THIS ISSUE
Poonam Melwani QC on why a sense of community, mentoring & support are key to the success & happiness of young lawyers
Sir Geoffrey Vos, Master of the Rolls & Head of Civil Justice
David Greene on why 200 years of history dictates that we must be ever watchful of threats to the rule of law, human rights, equality & an equal justice process
Casey Randall, Head of DNA at AlphaBiolabs, explains how complex relationship DNA testing works, how such tests can be used for legal purposes, and how to interpret the results
Digital justice enthusiast Sir Geoffrey Vos, Master of the Rolls, marks the bicentenary of NLJ this week by calling for the legal system to be ‘more agile’
2022 marks an important anniversary for legal publishing and NLJ in particular
As NLJ marks its 200th anniversary (it was first published as The Law Journal in 1822), NLJ consultant editor David Greene looks back two centuries and the development since in terms of rule of law, human rights, equality and equal justice
David Walbank QC makes his debut in this week’s celebratory 200th anniversary issue
To celebrate 200 years of NLJ’s history former District Judge and NLJ columnist Stephen Gold steps back in time, snuff box in hand, to the cobbled streets of yesteryear to pen a new series of columns from the archive
Employment barrister Ian Smith, general editor of Harvey, toasts five decades of ‘the practitioner’s bible on employment law’. It’s a fast-moving area of law, so much so that ‘the hard copy version, now in six volumes, would now need a pick-up truck to carry’
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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