Edward Fennell’s LEGAL Diary
Diary news, commentary, insights and appointments from the legal world
June 13 2025
Editorial Contact: fennell.edward@yahoo.com
SHORT THOUGHT FOR THE WEEK: MAKE YOUR EXCUSES AND LEAVE?
Climbing on board bandwagons is always a risky business – after all, you cannot tell where (or to what extremes) they might be going. But timing when to drop off also entails its own risks. So the speed and ease with which some law firms seem to be distancing themselves from the IDE (or as some cynics say, DIE) movement is not necessarily to their credit. It is hard to avoid the suspicion that their heart was never really in it in the first place and that public statements and executive appointments were really only expedient posturing.
Of course there is another way of looking at it. Any major change in culture is likely to require a Big Bang to get started. Thereafter, as the change becomes normalised, you can cut down on the rhetoric and the trumpet blowing. Job done, in other words.
Which is the truth following recent decisions by some top firms will be worth watching.
The Legal Diarist
In this week’s edition
Legal Diary of the Week
How was Your Social Mobility Day?
Future of International Law Under Discussion at the Supreme Court
Is business being blithe over AI?
Hands Across the Water
Legal Comment of the Week
on the Government’s Spending Review, Getty images v. Stability AI, child friendly neighbourhoods, the Innsworth judicial review and Ryanair’s blacklisting case
Legal Sector Appointments
at Dechert and Osborne Clarke
LEGAL DIARY OF THE WEEK
How was Your Social Mobility Day?
Yesterday was 2025 Social Mobility Day and the theme promoted this time round was ‘Shifting Mindsets’. Of course, this has been the inspiration for many worthy attempts at inclusion and readers will have their own views on how successful they have been. For example, while many more women have entered the legal profession (and many are now thriving} the issue of social background is still a challenge.
That is why Clarke Willmott LLP has been partnering with the Social Mobility Foundation (SMF) and has laid particular stress this year on helping Year 12 students develop professional networking skills. Meanwhile, one of its most successful schemes has been the e-mentoring of students where mentors and mentees meet every two weeks over a period of several months, providing career and educational advice. Lawyers and staff at the firm have reported on how enriching it has been to support these students.
“I continue to mentor as I was the first person in my family to go to university and I didn’t attend a Russell Group university,” said Natalie Maloney, head of Onboarding at Clarke Willmott. “When I tried to apply for training contracts over 30 years ago, it was really difficult and this hasn’t changed. Access to law is still really difficult and extremely competitive. I want to try and re-dress that balance as there is still a lot to do.”
Whether entry to the law will ever become less competitive remains to be seen but it is certainly a positive step to help more people become more effective competitors whatever their social background.
Future of International Law Under Discussion at the Supreme Court
If you’ve got an hour or so to spare – and who has these days? – and have an interest in the development of international law and its relationship with UK national law then latch on to a fascinating discussion held last week at the UK Supreme Court featuring the Court’s President Lord Reed in conversation with Lord Lloyd-Jones (also Supreme Court) and Professor Dapo Akande, a barrister, All Souls academic and destined for high office internationally.
This was a top level discussion which highlighted just how far public international law has come in our lifetimes – or indeed from the 1980s when it had little traction in the deliberations of the House of Lords – and highlighted, as Professor Akande pointed out, by a judgment in 2006 that a key Security Council resolution (linked to Iraq) should be incorporated into English law.
The event enjoyed a good turn-out of senior representatives from the legal world, the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, as well as officials from several London embassies and diplomatic missions. One wonders what discussions went on behind the scenes. But you can be there via https://lnkd.in/ecwYFyd5
Is business being blithe over AI?
Are the early adopters of AI going to find themselves sitting on a legal time bomb? Indeed, the rush to take advantage the obvious potential benefits of AI might be leaving a trail of legal devastation in its wake. At least that is one of the conclusions you might draw from the findings this week from The Chartered Governance Institute UK & Ireland (CGIUKI) that 74% of governance professionals are concerned about the accuracy of AI-generated content in corporate reporting.
The reliability, ethics and oversight of AI tools already being used by senior executives for tasks including minute-taking, risk analysis, and corporate reporting are likely to prove a headache not least because, according to the research, many organisations still lack clear policies, and only a minority of boards have an actual defined AI strategy.
In other words where risk assessment would be a standard part of business practice in the introduction of a new piece of kit this seems not to have happened where AI is concerned.
“AI is already being used in governance functions, often informally and without oversight,” said Peter Swabey, Director of Policy at CGIUKI. “While tools such as Copilot can offer real efficiency gains, our research shows that governance professionals are deeply concerned about the risks to accuracy, ethics, and trust. This report is a wake-up call for boards: they need to develop clear strategies, invest in training, and ensure AI use aligns with sound governance principles.”
Looks like another big job for in-house counsel.
Hands Across the Water
It has been best foot forward for Foot Anstey this week as it boldly went where relatively few English firms have dared venture – across the Irish Sea to Belfast.
With a couple of decades of peace now under its belt Northern Ireland (or ‘The North’ depending on your political preferences) sits in this curious position, post-Brexit, of being in the best of possible worlds. At least that’s how some people see it and as a result there has been growth in both international interest and investment accompanied by tremendous expansion in its professional service sector.
Whether that will now be impacted by this week’s racially-inspired violence in Ballymena and elsewhere remains to be seen. But, nonetheless, Foot Anstey sees a link-up with the province as a powerful opportunity and it has just tied the knot with Belfast-based law firm McKees to give birth to Foot Anstey McKees.
“Today marks the beginning of an exciting chapter in Foot Anstey’s story as we cement our growth into a truly national firm,” said Martin Hirst, Managing Partner at Foot Anstey, “Northern Ireland provides a critical gateway to European markets, and the combination will offer significant opportunity to existing and new clients alike.”
“Like us, McKees is an ambitious firm with a loyal and impressive client base and rigorous focus on quality. It has been striking just how aligned we are in terms of culture, with a true focus on innovation and collaboration at every level.”
The corporate, finance, retail and leisure, private wealth and real estate sectors are the areas where the two firms share the most common interests. Commented Chris Ross, now the Managing Director at Foot Anstey McKees, “Foot Anstey shares many of our own sector specialisms and we look forward to harnessing our shared networks and legal expertise – benefiting from the economies of scale the tie-up will offer.”
LEGAL COMMENT OF THE WEEK
TOPIC: The Government’s Spending Review
COMMENT BY: Kirsty Brimelow KC, Vice Chair of the Bar Council
“The average real terms increase in Ministry of Justice funding of 3.1% is a welcome recognition by the Government that justice is a key public service.
“Money for increasing court capacity, tackling court backlogs, and implementing the recommendations from the Independent Review of Criminal Courts are signs of listening by Government to our voices from the courts. Increased funding for the probation service is long overdue, and funding of the Crown Prosecution Service will enable them to achieve parity between prosecution and defence pay in the Crown Courts.
“The Bar plays a critical role in getting the justice system back on a sustainable footing. The Government needs barristers to deliver on its promise to halve serious violence and halve violence against women and girls. It is barristers who are required to prosecute and defend in courts.
“However, barristers cannot continue to run on the fumes of goodwill. The Bar Council supports the government in moving away from crisis mode.
“We hope that the details of the settlement for the courts will address the need for further support for the criminal Bar, including the implementation of legal aid increases which will assist retention, as well as additional support for both the civil and family Bar, covering legal aid and early legal advice.
“The Bar Council looks forward to continuing to work with the government for the benefit of those in the justice system, those seeking access to justice and for the protection of the public”
COMMENT BY: Chris Simms, partner and head of Transport, Burges Salmon
“The Chancellor’s announcement of significant investment in transport infrastructure across the UK is welcome news for a sector which in many areas is still adapting to the impact of the pandemic on passenger behaviour and the need to press on with net zero transition. The investment has the potential to be a transformative moment in public transport across the UK – addressing some historic issues and regional disparities, as well as allowing regional stakeholders to plan the next generation of public transport solutions in their areas. The sector will now wait to see the detail of the plans as they are developed be central and local government.”
COMMENT BY: Gabor Taller, partner and co-head of social housing, Browne Jacobson
“A new £39bn 10-year Affordable Homes Programme is being described as ‘transformative’ and a ‘watershed moment’ by the housing sector, providing a potentially once-in-a-generation opportunity to boost the provision of social housing in England.
“Coupled with the 10-year rent settlement, a pledge to consult on how social rent convergence can be implemented and giving housing associations equal access to building safety funding, this package of measures provides housing associations – and their partners – with the certainty they have been severely lacking in recent years.
“Details are still to come on aspects such as the types of homes to be prioritised, the ratio between social rented and shared ownership, the role of modern methods of construction and the involvement of SME developers – while there’s also plenty of work to do in practically closing construction skills gaps despite separate funding pledges.
“The government’s manifesto said it would deliver the biggest increase in supply of social and affordable homes in a generation – and these announcements signal a transition from policy to practice.”
TOPIC: Getty Images’ legal action against artificial intelligence firm Stability AI over alleged copyright infringement
COMMENT BY: Iain Connor, intellectual property partner, Michelmores LLP
“This is the most significant AI case to reach the English High Court.
“The legal community is waiting with bated breath to see how far the judgment will go to rule on the legality or otherwise of the use of AI models.
“The case is much more nuanced than ‘big tech vs creative industries’ and the legal arguments are even more nuanced as one of the big issues to be determined is ‘where did the ingestion of information which allegedly infringes Getty Images take place?’
“The judge may take the opportunity to rule widely on the lawfulness of AI’s use of ‘input materials” and whether “AI output” infringes third party rights. Alternatively, the decision could be a damp squib and deal with the case on the narrow jurisdictional issue of where Stability AI trained its AI model which, if outside the UK, could leave us without a meaningful verdict.”
TOPIC: The proposal to create child-friendly playful neighbourhoods and disrupt the “addictive grip” of smartphones on children’s lives
COMMENT BY: Iona Silverman, Partner in the IP & Media team, Freeths
“In addition to publishing new rules coming into effect in July, which tech companies must follow in order to comply with the Online Safety Act, Ofcom has recently opened nine new investigations into content sharing platforms. While these investigations focus on protecting children from abuse and access to illegal content online, they show that Ofcom is taking its duty to enforce the Online Safety Act seriously.
While Ofcom is taking steps in the right direction, they will need to expand their remit to include broader harmful practices, and we’ll need to see significant fines for non-compliance to give their position real teeth and to push tech providers to do the right thing by children. That needs to be complemented by parents and schools playing their part too. While a complete ban on smartphones in schools, or on social media for under-16s might be hard to enforce, those are options the Government should consider if it wants to tackle online safety and take the wellbeing of young people seriously.”
TOPIC: The Innsworth judicial review of the Merricks settlement judgement
COMMENT BY: Jeremy Marshall, CIO of Winward litigation funding
“It is right to pursue this Judicial Review and it is an important opportunity to seek clarity on how the Tribunal assesses what is an appropriate return for litigation funders without whom there would be no settlement or distribution of damages.”
TOPIC: The Supreme Court’s refusal this week of Ryanair’s application for permission to appeal the Court of Appeal’s judgment in the Ryanair DAC v Morais and others blacklisting case (meaning that the previous Court of Appeal decision on the Blacklisting Regulations is now confirmed as law).
COMMENT BY: Alice Yandle, Partner at Farrer & Co
“We are pleased to hear that the Supreme Court has refused Ryanair’s application for permission to appeal. This confirms that the Court of Appeal’s ruling earlier this year is the law: that the Blacklisting Regulations prohibit employers like Ryanair from blacklisting their employees for taking part in strike action.”
COMMENT BY: Zohra Francis, Director for Legal and Governance, BALPA
“We are delighted with this decision, which finally brings an end to a case that should never have been necessary. If Ryanair had simply respected its pilots’ right to strike to demand better terms and conditions, it would have saved them a lot of time and money. This victory also highlights the vital role of trade unions and reinforces the principle that workers’ rights to organise and engage in lawful strikes are not up for negotiation.”
LEGAL SECTOR APPOINTMENTS OF THE WEEK
OSBORNE CLARKE
Richard Porter is joining Osborne Clarke as a partner in its London corporate team. Formerly with A&O Shearman in Singapore and in Shearman & Sterling’s London office, Porter is an M&A specialist in the tech, media and comms, and energy transition sectors.
Porter’s experience includes acting for international corporations and financial institutions on a wide range of cross-border corporate transactions, including public and private mergers and acquisitions, private equity, joint ventures, equity issues and restructurings.
“As I return to the UK, I look forward to re-establishing and expanding my practice with Osborne Clarke’s corporate team in London and seizing international and cross-border opportunities from the UK, Europe and Asia,” said Porter.
Mark Wesker, head of the business transactions practice group at Osborne Clarke, said, “It’s a pleasure to welcome Richard to our team, he brings wide-ranging expertise advising clients on a diverse range of transactions. His expertise strengthens a number of areas where we are driving growth, including our technology and energy sectors.”
DECHERT
Sushila Nayak (above) is joining the global finance group at Dechert in London as a partner and will act as a leader of the firm’s London-based CLO operation
Being dual-qualified in New York and England & Wales, Nayak has considerable experience advising on highly complex multidisciplinary financing transactions including CLOs, securitisations involving a broad range of esoteric assets (including trade receivables, commodities receivables, music and television rights, tax liens and renewable energy-backed loans) and private debt transactions for borrowers and lenders.
She also has a track record for advising on the issuance and restructuring of structured finance products in both Europe and the United States, on compliance with European risk retention requirements and on trade finance matters including receivables, vendor financing and supply chain financing. Her client list includes major financial institutions and global asset managers, as well as alternative lenders, issuers, arrangers, collateral managers, and corporates.
Dave Forti, co-chair of Dechert, commented, “We are proud to have built one of the world’s leading global finance practices, consistently at the forefront of the most novel and challenging matters. Bringing Sushila (and her team) on board is perfectly in line with our growth strategy and solidifies our position as a leading force in structured credit.”
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