THIS ISSUE
Why have private prosecutions surged despite limited data? Niall Hearty of Rahman Ravelli explores their rise in this week's NLJ
The public law team at Herbert Smith Freehills Kramer surveys significant recent human rights and judicial review rulings in this week's NLJ
Debarment: shortcut to judgment or simply a trial management tool? Mary Young reports
In this week's NLJ, Mary Young of Kingsley Napley examines how debarring orders, while attractive to claimants seeking swift resolution, can complicate trials—most notably in fraud cases requiring ‘particularly cogent’ proof
The latest human rights & judicial review cases from the team at Herbert Smith Freehills Kramer
Cracked trials and weak cases: Professor Michael Zander revisits his landmark 1993 Crown Court Study in this week's NLJ, arguing that its insights remain strikingly current
Professor Graham Zellick KC considers what it means to say there is no right to trial by jury
In NLJ this week, Masood Ahmed and Raghad Hamed explain how the Commercial Court’s ruling in K1 v B reinforces that challenges under s 68 of the Arbitration Act 1996 remain a narrow ‘long stop’
Criminal defence lawyers have expressed dismay at the Lord Chancellor David Lammy’s plans to reduce the backlog by scaling back jury trials to murder, rape, homicide and other indictable crimes where the sentence is three years or more
MPs will vote next week on an amendment to fast-track the change to the unfair dismissal qualifying period, as the government’s flagship Employment Rights Bill returns to the Commons
MOVERS & SHAKERS
Clarke Willmott—Matthew Roach
Partner joins commercial property team in Taunton office
Farrer & Co—Richard Lane
Londstanding London firm appoints new senior partner
Bird & Bird—Sue McLean
Commercial team in London welcomes technology specialist as partner
NEWS
The legal profession’s claim to be a ‘guardian of fairness’ is under scrutiny after stark findings on gender imbalance and opaque progression. Writing in NLJ this week, Joshua Purser of No5 Barristers’ Chambers and Govindi Deerasinghe of Global 50/50 warn that leadership remains dominated by a narrow elite, with men holding 71% of top court roles
A legal challenge to police disclosure rules has failed, reinforcing a push for transparency in policing. In NLJ this week, Neil Parpworth examines a case where the Metropolitan Police required officers to declare membership of groups like the Freemasons
Bereavement leave is undergoing a quiet but profound transformation. Writing in NLJ this week, Robert Hargreaves of York St John University explains how the Employment Rights Act 2025 introduces a day-one right to leave for a wider range of losses, alongside new provisions for pregnancy loss and bereaved partners
Courts are beginning to grapple with whether AI-generated material is legally privileged—and the answers are mixed. In this week's issue of NLJ, Stacie Bourton, Tom Whittaker & Beata Kolodziej of Burges Salmon examine US rulings showing how easily privilege can be lost
New guidance seeks to bring order to the growing use of artificial intelligence (AI) in expert evidence. Writing in NLJ this week, Minesh Tanna and David Bridge of Simmons & Simmons set out a framework stressing ‘transparency’, ‘explainability’ and ‘reliability’
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