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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 Sole traders, informal partnerships and outdated partnership deeds are common.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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Milan Andrea Postiglione, Anna- Lena Klein and Marije Knijff will constitute the Milan bench, chosen by the UPC after the UK bowed out in 2021. Paris and Munich are the other two headquarters of the central division, alongside Milan. Postiglione is a judge in the business section of the Court of Rome; Klein has served as a judge at the Regional Court Munich I since December 2014; and Knijff is a judge within the patent chamber of the District Court of the Hague......
More organisations also join regulatory network as cross-border collaboration continues to grow. Online safety regulators globally have set out their collective vision for making international regulatory approaches to online safety more consistent, harmonised and aligned, 24 May 2024. The GOSRN unites 18 regulators and observers spanning five continents. On 24 May 2024, GOSRN released its second position statement, detailing how regulators will collaborate to meet the global realities of online safety regulation. Statement follows: Earlier this month, Ofcom issued its draft guidance on safeguarding children online in the UK. This builds on cross-border collaboration......
Meta Platforms, Tik Tok and Linked In are being probed by Ireland’s Data Protection Commission, the watchdog that oversees the bulk of the EU’s Big Tech data cases, as numerous companies site their European headquarters in Dublin. For years the DPC has faced accusations of sluggish, light-touch enforcement against these firms—allegations it has consistently denied. Hostility towards the regulator has eased in recent times, in the last few years, after it concluded several high-profile investigations, many centred on Meta in particular, leading to penalties amounting to billions of euros. In February 2024, two new commissioners, Des Hogan and Dale Sunderland, were appointed, succeeding long-serving chief Helen Dixon. It is due to begin the process of selecting another shortly......
Austrian privacy advocate Max Schrems, whose complaint ultimately led Meta to roll out paid alternative versions of Facebook and Instagram, said during an interview with MLex on 22 May 2024 that the suggested price cut is ‘not going to make any difference’. Schrems referenced research showing that only a very small share of people want their data processed for targeted advertising, and contrasted this with figures indicating that, when faced with a choice between paying for a service or agreeing to targeted advertising, individuals almost always give consent in practice. That divergence, he argued, indicates that consent offered as a substitute for payment is not freely given. Under the General Data Protection Regulation ( EU GDPR), consent must satisfy that requirement, alongside other conditions laid down in the law. Schrems’ remarks arrive shortly after a highly anticipated opinion by......
Ryanair has introduced a rule requiring travellers who do not hold an account, including people booking via online travel agents, to confirm their identity with biometrics by providing 'live self-images', according to EU Travel Tech. The association contends this constitutes a breach of the EU GDPR and has called on both the French and Belgian regulators to probe the matter and deploy immediate measures under the legislation’s seldom-invoked urgency provisions......
On 15 May 2024, other consulting firms issued almost identical appeals for unambiguous AI regulation to a parliamentary committee for Ireland’s enterprise and employment ministry. As the European base for many of the biggest technology companies, Ireland will apply the EU AI Act to them, with the exception of general‑purpose AI, which will be supervised directly by the AI Office under the European Commission. The consultants argued this should serve as a national advantage. EU AI Act ripple effect The EU AI Act is anticipated to take effect by mid‑ July 2024; however, the law leaves a large share of compliance assessment to companies themselves. There is ongoing debate about whether the Act will prove influential beyond the bloc, as the General Data Protection Regulation ( GDPR) did before. Although many do not expect the same level of sway, Hilary O’ Meara, managing director for...
Practice Note: Ireland— Reviewing commercial contracts to minimise financial difficulties Consult this practice note on reviewing commercial contracts to minimise financial difficulties......
Practice Note: Ireland— Commercial horizon scanner 2024 Consult Practice Note: Ireland— Commercial horizon scanner 2024...
How does the EU AI Act define AI systems? Are all AI systems subject to the EU AI Act? The EU AI Act uses the Organisation for Economic Co‑operation and Development ( OECD)’s description of an AI system. It covers machine‑based systems designed to operate with varying levels of autonomy, which may exhibit adaptiveness after deployment, and which, to meet explicit or implicit aims and purposes, infer from the input they receive how to generate outputs—predictions, content, recommendations, or decisions—that can influence physical or virtual environments. The term ‘artificial intelligence ( AI) system’ does not extend to AI models, including so‑called general‑purpose AI ( GPAI) models. In other words, AI models fall outside this definition. ......
Ireland postpones referendum on joining the Unified Patent Court In April 2024, the government confirmed that the constitutional referendum slated for 7 June 2024 to allow Ireland to accede to the Unified Patent Court ( UPC) would not go ahead, further delaying the necessary vote a year on from the court’s official launch. The proposed ballot sought approval to amend article 29 of the constitution to permit the transfer of jurisdiction to the UPC—an essential step for entry to the court and the broader unitary patent regime. Peter Burke, Minister for Enterprise, cited low levels of public engagement and understanding as the basis for withdrawing the vote. Patent specialists called the move disappointing but reasonable in light of the prevailing political landscape. The choice to drop the June poll—intended to coincide with European and local elections—came two weeks after the unexpected...
Speaking at one of the world’s largest cybersecurity gatherings in San Francisco, EDPB chair Anu Talus cautioned that the AI Act, finalised late last year, sets a headline sanction of 7 percent of global revenues that should not be directly equated with the EU General Data Protection Regulation’s top 4 percent. While the AI Act’s penalties are, as she put it, ‘a very significant deterrent’, they need to be considered in a wider context. Talus explained that these maximum levels only attach to uses of AI that are expressly prohibited, such as emotion recognition at work and within educational institutions, as well as social scoring based on social behaviour or personal characteristics. These, she stressed, are precisely the scenarios in which deploying AI could lead to genuinely serious consequences, underscoring why the ceiling is set so high for such banned...
How will it work? The idea that a benefit can be granted to, and enforced by, someone outside a contract is acknowledged in many common law systems (including, among others, South Africa) through the stipulatio alterii doctrine, which stems from Roman law and permits a third party to profit from an agreement to which they are not themselves a party. This rule allows one party to make a promise to another that expressly advantages a third person, who then gains the right to enforce the benefit given to them by the contract, even though they were not a party to the original agreement. The stipulatio alterii principle was brought into the law of England and Wales in 1999 by the Contracts ( Rights of Third Parties) Act 1999. The orthodox doctrine of privity of contract holds that only those who are parties to a...
Whistleblowers may submit pertinent details, either anonymously or openly, in any of the EU’s official languages and in any suitable format (such as reports, memoranda, email correspondence, data metrics, internal studies, decisions, or pertinent circumstances). The whistleblower tools provide a safe channel to disclose this information......
Under EU GDPR, personal data must be correct, and people must be able to view it in full, including its source. Yet Open AI openly concedes it cannot fix inaccurate details produced by Chat GPT, nor explain where the data originates or what Chat GPT stores about particular individuals. The company acknowledges the problem but seems indifferent, asserting instead that 'factual accuracy in large language models remains an area of active research'. Consequently, Noyb lodged a complaint against Open AI with the Austrian DSB on 29 April 2024. Complaint against Open AI Chat GPT continues to hallucinate — and even Open AI cannot halt it. The November 2022 debut of Chat GPT sparked an unprecedented AI frenzy, with people relying on the chatbot for countless tasks, research included. The issue is that, by Open AI’s own account, the system simply generates 'responses to user...
According to an EU assessment, two decisions from the bloc’s highest court indicating that national data protection authorities enjoy minimal leeway over the imposition of fines are set to be mirrored in other matters. A note dated 2 April, viewed by MLex and prepared by the Council of the EU, reviews two fresh Court of Justice judgments on how regulators should calculate GDPR fines......
The Commission, in a statement, said the new rules will streamline and simplify dispute settlement processes by introducing a fast-track procedure for resolving disputes under the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement ( CETA). This accelerated route will cut timeframes and allow disputes to be decided by a single-member tribunal rather than a three-member tribunal. The Commission also noted that further streamlining could be possible in the future. Such improved access is particularly relevant in light of the strong take-up by small and medium-sized enterprises of the opportunities created by CETA......
Social media companies face two possible restrictions on the way they can process data for personalised ads if judges follow a legal opinion issued for the EU’s top court on 25 April 2024 A non-binding opinion by Advocate General Athanasios Rantos for the Court of Justice, in the dispute between Meta Platforms and Austrian privacy advocate Max Schrems, signals two curbs on how platforms handle data for personalised advertising. He indicated that EU privacy rules bar firms from processing such data indefinitely, and that the mere fact information is public does not automatically justify its use for targeting ads. Data minimisation under the EU GDPR means companies cannot run targeted advertising with open-ended scope, either in duration or in the breadth of data involved, ruling out processing ‘without restriction as to time or type of data’. The case also examines whether...
The non-binding view delivered by Szpunar, an Advocate General at the Court of Justice of the EU, examined whether the General Data Protection Regulation ( EU GDPR) can be interpreted as permitting a competitor to seek an injunction before the civil courts, mirroring what had been possible under the predecessor regime, the 1995 Data Protection Directive. He indicated on 25 April 2024 that an injunction claim brought by a business against a rival, relying on that rival’s breach of the GDPR’s provisions, may sit alongside the remedies set out in the GDPR. Selling medicine online The dispute stems from questions put to the EU court by German judges in a case between two pharmacists, in which one attempted to sue a competitor for unfair competition on the footing of GDPR violations, namely the handling of health data through online sales of...
The earlier regime on geographical indications (granting holders the sole entitlement to state that a product comes from a defined region, such as Champagne) forced producers in three sectors to apply through distinct processes. However, the updated rules, released on 11 April 2024, introduce a 'unitary and exhaustive system'. Associations of producers and industry bodies may now decide that specified sustainability measures are compulsory for members who wish to keep labelling their goods with a premium designation. Tackling climate change, moving towards a circular economy, and championing rare seeds and indigenous plant varieties are all allowable aims, according to......
Press release follows. Ecodesign: new EU rules to make sustainable products the norm products designed to last longer and be simpler to repair, upgrade and recycle prohibition on destroying unsold clothing and footwear sustainability requirements to be prioritised for eg steel, textiles, furniture, tyres, chemicals On 23 April 2024, Parliament approved the updated ecodesign framework, opening the door to setting environmental sustainability requirements for most goods placed on the EU market. The regulation passed with 455 votes in favour, 99 against and 54 abstentions. The new measures seek to enhance multiple facets of products across their entire lifecycle so they are more durable and dependable, simpler to reuse, upgrade, repair and recycle, and consume fewer resources, energy and water......
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When evaluating a general damages claim, the practitioner ought initially to refer to the Judicial College Guidelines (JCG)...
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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