as partner
Fieldfisher—Mark Shaw
Veteran funds specialist joins investment funds team
Taylor Wessing—Stephen Whitfield
Firm enhances competition practice with London partner hire
NEWS
The Supreme Court has delivered a decisive ruling on termination under the JCT Design & Build form. Writing in NLJ this week, Andrew Singer KC and Jonathan Ward, of Kings Chambers, analyse Providence Building Services v Hexagon Housing Association [2026] UKSC 1, which restores the first-instance decision and curbs contractors’ termination rights for repeated late payment
Secondments, disciplinary procedures and appeal chaos all feature in a quartet of recent rulings. Writing in NLJ this week, Ian Smith, barrister and emeritus professor of employment law at UEA, examines how established principles are being tested in modern disputes
The AI revolution is no longer a distant murmur—it’s at the client’s desk. Writing in NLJ this week, Peter Ambrose, CEO of The Partnership and Legalito, warns that the ‘AI chickens’ have ‘come home to roost’, transforming not just legal practice but the lawyer–client relationship itself
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
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