Diary news plus insights, commentary and appointments from the legal world

25 April 2025

Editorial contact: fennell.edward@yahoo.com

SHORT THOUGHT FOR THE WEEK: Divine Justice?

If there is any state that can up-stage Britain when it comes to ceremony, tradition and the theatre of power then it is the Vatican. Over this weekend the pageantry will be on display to a global audience as a congregation of the mighty as well as the masses assemble in Rome for the Papal funeral.

For believers, however, such rituals also mark an encounter with justice and judgement on the deceased’s conduct across their life. That is why the idea of mercy and a merciful judgement is a backcloth to much of the service. Forgiveness for sin is devoutly to be wished for.

Secular courts sometimes take on aspects of divine retribution. We have seen that in recent years across countless child abuse cases involving priests and religious. But they are not the Last Judgement. Redemption is something we can all hope for. Even, maybe, by some of the ‘world leaders’ assembling in Rome.

The LegalDiarist

In this edition

+ LEGAL DIARY OF THE WEEK

Laying Down the Law

House of Lords Welcomes Pro Bono Students

Grinding out Justice

A Taste for Fund-Raising

+ LEGAL COMMENT OF THE WEEK

on the Fraud Review, social media sites, planning consultations, pre-sentencing reports

+ APPOINTMENTS OF THE WEEK

at Clarke Willmott and Rosenblatt Law

LEGAL DIARY OF THE WEEK

Laying Down the Law

For those who had the time and inclination to do so on Wednesday morning the sitting of the  the House of Lords Constitution Committee offered a very good watch. Chaired by Lord Strathclyde the topic under review was Parliament’s role in upholding the rule of law with a particular emphasis on ‘what makes legislation consistent with the rule of law’.

Now this might all sound a bit academic but when put into the context of what is happening across the Atlantic right now it suddenly became rather urgently significant. Expert insights were being sought from Dr Ruth Fox, Director & Head of Research at the Hansard Society, Sir Stephen Laws KC, the former First Parliamentary Counsel  and Dr Ronan Cormacain, Consultant Legislative Counsel and the three of them came to the subject with considerable relish.

Early on Sir Stephen laid out the general view among legal philosophers on what brought legislation into line with the rule of law. Included among the key criteria were that that it should apply generally, not impose impossibilities, be prospective (i.e address future actions not be retrospective) and be constant (i.e not endlessly chopping and changing). So people should know where they stand. On top of that there should be clarity about the law actually meant.

Not surprisingly this latter point provoked considerable comment when, to the lay-person, so much law seems to be gobbledegook. Nonetheless Dr Ronan Cormacain thought that by-and-large the UK was doing a pretty good job in both the form and substance of its legislation. (Although whether activists in the trans debate would agree with this might not be quite so obvious).

Anyway, the calmness of the discussion was somehow reassuring in these troubled times and in the aftermath of the Easter holiday. If you want to take a look yourself go to  Parliament TV.    

House of Lords Welcomes Pro Bono Students

Also at the House of Lords on Wednesday were the winners of the LawWorks Student Pro Bono Awards 2025. Alasdair Douglas, Chair of LawWorks commented, “We were delighted to be able to hold the Awards event in the Houses of Parliament with its ancient links to the creation of the rule of law, access to justice for all being one of its central tenets.”

Top of the class was the University of Glasgow’s Open (GO) Justice team while the Emma Ritch Law Clinic, which is also based at the UofG’s School of Law, was Highly Commended in the best new pro bono project category.

“We are honoured to receive a Law Works Student Pro Bono Award,” said the GO Justice Centre Co-Directors Professors Nicole Busby, Maria Fletcher and Jacqueline Kinghan. “In recent years, we have developed new clinics and pro bono projects in important areas of legal need including homelessness, sexual violence, racial justice and children’s rights together with our civil society partners. University of Glasgow law students working on these projects have shown great enthusiasm, dedication and commitment to using the law in different ways to create positive social change. We are delighted to see their work honoured by this award.”

Law students Maria Helena Papachristos and Niamh Dennis, added: “Being part of the GO Justice team and getting to work alongside amazing organisations, such as the Marie Trust homelessness centre, has been an invaluable experience for us. The opportunity to teach and most importantly to learn from the service users lived-experience and encountered barriers has shaped our legal practice. Now being aware of the lived challenges of law in action, we are ever more committed to furthering access to justice through social change.” 

Grinding Out Justice?

As the dangers of the Internet escalate daily it sometimes feels that society is on the edge of a neuro-tech breakdown – emotionally dependent on the web but also so abused by it.

One of the defining moments might be upon us as Austen Hays , the UK class action specialist, last week served claims in the US on Grindr, the world’s largest LGBTQ+ social networking and dating app.

You may well have seen the story. The claims  brought on behalf of over 10,000 clients allege that Grindr misused the private information of thousands of UK users, including in many cases, highly sensitive information about their HIV status and last tested date.

Are you surprised? Should you be? It was a sign of trusting times that people handed over highly sensitive deeply personal information to a complete stranger (and a bot to boot).

Anyway they did so in their droves and now they are very angry about it.

 “We have received an overwhelming response to the claim against Grindr, with over 10,000 people looking to seek justice for the significant distress caused over their highly sensitive and private information being shared with third parties without their consent,” said Chaya Hanoomanjee, Austen Hays’ managing director who is leading the claim,

 “Now that we have taken the steps to serve the claim in the US, we will continue to progress this important claim and seek justice for those who have been let down by Grindr. We want to ensure that lessons have been learnt and all its users are safe while using the app, wherever they are, without fear their data might be shared with third parties without their consent.”

 But will lessons be learned? In the dark matter of the Internet it is anybody’s guess.

A Taste for Fund-Raising

Josh Eggleton MBE was a star of series 11 of the BBC’s ‘Great British Menu’ having taken over
the Pony and Trap restaurant down in the South West in his early 20s and then immediately won a Michelin star. From there he’s gone on from strength to strength. But his current extra curricular endeavour is The Pony Farm Bus – an ambitious initiative to convert a retired bus into a community hub that will ‘change lives’.

Ever ready to lend a hand in laying the table Burges Salmon stepped in for a night to transform its Glassworks restaurant at the firm’s HQ in Bristol into a venue for Eggleton to serve up a three-course menu ( featuring his signature local, sustainable cuisine) as a fund-raiser for the project.

Attended by more than one hundred team-members from across the firm a total of £10,000 was generated for the project. Moreover, as well as featuring great food, the evening also gave a stage for the Burges Salmon lawyers to show off their other talents with dispute resolution associate Sophie Engel showed off her stunning singing accompanied by employment associate James Edmonds on guitar.

Obvs, a great night was had by all.

The Pony Farm Bus will will visit 25 schools a year (as well as community groups) offering engaging, interactive and fun workshops, demonstrations and classes. Complete with a live growing system (hydroponics), chickens, planters, a demonstration platform, as well as kitchen and dining areas, it will have everything needed to inspire and aid learning, in a compact and mobile space. For more go to https://theponyfarmbus.co.uk/

LEGAL COMMENT OF THE WEEK

TOPIC: The Government’s announcement of Part 2 of the Independent Review into Fraud

COMMENT BY: Lisa McKinnon-Lower, criminal litigation Partner, Spencer West LLP

“The UK government’s Independent Review of Disclosure and Fraud Offences, led by Jonathan Fisher KC, marks a pivotal moment for the legal sector as it grapples with the complexities of digital-era crime. With fraud now accounting for over 40% of offences in England and Wales, the review addresses the urgent need to modernize legal processes to handle vast volumes of digital evidence effectively.

It seems a key recommendation of the review is the integration of artificial intelligence (AI) to streamline the disclosure process. Currently, the manual review of digital materials is resource-intensive, with the Serious Fraud Office allocating 25% of its 2023 budget to disclosure obligations. By employing AI, the legal system aims to expedite evidence analysis, reduce backlogs, and allocate resources more efficiently.

However, the adoption of AI introduces challenges. Concerns about procedural fairness, potential biases in AI algorithms, and the need for transparency are paramount. It is of course important that AI-assisted processes must still include human oversight to ensure compliance with disclosure obligations and protect defendants’ rights. Assuming the right balance is struck, the use of AI has great potential for all parties involved in criminal investigations and proceedings.

It is perhaps no coincidence that this review also coincides with the introduction of the new failure to prevent fraud offence, and highlights how important it is for corporates to give serious thought to the policies and procedures they should have in place to be compliant.”

TOPIC: The new rules for social media sites announced by Ofcom

COMMENT BY: Terry Green, Social Media Partner, Katten Muchin Rosenman UK LLP

“New measures have been outlined  by Ofcom in relation to its Children’s Codes under the Online Safety Act.

Tech firms that run sites and apps used by UK children in areas such as social media, search, and gaming will now have to act to prevent children from seeing any harmful content from July.

The 40 practical measures outlined by the regulator include much needed steps to prevent children from encountering the most harmful context relating to the likes of self-harm, eating disorders, porn, and suicide, while also protecting them from misogynistic, violent, hateful, or abusive material, online bullying and dangerous challenges.  The codes now demand a ‘safety-first’ approach when tech companies design and operate their services in the UK.  These include producing safer feeds, conducting effective age checks, taking fast action to tackle harmful content, giving children more choice and support in their online experience, making it easier to report and complain, and ensuring that strong governance is respected.

Providers now have until 24th July to finalise and record their assessments of risks and implement safety measures to mitigate these. Sites should start this process soon as Ofcom could knock on their door immediately that date arrives asking for the assessment.  Failure to comply could lead to large fines and, in very serious cases, prevent the site or app from being available in the UK.”

COMMENT BY:  Monika Sobiecki, Media Partner, Bindmans

“The new codes require tech companies to create written assessments of the risks that their services pose to children, as well as comply with specific recommendations from Ofcom. Whilst there is no specific right to bring civil claims under the Online Safety Act and the codes are simply intended to create a safer online environment for children, the codes incidentally do create a source of fresh evidence of any failures by tech companies to comply with their duties of care, in the event that future litigation is necessary to vindicate any claims for harm caused to children.”

COMMENT BY: Iona Silverman, IP and Media Partner, Freeths

“The government needs to think bigger: this is a problem that requires a cultural shift, and also requires legislation to be one step ahead of, rather than behind, technology. 

While most social media sites require users to be at least 13 years old, for example, the Advertising Standards Authority’s “100 Children Report” reveals that children often lie about their age to access these platforms. As a result, much younger children are exposed to content and adverts for age-restricted products, which can negatively impact their mental health and contribute to self-harm, suicide, or crime.

Social media companies must start taking responsibility for the content their algorithms propagate. Traditionally, they have claimed they cannot police content, placing the onus on those who upload it to ensure its safety. This approach is no longer tenable. The Online Safety Act mandates that social media entities protect users, especially young people, from online harms. Tech companies need to increase moderation, transparency and improve their safeguarding.

Ofcom is actively working to provide guidance on enforcing the Online Safety Act, recently proposing measures for tech firms to tackle online harms against women and girls. Crucially, if Ofcom finds that a service provider has breached its obligations under the Act, it can impose penalties of up to 10% of the company’s worldwide revenue or £18 million, whichever is greater, and require remedial action.

While these measures are welcome, Ofcom needs to act swiftly. With rapid advancements in technology and AI, as well as a shifting political landscape, Ofcom must ensure its guidance is forward-thinking and flexible, encouraging the positive use of new technologies to counter online harm. Importantly, Ofcom must start imposing significant fines for non-compliance to give the Online Safety Act the teeth it needs to effect meaningful change.

If Ofcom cannot keep pace with technology, to ensure social media companies implement safety provisions to protect children online, we may see increased pressure to implement a blanket ban on social media for under-16s, as recently seen in Australia.

 In the same way that it took Mr Bates to bring the harms committed against the Post Office subpostmasters to the public conscience, it has taken the shocking new Netflix drama, ‘Adolescence’, to make us truly understand the horrors that access to extreme content can have on young people.

‘Adolescence’ will ensure enforcement of the Online Safety Act is carried out under the steady gaze of the public eye, meaning Ofcom will need to take action and show the public that it is taking all necessary steps to keep children safe online.”

TOPIC: Planning consultations for major infrastructure to be streamlined

COMMENT BY: Robert Bruce, planning and infrastructure Partner, Freeths LLP

“I welcome the change as a significant step to speeding up the DCO process and the focus on the quality and effectiveness of the consultation, rather than box ticking and a risk averse approach to pre-application consultation due to the current legal requirement.

The Ministerial Statement announcing the proposed change to be made to the Planning and Infrastructure Bill to remove the current statutory requirement for pre-application consultation makes clear the Government still expects meaningful consultation for NSIPs and will publish statutory guidance setting out the strong expectation that applicants for DCOs undertake pre-application consultation, together with the Planning Inspectorate continuing to assess whether DCO applications are suitable for examination.”

“Whilst the change should help significantly with speeding up the process, it is clear applying for a DCO will still be a lengthy and complex process. Whilst rightly ambitious, I very much doubt that the Government is likely to meet its stated pledge of 150 planning decisions on major infrastructure projects this Parliament, given there’s only been 145 decisions on DCO applications since 2008.”

TOPIC: The Pre-Sentence Reports Bill passes its Second Reading

COMMENT BY: Katie Wheatley, Partner, Bindmans

“The Sentencing Council that issues the guidance that has sparked this controversy was set up to ensure independence of the judiciary in sentencing decisions. In fact, the SGC consulted widely on these proposals, but no objection seems to have been raised by the Minister for Sentencing or the Justice Committee. Now the Guidance has become a political football, but looking at this through a more personal lens, who would want a court to decide to send their own family member  to prison, perhaps for the first time, without the judge being fully aware of all their personal circumstances including chronic medical conditions, learning disabilities or brain injury ? Or the sole carer of young children, without there being very clear information  about how those children will be affected? Or for women to be consigned to give birth in prison without all the relevant information? The Sentencing Council issues guidance but does not mandate the judge to impose any particular sentence. That decision is for the judge, bearing in mind all the circumstances including the seriousness of the offence and impact on the victim. Pre-Sentence Reports are prepared by the probation service to assist judges to decide what sentence to impose by providing them with information about the background of the offender which they will not otherwise have. The guidelines state PSR’s are necessary in all cases that would benefit from an assessment of a long list of factors such as the offender’s dangerousness, the nature and causes of the offender’s behaviour, the offender’s personal circumstances and any factors and the offender’s suitability for different sentences or requirements.   There is then the list of cohorts where the report will normally be considered necessary to which this rushed, reactive legislation is targeted, but it is a non-exhaustive list and the guidance emphases that a PSR can still be necessary if the individual to be sentence does not fall into one of these cohorts.”

APPOINTMENTS OF THE WEEK

CLARKE WILLMOTT LLP

Richard Swain has been appointed head of the Southampton office of Clarke Willmott LLP. Having been advising businesses and individuals in the Solent area of Hampshire since 2000 he has a high profile in the area. He joined Clarke Willmott in 2016 and became a partner in the firm’s corporate team specialising in corporate finance transactions, including business and share sales, acquisitions, MBOs, mergers and demergers and debt/equity fundraisings and investments,. He also advises on a variety of company constitutional and general company law matters.

“Having worked in and around the city for over 25 years, I am extremely proud to be taking on the baton as head of the Southampton office,” says Richard Swain. “Our continued growth will help to attract new business and investment to the Solent, which is already one of the UK’s most dynamic regions. This is something which our Southampton partners and the wider business as a whole are very passionate about.”

Rosenblatt Law

Mo Haque KC has been appointed as a partner with dispute resolution specialists Rosenblatt Law. In addition to his courtroom experience, Haque has extensive expertise in international arbitration. He has advised and acted in arbitral tribunals under the rules of leading institutional and ad hoc arbitration regimes, including the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID), the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC), and the London Court of International Arbitration (LCIA). He has been listed in Chambers and Partners (England and Caribbean) and Legal 500 (England) for many years and is praised as a “first-class heavyweight” and is “sought out for significant company and commercial disputes”.

 With a practice spanning a diverse range of sectors, including energy, construction and engineering, cryptocurrency, property, and sport, Haque is particularly noted for his proficiency in cross-border litigation, insolvency, international asset recovery, and enforcement.

“We are delighted to welcome Mo as the first KC on the Rosenblatt team,” said Tania MacLeod, Rosenblatt Law’s Head of Dispute Resolution. “His appointment further underlines the breadth and depth of advocacy expertise we offer clients bringing with him the additional element of extensive cross examination and courtroom experience.”

We hope that you’ve been interested or amused by something in this week’s LEGAL DIARY. If so do send on to colleagues.

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fennell.edward@yahoo.com