Edward Fennell’s LEGAL DIARY
Diary news plus insights, commentary and appointments from the legal world
21st February 2025
Editorial contact: fennell.edward@yahoo.com
SHORT THOUGHT FOR THE WEEK:
SUPREME BEING?
Whether the next four years will prove to be a burp or a watershed in US history remains to be seen. But already the bland indifference by the Administration to the rule of law is putting a severe stress on its legitimacy.
As a prime example here is an excerpt from a substack piece written by Robert Reich, the former US Secretary of Labor, in which he highlights particularly egregious examples of disregard for the law by the President – notably by sacking public servants without just/any cause.
“Hampton Dellinger, head of the Office of Special Counsel:
Dellinger runs the office that enforces federal whistleblower laws and the Hatch Act, which prohibits federal employees from engaging in most political activity. In the 1978 law that established Dellinger’s job, Congress provided that the special counsel can be removed only for “inefficiency, neglect of duty, or malfeasance in office.”
Trump fired Dellinger on Friday (7th). On Monday, Dellinger sued, calling his removal illegal, arguing that nothing about his performance could possibly meet the standard Congress laid out for dismissing a special counsel. “Since my arrival at OSC last year, I could not be more proud of all we have accomplished,” Dellinger said. “The agency’s work has earned praise from advocates for whistleblowers, veterans, and others. The effort to remove me has no factual nor legal basis — none — which means it is illegal.”
A couple of years ago the Supreme Court in the UK was steadfast in its defence of the rule of law. Whether its US-equivalent can do the same will certainly be a momentous inflection point.
The LegalDiarist
In this edition
+ LEGAL DIARY OF THE WEEK
Ever Louder Demands for Legal AI
Browne Jacobson helps to shape education innovation
Trouble Down on the Farm
Migrate UK Getting Ready for Knotty Problems
+ CONTRIBUTED ARTICLE OF THE WEEK
CELEBRATING 40 YEARS OF FAMILY LAW ON TELEVISION (Courtesy of EASTENDERS!) by JAYNE MARTINS
+ LEGAL COMMENT OF THE WEEK
El-Hussein vs. Invest Bank, Divorce Orders, Blocking Zelle payments
+ APPOINTMENTS OF THE WEEK
at Lawrence Stephens and Dechert
THE LEGAL DIARY
Ever Louder Demands for Legal AI
As discussion about AI become daily more frenzied – there is hardly an evening on BBC TV’s Newsnight when it is not mentioned somehow – LexisNexis® Legal & Professional is reporting that there is a sharp demand from lawyers for greater tech investment.
A survey by the consultancy of 800+ UK legal professionals found in-house legal counsel will need their external counsel to be cost-effective (74%), responsive and agile (67%), and offer specialist legal expertise (44%), all of which require an investment in new technology and innovation.
But there is growing frustration at the speed – or lack of it – with which law firms are moving to keep up (or maybe more accurately trail behind) technical innovation. Almost half (47.49%) said their firm is slow or very slow. “Responding to change and making use of data and analytics are also areas in need of greater innovation,” said the report Innovating the client experience: Law firms can offer much more than legal expertise. Two-thirds (67%) of legal professionals said their firm is adequate, slow or very slow at responding to change, while more than half (58%) said the same about data and analytics.
If nothing else (and, of course, there is a lot more) AI can speed things up. Yet more than a third (35%) of interviewees said their firm was adequate, slow or very slow at delivering legal work in general. “As a potential solution, more than half (57%) of private practice lawyers expect their firms to become more reliant on AI for legal research and document review in the next one to three years, which could streamline processes,” said the report.
Stuart Greenhill, Senior Director of Segments at LexisNexis UK, commented that, “To remain competitive, firms will need to deliver a superior, data-driven legal service, at the same cost or lower, and at pace – and to keep clients informed of any legal or regulatory developments. Achieving all this without the help of modern technology will be difficult. To secure client relationships, firms will need to invest in a streamlined, data-driven client offering.”
To see the report go to:
www.lexisnexis.co.uk/insights/innovating-the-client-experience/index.html
Browne Jacobson helps to shape education innovation
Even in schools – or maybe particularly in schools – you cannot escape the AI debate. With its strong footprint in the education sector Browne Jacobson is gearing up for EdCont, its annual conference in March on educational matters – and, of course, AI features. Driven by four ‘dynamic streams’ – horizon scanning, collaborating and connecting, creativity and “out of the box” thinking, and developing people – the issue of ‘Safeguarding in an AI world’ is going to be high on everyone’s concerns.
“EdCon is a great platform for the education sector to come together and, by exploring opportunities for innovation, collaboration, creativity and development, schools and trusts can face up to challenges and enhance their prospects,” said Nick MacKenzie, Head of Education at Browne Jacobson.
“As a firm committed to supporting our clients with tackling society’s biggest issues, we recognise education is at the vanguard of many emerging challenges.
“This conference, alongside other thought leadership activities such as our School Leaders Survey and #EdInfluence podcast, aims to start the conversation on many of these issues by delivering insights from experts at Browne Jacobson, our clients and our partners.”
Along with the conference there will be a series of on-demand ‘light bite’ sessions available as five-minute videos, covering topics such as collaborative pathways to support special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) provision, cutting complaints management time and innovation in staff recruitment and retention.
The Browne Jacobson’s website will also include articles and provide further background reading and details on topics discussed during the conference.
To view the full programme, visit
www.brownejacobson.com/insights/edcon-2025
Trouble Down on the Farm
With the UK’s agricultural distress now making headlines on a regular basis it is healthy to be reminded of the role that lawyers are playing to make sense of it all.
Getting their boots muddy are the members of the Michelmores Agricultural team who have been hosting a UK Rural Roadshow this month ranging from Exeter to Durham and Cheltenham to Lincoln plus taking in Shrewsbury on the way.
These are the key problems which they have highlighted:
• The challenges faced in the management of Agricultural tenancies, and moving to progressive business structures to take advantage of new and existing opportunities, particularly in Natural Capital.
• The continued evolution of the law on partnerships, including considering how partnerships fit into modern rural businesses, and practice in dispute resolution for partnership matters.
• The commercial and practical issues encountered in promoting, transacting and building out development land, particularly taking into account Biodiversity Net Gain, and Nutrient Neutrality requirements.
• Tackling, and making the most of new infrastructure projects, including the navigation of access for surveys, entry, and valuation challenges.
• The ever developing and multifaceted taxation aspects of estate and rural business management, including modern tax efficient business structures for new and diversified ventures.
As the firm points out, the events have been well attended and attracted real engagement from the audiences – not surprising really given the growing sense of crisis out in the fields.
Clearly a massive growth opportunity for lawyers in Barbours.
Migrate UK Getting Ready for White Paper Challenge
Immigration has been the most troublesome and conflicted issue on the UK political agenda for the past decade. The same applies too across many Western European countries and the US. Put crudely, many countries don’t like it but they cannot avoid it.
In the UK a new White Paper setting out the Labour government’s skills-based immigration system lies just over the horizon and employers will be anxious to see how much it will benefit – or maybe impair- their ability to meet the need for talent.
One of the law firms expecting to be particularly busy once the new regime is introduced is specialist outfit Migrate UK. The firm was set up in 2004 by Jonathan Beech, the current Managing Director, who previously had managed the Government’s Immigration Public Enquiry Office before moving into commercial and private client legal advisory with Ernst & Young and KPMG. Now serving a wide range of big ticket clients as well as entrepreneurs and wealthy individuals Migrate is ramping up for a host of new issues given what Beech describes as “A constant whirlwind of immigration law changes and more to come.”
To meet this challenge Beech has brought in Oliver O’Sullivan to a new role as Director of Immigration. Formerly the head of Immigration at Wellers Law Group LLP, O’Sullivan has also had leadership functions at Deloitte, Dentons, Eversheds and Gateley.
“The new White Paper on immigration [is] likely to focus more on the relationship between visa sponsorship and training, as well as bringing a whole new raft of challenges for employers still struggling to meet recruitment demands,” says O’Sullivan. “Immigration cases are becoming increasingly complex and tough for organizations and individuals, but the team will continue to try and make the process as simple as possible by introducing new products and services, while meeting the highest bar of compliance. I’m looking forward to growing and developing my career as Migrate UK continues to expand.”
There will be no shortage of demand for sure.
CONTRIBUTED ARTICLE OF THE WEEK
CELEBRATING 40 YEARS OF FAMILY LAW ON TELEVISION (Courtesy of EASTENDERS!) by JAYNE MARTINS
This week, EastEnders celebrates its 40th anniversary. As a fan of the long-running soap and a family solicitor, I haveve often wondered what it would be like to be based in Walford. One thing for certain, you would never be short of work! Since EastEnders hit our screens in 1985, there have been over 40 divorces on Albert Square with 60% of couples getting divorced, far higher than the national average of around 42%.
The most famous divorce must be that of Den and Angie in 1986 with Den famously uttering, “Happy Christmas, Ange” whilst handing her divorce papers. Other divorces include that of Grant and Sharon, Kat and Alfie (who divorced twice) and more recently Mick and Linda. The prize for most prolific divorcer goes to Ian Beale with four divorces under his belt.
Unsurprisingly, the average length of an Eastenders’ marriage of just four years is well below the average length of a marriage in England and Wales which is approximately 12.9 years. The shortest marriage recorded on the show is that of Ian and Sharon’s whose nuptials lasted a mere two months. The longest marriage was Nish and Suki Panesar’s who were together for an impressive 38 years although I’m not sure this counts given that Nish was behind bars for 20 of those years!
Needless to say, family law has evolved enormously since EastEnders was launched. Aside from the occasional reference of “being taken to the cleaners,” the scriptwriters have kept the legal process of divorce out of the storylines, perhaps they are missing a trick? One of the most significant statutes that came into force when the show was in its early years was the Children Act 1989 which regulates children arrangements. I am sure some of the divorced residents of Albert Square would have benefitted from some advice around children arrangements given their penchant for simply jetting off, usually to Portugal, with the child in tow, never to be seen again.
Seven years later, The Family Law Act 1996 was introduced which sought to protect the right of a spouse or partner to occupy a home and also provide protection from domestic violence by way of non-molestation and occupation orders. I suspect that this would have been a heavily used piece of legislation for the inhabitants of Albert Square!
On 1st December 2000 pension sharing orders were brought in by the Welfare Reform and Pension Act 1999 enabling pensions to be shared between spouses on a separation. So while many characters will have technically been able to benefit from this, I am not sure that the inhabitants of Albert Square live long enough to draw their pension given their high mortality rate with many characters reaching a tragic end!
More recently, the Divorce, Dissolution and Separation Act 2020 introduced so-called no fault divorce which has, arguably, succeeded in helping many couples divorce and separate in an amicable and constructive manner. I’m not convinced any of Albert Square’s residents, who love nothing more than a showdown outside The Queen Vic, are ready to embrace the sentiments of this Act!
Happy Anniversary EastEnders – here’s to the next 40 years of the residents of Albert Square living unhappily ever after.
Jayne Martins is a partner in the family team at RWK Goodman
LEGAL COMMENT OF THE WEEK
TOPIC: The Supreme Court’s ruling this week in El-Hussein and another (Appellants) v Invest Bank PSC
COMMENT BY: Natalie Todd, Partner, Cooke, Young and Keidan (and Committee Member of the LSLA)
This judgment from the SC gives a broad interpretation of “transactions” at an undervalue made by debtors which can be challenged by creditors under s423 Insolvency Act 1986. Corporate structures can no longer be used by debtors in order to avoid paying their creditors.
The judgment will enable creditors to take effective enforcement action where a debtor has used corporate structures to hold assets. The Court found that both the language and purpose of section 423 point clearly to the conclusion that a “transaction” within section 423(1) is not confined to a dealing with an asset owned by the debtor but extends to a transaction whereby a debtor agrees to procure a company which he owns to transfer a valuable asset owned by the company for no consideration or at an undervalue, thereby reducing or eliminating the value of his shares in the company to the prejudice of his creditors.
Creditors will be encouraged by this judgment to bring claims under s423 IA in circumstances where i) a debtor has caused a company which he controls to enter into a transaction at an undervalue; and ii) a debtor has caused a transaction at an undervalue of assets which he does not beneficially own.”
COMMENT BY: Simon Fawell, Partner, commercial and financial litigation, Signature Litigation
“This is a welcome confirmation that s423 of the Insolvency Act 1986 has a wide scope and, in particular, that there is no significant gap in the legislation that would allow debtors to hold assets through corporate vehicles and transfer them for little or no value to avoid their obligations.
“s423 of the Act is a powerful tool which provides recourse for creditors where a debtor transfers an asset for no consideration or at an undervalue for the purposes of putting the asset beyond the reach of creditors. The UK Supreme Court’s decision should be welcomed by all creditors, particularly as it puts paid to an argument that would have given recalcitrant debtors an obvious route to avoid their obligations.”
TOPIC: Divorce statistics from His Majesty’s Courts service reveal a large number of divorce orders being made but fewer people are securing a legally binding financial settlement creating more long term problems.
COMMENT BY: Stephanie Kyriacou, Family Department, Freeths.
“Getting a final divorce order doesn’t mean financial ties are cut. Without a legally binding consent order, your ex-spouse could return to claim a share of your assets – even years down the line – whether that’s inheritance, business success, or even a lottery win. It’s a ticking time bomb.”
“Under English law, financial claims remain open indefinitely unless a court-approved consent order is in place. Even couples who agree informally on splitting assets, risk future disputes.
“We see too many people assuming their divorce is ‘done and dusted’, when, in reality, they’ve left the door wide open for financial uncertainty. A clean break consent order provides peace of mind and ensures both parties can move on, without fear of financial claims being pursued, later down the line.”
TOPIC: The decision by JPMorgan Chase Bank (Chase) to start blocking Zelle payments to social media contacts to combat a significant rise in online scams utilising the service for fraud
COMMENT BY: Dr Ilia Kolochenko, CEO at ImmuniWeb, Fellow at the European Law Institute (ELI)
“The fierce race for global leadership on the booming GenAI market pushes many AI vendors to offer access to their LLMs for free, while some vendors even offer monetary incentives to attract new users in order to impress investors with surging growth. This creates a true paradise for fraudsters and scammers from all around the globe, who exploit freely available LLMs to create perfectly looking profiles with trustworthy, albeit synthetic, photos and videos on social networks, to communicate with their victims in any language using the most appropriate slang or jargon, or even to get creative ideas – from LLMs that have poor guardrails or no guardrails at all – on how to better deceive their next victims.
Combined with poorly traceable and hardly recoverable cryptocurrencies or even with better-regulated fintech solutions – like Zelle – that offer instant payment capabilities, even technically unskilled scammers and teenage fraudsters operate in an environment of spiralling unlawfulness and impunity. Worse, while sophisticated cyber-attacks continue to grow, law enforcement agencies are significantly outnumbered and simply have no resources to investigate small scams when gullible victims send several hundred dollars to criminals. The problem is exacerbated by the growing poverty: even in developed countries, a three-digit dollar amount may be a non-neglectable loss for a middle-class family, while no legal recourse is available to recover stolen funds.
In sum, despite the de-regulation trend currently propelled by the President Trump administration, many financial institutions and fintech organizations will probably enhance their AML/CFT and KYC/CDD requirements very soon, significantly reducing the flow of fraudulent, anomalous or suspicious payments even if it is not directly required by law.”
APPOINTMENTS OF THE WEEK
LAWRENCE STEPHENS
Steve Clinning has joined Lawrence Stephens as a Director in its Banking and Real Estate Finance practice. Formerly a Partner with Memery Crystal, Clinning has established long-term partnerships with several high-volume lending clients and advises both borrowers and lenders on a range of transactions including general property finance, corporate acquisition work, hotel finance, trading business finance, development finance and asset finance. He will be accompanied by other members of his team at Memery Crystal.
“Lawrence Stephens’ Banking and Real Estate Finance practice has grown significantly in recent years,” says Clinning. “ However, it has retained the unique personal touch that the firm prides itself on. Joining at such an exciting time for the firm, I look forward to beginning my next chapter at Lawrence Stephens and working alongside friends old and new.”
Head of Real Estate Finance at Lawrence Stephens, Greg Palos, said, “I have known and admired Steve’s work for many years and we are delighted to welcome him and the team to our firm. Their arrival brings the number of Directors in the Banking and Real Estate Finance teams to 11 and a total complement of 42, making it an even more significant player in the Real Estate Finance and Banking ecosystem.”
DECHERT LLP
Nick Tomlinson has joined Dechert LLP as a partner in its corporate and securities practice group in London. Tomlinson is dual-qualified in England & Wales and New York and previously had almost 25 years experience working in another large-scale law firm. His expertise reaches various sectors, including financial services, healthcare, technology, digital infrastructure, education, consumer, media, entertainment, and sports and he has worked with a diverse range of clients including prominent private equity firms, sovereign wealth funds, and major corporations. With recognition from The Legal 500 UK for private equity and M&A: upper mid-market and premium deals, he is also ranked as highly regarded in IFLR1000 for M&A and private equity.
“Nick’s arrival to Dechert underscores our commitment to continued targeted growth in private equity and major money centres worldwide, further enhancing our ability to support sponsor and alternative asset managers on their global investment strategies,” said Mark Thierfelder, co-chair of Dechert.
Ken Young, co-chair of Dechert’s corporate and securities practice, added, “With his extensive experience and proven track record in handling complex cross-border deals, Nick will play a leading role in our private equity and M&A practices in London and worldwide and will be invaluable to our clients.”
We hope that you’ve been interested or amused by something in this week’s LEGAL DIARY. If so do send on to colleagues.
And please continue sending your ‘Diary-type’ stories, insights legal comment and appointments to
fennell.edward@yahoo.com