THIS ISSUE
Is our criminal appeals system fit for purpose? Jon Robins, NLJ columnist, writes that he recently attended an ‘astonishing press conference’ on the Lucy Letby case, in which the international panel of medical experts, working pro bono, ‘did not equivocate.
Welcome to the brave new world of neuropolitics! In this week’s NLJ, Harry Lambert, Outer Temple Chambers, continues his fascinating series on the fast-emerging area of neurorights with a look at free will, our sense of self, individual agency and freedom of thought.
In a small road accident claim, do we really need to know the full details of the claimant’s childhood medical history? ‘In modest personal injury claims, routine, unnecessary and inappropriate disclosure of the entirety of claimants’ medical records is not acceptable,’ Charles Davey, a barrister with The Barrister Group, writes in this week’s NLJ.
Three cases concerning contributory action and re-engagement, injury to feelings and blacklisted airline pilots come under scrutiny in this week’s NLJ. Ian Smith, barrister, emeritus professor of employment law at the Norwich Law School, UEA, and author of NLJ’s monthly employment law brief, comments that cases on re-engagement, the first in the trio, are ‘relatively rare’. This case ‘shows how carefully an employment tribunal must construe exactly what is expected of it when considering re-engagement’.
From moths in the attic to the right to manage, 2024 provided a plethora of landmark real estate litigation cases. In this week’s NLJ, Ben Hatton, director of property litigation, Jordan Gulwell, lawyer, and Natasha Vij, trainee solicitor, at Clifford Chance, survey the stand-out cases and set out some lessons to learn from each.
Former district judge Stephen Gold highlights some unplanned side-effects of proposed legislation to include the names of claimants in the Register of Judgments, Orders and Fines, in this week’s NLJ.
What happened in family law in the last quarter of 2024? A lot, as demonstrated by Ellie Hampson-Jones, senior associate, and Carla Ditz, knowledge development lawyer at Stewarts, authors of NLJ’s family law brief.
Is our criminal appeals system any more prepared to recognise an injustice than it was back in the ‘bad old days’? Jon Robins reports
Ellie Hampson-Jones & Carla Ditz analyse the outcomes of the first Family Court Annual Report, as well as other crucial developments in the field
Ben Hatton, Jordan Gulwell & Natasha Vij explore 2024’s stand-out cases in real estate litigation: what can we learn for the coming year?
MOVERS & SHAKERS
Switalskis—Naila Arif, Harriet Findlay & Ellie Thompson
Firm awards training contracts to paralegals through internal programme
Ward Hadaway—Matthew Morton
Private client disputes specialist joins commercial litigation team
Thomson Hayton Winkley—Nina Hood
Cumbria firm appoints new head of residential property
NEWS
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
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
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’
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’
Family law must shift from conflict-driven litigation to child-centred problem-solving, according to a major new report. Writing in NLJ this week, Caroline Bowden of Anthony Gold outlines findings showing overwhelming support for reform, with 92% agreeing lawyers owe duties to children as well as clients
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