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R (Greyhound Board of Great Britain Ltd) v Welsh Ministers [2026] EWHC 670 (Admin) What are the practical implications of this case? The ruling reinforces the constitutional divide between the courts and the legislature. It explains that the scheme and framework of the Government of Wales Act 2006 (GWA 2006) embody that separation of powers, and that any judicial attempt to recognise and enforce a common law obligation on Welsh Ministers to consult prior to introducing legislation in the Senedd would trespass upon that boundary. This is not a departure from established principle; case law has already upheld comparable rules for lawmakers in Scotland and at Westminster. However, this is the first express confirmation of the position for Welsh lawmakers, and the first time this dimension of the GWA 2006 has been analysed in such depth. The court examined earlier
The solution arrived through the United Nations Compensation Commission (UNCC), a quasi‑judicial body handling mass claims, created under UN Security Council Resolution 687. By addressing environmental harm—most notably via its ‘F4’ claim class—the UNCC set a seminal benchmark shaping how international law and contemporary arbitral panels allocate financial responsibility for wartime ecological devastation. With present-day wars in areas such as Eastern Europe and the Middle East bringing dam breaches, strikes on chemical facilities, and the burning of farmland, the UNCC’s legacy endures as an essential reference point for states, global investors, and companies engaged in post‑conflict arbitration. The F4 claims: Quantifying the unquantifiable Prior to the 1990s, mechanisms in international law for war reparations overwhelmingly favoured property loss, foregone earnings, and bodily injury. The natural world was commonly treated as a mute, non-compensable victim of armed hostilities...
Understanding the farming business as a business Many farms still use long-standing structures that arose by habit, not strategy. Sole traders, informal partnerships and outdated partnership deeds are common. While once effective, such setups can cause major issues around succession, tax planning and involving the next generation. A corporate team can take a fresh, business-led view of the farm, asking: Who owns the land and other critical assets? Who manages daily operations? Who carries the risk and who enjoys the return? What is the enduring plan for succession? From this review, the team can confirm whether the current setup is fit for purpose or if an alternative — for example an updated partnership agreement, a company, a limited liability partnership, or a blended model — would better meet the family’s aims. Tax efficiency through joined-up advice Tax sits at the centre of most
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ZU v LT (sub nom Re A and B ( Schedule 1: Arbitral Award: Appeal)) [2024] EWHC 778 ( Fam) What are the practical implications of this case? Practitioners advising clients aiming for a settlement of property under Ch A 1989, Sch 1 can draw confidence from this decision. The court may make orders for such settlements that involve mortgage finance, whether secured on a present home or contemplated for a future purchase. Put shortly, the fact or prospect of borrowing against the current or intended property is not, of itself, a legal impediment to the court directing a settlement of property order......
Williams v Williams [2024] EWHC 733 ( Fam), [2024] All ER ( D) 65 ( Apr) What are the practical implications of this case? In this decision, the President of the Family Division, Sir Andrew Mc Farlane, emphasised the significance of marital status and the compelling public policy in upholding the certainty and finality that a final divorce order brings. He underlined the need to honour the settled legal position that follows such an order. He also identified the risk of creating an unofficial third limb to divorce proceedings—after the conditional and final orders—by allowing parties to return asserting that the application was filed in error. Opening that door would erode the clarity the process is designed to deliver. The ruling serves as a clear caution to practitioners to check meticulously that a divorce application is issued for the right client. Since the...
In this issue: Practice and procedure Private children Public children Lex Talk®Family: a Lexis®Nexis community Daily and weekly news alerts Updated content New Q& As Useful information Practice and procedure Court fees in certain family proceedings to increase from 1 May 2024 After the Ministry of Justice ( Mo J) published its response to the consultation on ' Implementing increases to selected court and tribunal fees', the Court and Tribunal Fees ( Miscellaneous Amendments) Order 2024, SI 2024/476 has been introduced, setting out uprated charges for selected court and tribunal fees, including specific family proceedings, with further rises affecting various civil court fees. The Lexis+® UK Family team consider the uplifts to court fees applying to specified family matters from 1 May 2024... Family Procedure Rules 2010 Practice Direction update no. 2 of 2024 The second 2024 update to the Family...
What is the background to the increases? In the government’s response to its consultation on ‘ Implementing increases to selected court and tribunal fees’, it stated it had decided to proceed with a 10% fee rise, in line with the CPI, covering 172 of the 202 fees it initially proposed. This approach keeps the uplift aligned with CPI inflation. The divorce application fee will stay the same, and 29 other fees will likewise not change while further analysis is undertaken. The government has also pledged to refresh fees on a two‑year cycle to account for variations in costs and CPI. The next scheduled review is planned for 2025–2026. Which court fees are increasing? The family proceedings fees that will increase are set out in full in Schedule 5 to the Court and Tribunal Fees ( Miscellaneous Amendments) Order 2024, SI 2024/476 ( SI...
In this issue: Practice and procedure Financial provision Private children Public children Lex Talk®Family: a Lexis®Nexis community Daily and weekly news alerts New content Updated content Useful information Practice and procedure DAPN and DAPO pilot and guidance The pilot for domestic abuse protection notices ( DAPNs) and domestic abuse protection orders ( DAPOs) is anticipated to launch in spring 2024 across three south London boroughs— Croydon, Sutton and Bromley—and in Greater Manchester, and will also involve the British Transport Police, pending the Senior Presiding Judge’s final approval and operational readiness. Guidance for legal practitioners on DAPNs and DAPOs has been issued by the Home Office and the Ministry of Justice. HMCTS updates guidance on general applications and applications for alternative service, deemed and dispensed service and conditional orders HM Courts and Tribunals Service has revised its guidance for legal...
Re T ( Adoption Hearing: Involvement of Applicants) [2024] EWCA Civ 189, [2024] All ER ( D) 88 ( Mar) What are the practical implications of this case? This decision confirms that the ‘ President’s Guidance: Listing Final Hearings in Adoption cases’ dated 10 April 2018 (the guidance) is incorrect at paragraph 19, which suggests that, where a direction says the applicant or the child need not attend the final hearing, the order and any hearing notice must expressly and clearly state that the applicant or the child should not attend the final hearing. The President of the Family Division, Sir Andrew Mc Farlane, asked Mrs Justice Judd, chair of the Public Law Working Group, to undertake a review of that guidance. In Re T ( Adoption Hearing: Involvement of Applicants) [2024] EWCA Civ 189, [2024] All ER ( D) 88 ( Mar), Mc...
In this issue: Practice and procedure Financial provision Public children Court of Protection Lex Talk®Family: a Lexis®Nexis community Daily and weekly news alerts New content Updated content New Q& As Useful information Practice and procedure Mo J publishes outcome to consultation on increases to court and tribunal fees The Ministry of Justice ( Mo J) has issued its reply to the consultation on ‘ Implementing increases to selected court and tribunal fees’. It confirmed 52 responses were received. The government considers a 10% uplift to fees is warranted and would mirror movements in price levels. It observed the Consumer Price Index ( CPI) has risen by 17.8%, signalling higher costs faced by HM Courts and Tribunals Service ( HMCTS). Revenues from higher fees could support a stable funding stream and HMCTS service delivery, and effective administration of access to justice. The government reiterated its commitment to safeguarding access to justice, noting that the Help with Fees...
Best interests in a two P situation ( Re MA & AA) MA (by her litigation friend the Official Solicitor) v A Local Authority and another; AA (by his litigation friend the Official Solicitor) v A Local Authority [2023] EWCOP 65 What are the practical implications of this case? The outcomes on what served MA (wife) and AA (husband) as being in their best interests were interdependent. Following Francis J’s ruling in HH v Hywel Dda University Health Board & Others [2023] EWCOP 18, the two cases were combined. That joinder enabled District Judge Simpson to weigh both sides’ competing considerations at the same time and to reach an all-round conclusion reflecting each person’s needs and welfare. Although the decision does not forge new authority, it is a helpful illustration for practitioners of conducting a best interests assessment where there are ‘two P’s’ and the...
Practice and procedure In this issue: Practice and procedure Private children Public children Court of Protection Lex Talk®Family: a Lexis®Nexis community Daily and weekly news alerts Updated content New legislation New Q& As Useful information Courts and tribunal opening times over Easter 2024 HM Courts and Tribunals Service has confirmed a temporary closure for the Easter period from 29 March to 1 April 2024, reopening on 2 April 2024. A small number of magistrates’ courts will sit on 30 March and 1 April 2024, restricted to remand hearings only. Monday hearings paused in the Royal Courts of Justice Family Division From 9 April 2024 until 30 April 2025, the Family Division of the High Court at the Royal Courts of Justice will not list hearings on Mondays. Cases already listed on Mondays will proceed as planned....
In this issue Practice and procedure Relationship breakdown Financial provision Public children Private children Court of Protection Lex Talk®Family: a Lexis®Nexis community Daily and weekly news alerts Updated content New Q& As Useful information Practice and procedure Law Society reports on extension of court reform timetable The Law Society has announced that HM Courts and Tribunals Service ( HMCTS) will push back its court reform schedule to March 2025. The revised timetable reflects organisational capacity, operational pressures, feedback from staff and partners, the enduring effects of the pandemic, outstanding caseloads and the rising cost of living. The extra time is intended to improve efficiency and the capability of existing technology, delivering a more consistent service. The Law Society noted it had previously cautioned against rushing development, adding that while the plans may take longer, costly...
Tousi v Gaydukova [2024] EWCA Civ 203, [2023] All ER ( D) 40 ( Mar) What are the practical implications of this case? The Court of Appeal rejected Mostyn J’s earlier view that a binding decision under the relevant foreign law does not end with assessing whether the ceremony was valid, but also governs the consequences of any invalidity so long as it is not plainly unjust (para [70]). Instead, the Court confirmed (para [71]) that the forms of remedy or relief that would, or might, be obtainable if proceedings were pursued in the state where the marriage or purported marriage occurred are immaterial to the forms of remedy or relief available under English law. Further, to remove any uncertainty, it is unnecessary to investigate what remedies or relief could be pursued abroad when determining, as a matter of English law, the correct...
In this issue: Practice and procedure Financial provision Private children International Lex Talk®Family: a Lexis®Nexis community Daily and weekly news alerts New content Updated content New Q& As Useful information Practice and procedure CTJ publishes speech by Master of the Rolls on AI The Courts and Tribunals Judiciary ( CTJ) has released an address by the Master of the Rolls, Sir Geoffrey Vos, concerning artificial intelligence, entitled ‘ AI– Transforming the work of lawyers and judges’, delivered at the AI Conference 2024: Transforming the Legal Landscape on 8 March 2024. He distilled the themes from judicial guidance on AI, stressing that anyone considering generative AI must first understand its capabilities and limits. He warned lawyers and judges not to input confidential material into public large language models ( LLMs), because such information could, in theory, become...
In this issue: Practice and procedure Tax International children Court of Protection Lex Talk®Family: a Lexis®Nexis community Daily and weekly news alerts New content New legislation Updated content Useful information Practice and procedure Family Procedure Rules 2010 Practice Direction update no. 1 of 2024 The first 2024 update to the Family Procedure Rules 2010 ( FPR 2010) Practice Directions has been formally published, revising a range of Practice Directions. The changes address mediation information and assessment meetings ( MIAMS), refreshed practical guidance on emailing the court, the replacement of Domestic Abuse Perpetrator Programmes ( DAPPs) with domestic abuse interventions as DAPPs are no longer delivered, and the extension of several pilot schemes under FPR 2010, PD 36G, FPR 2010, PD 36ZD, FPR 2010, PD 36Z and FPR 2010, PD 36ZA. See: LNB News 06/03/2024 108. HMCTS update on civil, family and tribunal reforms HM Courts and Tribunals Service ( HMCTS) has issued a blog setting out progress and next steps on...
On 6 March 2024, Chancellor Jeremy Hunt set out the government’s Spring Budget amid a weak economic outlook and Conservative polling behind Labour ahead of the forthcoming general election. He had to juggle the political urge to woo voters through personal tax cuts with the constraint of the OBR’s latest fiscal headroom. With income tax reductions viewed as too expensive, reliefs targeted at squeezed households focused on further cuts to employees’ and self‑employed National Insurance contributions, reform of the High Income Child Benefit Charge, and a lower higher rate of Capital Gains Tax on residential property disposals. For Private Client lawyers, the most unexpected move was the abolition of the non‑ UK domicile tax regime. In the months ahead, Private Client advisers will be busy guiding clients through the ramifications, and only time will show whether, under the proposed...
Sheffield City Council v EE (by her Litigation Friend, the Official Solicitor) [2024] EWCOP 5 What are the practical implications of the case? This ruling has tangible consequences not only for practitioners in Court of Protection work and the Mental Capacity Act 2005 ( MCA 2005), but also for a wider cohort active in this area, including clinical psychologists and psychiatrists, care workers, attorneys under a Lasting Power of Attorney, and those who support or care for adults who may lack capacity; see the groups listed in the Introduction to the MCA 2005 Code of Practice. At a specific level, the court identified the factors relevant to judging capacity to decide about contraception, including whether EE needed to grasp potential risks to herself or to the baby. At a broader level, the case reiterates that capacity is...
In this issue: Practice and procedure Private children Public children Lex Talk®Family: a Lexis®Nexis community Daily and weekly news alerts New content Updated content New Q& As Useful information Practice and procedure Cross-examination when no qualified legal representative is available ( Re: Z ( Prohibition on Cross-examination: No QLR)) The President of the Family Division’s ruling in Re: Z ( Prohibition on Cross-examination: No QLR) [2024] EWFC 22; [2024] All ER ( D) 99 ( Feb) sets out what should happen where the court has, under Part IVB of the Matrimonial and Family Proceedings Act 1984 ( MFPA 1984), ordered the appointment of a qualified legal representative ( QLR) for a party, but none can be secured. The court must then consider whether it should itself put questions on that party’s behalf and, if so, the...
Re: Z ( Prohibition on Cross-examination: No QLR) [2024] EWFC 22, [2024] All ER ( D) 99 ( Feb) What are the practical implications of this case? A succinct restatement of the statutory framework governing the appointment of a QLR appears at paras [4]–[20] of the judgment, providing a handy overview for deciding if a QLR is required. In day-to-day practice, however, QLRs are in short supply—principally because the available remuneration is limited—so securing one is often unlikely, as occurred here. Where no QLR can be identified, the court must work through all feasible alternatives. If those options are exhausted, a judge may conclude that, in the interests of justice, they must assume the QLR role. Where a judge or magistrate steps into that position, careful wording is essential: the court should not be described as...
X and another v G and others [2024] EWFC 20 What are the practical implications of this case? If a step-parent adoption had been granted, the surrogate would have ceased to be a legal parent and that status would have passed to the non-biological father. A key distinction between adoption and post-surrogacy parental orders is that the court may authorise an adoption despite a legal parent’s opposition, where the child’s welfare for life demands that the absence of consent be overridden. In deciding whether to do so, the court must evaluate the child’s welfare across their whole lifetime (section 1, Adoption and Children Act 2002) and give proper regard to the 'adoption welfare checklist' in ACA 2002, s 1(4), which steers the assessment. By contrast, there is no jurisdiction to make a parental order at all without the surrogate’s consent, in any...
In this issue: Practice and procedure Financial provision Domestic abuse Private children Public children Enforcement Daily and weekly news alerts Updated content Lex Talk®Family: a Lexis®Nexis community New Q& As Useful information Practice and procedure Mo J publishes updated HMCTS email guidance for family proceedings The Ministry of Justice ( Mo J) has issued revised email guidance for family proceedings. Updates now reference use of the My HMCTS case management system, raise the permitted page count for supporting material sent by email, refresh details of documents the court may transmit by email, and explain how to email the Courts and Tribunals Service Centre ( CTSC) and how filing is recorded. The guidance also includes practical hints and tips for emailing the CTSC. See: LNB News 19/02/2024...
What are the practical implications of this case? The ruling underlines that where a nuptial agreement was voluntarily made and its consequences were properly appreciated, one should think very carefully before seeking to attack it for want of financial disclosure and/or independent legal advice. It also confirms that, for arrangements offering minimal or no provision to the other spouse, the needs assessment is ‘needs light’, not ‘needs generously interpreted’. Had the husband taken up the wife’s open proposal, he would have secured a substantial lump sum instead of merely a life interest in a property. Parties should think twice before spurning a capital settlement where the post-nuptial agreement contains no plan for any such payment. Here, the parties’ litigation conduct was treated as supporting the ‘needs light’ stance and the award of a life interest. A cross-check, taking into account the £1.04m the husband owed the wife...
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This Practice Note This Practice Note reviews mechanisms used in settling litigation. A Tomlin order consists of a consent order paired with a schedule. It operates to stay proceedings on terms that have been agreed. The provisions contained in the schedule may remain confidential. This Practice Note describes the scope of confidentiality attaching to the schedule and sets out how it differs from a standard consent order. Sample wording for a Tomlin order is included, alongside links to precedents, as well as guidance on court approval. It also addresses varying, setting aside and enforcing a Tomlin order, including the considerations the court will take into account when handling applications for each. Further guidance is provided on interpreting and applying the relevant provisions of the CPR; however, some courts and divisions impose very specific requirements for both drafting and approval, and for approaching the schedule and confidentiality issues. Accordingly, you must consider the particular rules and court guide provisions in the forum where your claim is proceeding when drawing up the Tomlin order...
Date [ date ] Parties [ name of Landlord ] [ of OR incorporated in England and Wales (company registration number [ number ]) with its registered office at ] [ address ] (Landlord) [ name of Tenant ] [ of OR incorporated in England and Wales (company registration number [ number ]) with its registered office at ] [ address ] (Tenant) [ [ name of Guarantor ] [ of OR incorporated in England and Wales (company registration number [ number ]) with its registered office at ] [ address ] (Guarantor) ] [ [ name of Mortgagee ] [ of OR incorporated in England and Wales (company registration number [ number ]) with its registered office at ] [ address ] (Mortgagee) ] Definitions Within this Deed, the terms below shall be interpreted as follows: [ Annual Rent • the annual sum reserved under the Lease; ] [ Insurance Rent • the Tenant’s share of the Landlord’s costs of insuring the Property (as set out in the Lease); ] Lease • the lease of the Property dated [ date ], entered into between (1) [ the Landlord OR [ name ...
I, [ name ], of [ address ], solemnly and sincerely state that: [ Matters to be verified, set out in numbered paragraphs ] I make this solemn statement in good conscience, believing it to be true, and pursuant to the provisions of the Statutory Declarations Act 1835. DECLARED at [ details ] this [ day ] day of [ month and year ] Before me ................................................................................ [ signature of the person before whom the declaration is made ] A [ commissioner for oaths OR [ solicitor OR [ insert other qualification ] ] authorised to administer oaths ]...
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