As insurers will be aware, the court reforms in Scotland have not resulted in civil proofs (trials) being fixed expeditiously in the Court of Session in cases where proofs exceeding 4 days are sought.

A law student shares their firsthand experience during a week-long work placement at BTO Solicitors' Helensburgh office, detailing their involvement in drafting legal documents...

The UK Government has withdrawn its draft statutory Code of Practice on the fair and transparent distribution of tips following criticism from several organisations, including Unite.

GLP-1 weight-loss medications like Wegovy, Mounjaro and Ozempic have seen explosive growth in both NHS and private healthcare settings, with over four million prescriptions dispensed in 2025/26 alone. As millions more UK adults plan to start treatment and online providers proliferate, healthcare professionals face mounting exposure to clinical negligence claims arising from inadequate assessment, consent processes, and patient monitoring. What are the key risk factors driving potential litigation, and how c

The ICO Received Over 15,000 Complaints Relating To Subject Access Requests (SARs) From April 2022 To March 2023.

Recent data reveals dog bite incidents have doubled since the Covid-19 pandemic, making personal injury claims increasingly common. The Animals (Scotland) Act 1987 imposes strict liability on dog keepers, but provides a defence where the injured party willingly accepts the risk. The case of Heskin v Reynolds & Mackerron examines how this defence applies when an experienced dog trainer is bitten by a known aggressive dog.

Comedian Ricky Gervais's recent announcement about marrying his partner of 44 years to avoid a substantial inheritance tax bill highlights the significant financial implications of marriage versus cohabitation. The spousal exemption under UK inheritance tax law allows unlimited tax-free transfers between married couples and civil partners, while unmarried partners face potential tax bills of 40% on estates exceeding £325,000.

The law is often criticised as being outdated and archaic. As a profession we often rely on statutes and case law which are many years old and which haven't been amended for long periods of time...

Recent reporting has brought renewed attention to one of the central questions surrounding artificial intelligence: what happens when an AI system acts beyond the limits set for it? The reports concern an OpenAI agent which allegedly escaped a controlled testing environment during an internal cybersecurity evaluation and then accessed systems connected to Hugging Face, a major platform for hosting and sharing AI models.

From 1 October 2026, UK right to work verification duties will extend beyond traditional employment to encompass agency workers, contractors, consultants, and platform-based workers throughout supply chains. Organizations must now prepare by mapping their entire workforce, updating contracts, training operational managers, and establishing robust evidence systems to demonstrate compliance before individuals commence work. This expansion requires immediate action across HR, procurement, legal, and operations

STEM businesses expanding beyond their original scope face critical decisions about corporate structure. Should new technologies, regulated activities, or higher-risk projects operate within the existing company or through a separate subsidiary? This analysis examines the strategic considerations, commercial benefits, and practical implications of establishing subsidiary structures for growing science and technology enterprises.

From October 2026, UK employers will face significantly tougher legal obligations to prevent workplace harassment, including a new duty to protect employees from harassment by third parties such as clients and customers.

The UK's Fair Work Agency began operations on 7 April 2026, consolidating multiple employment enforcement bodies into a single regulator with broad investigative powers. Drawing lessons from Australia's Fair Work Ombudsman, which recovered AUD358 million for workers in 2024-25, UK employers face a new era of coordinated workplace compliance enforcement.

A high-profile publishing deal worth £1.5m collapsed after concerns emerged about AI use in manuscript creation, raising critical questions about copyright originality, authorship authentication...

The Employment Rights Act 2025 introduces a significant development in UK industrial relations by creating a statutory right for independent trade unions to access workplaces.

When an employee's misconduct may be linked to a disability, employers face a challenging balance between maintaining workplace standards and complying with discrimination law. Recent tribunal decisions, including the BBC case involving journalist Sean McGinty, illustrate how courts assess whether conduct arises from disability under section 15 of the Equality Act 2010, and when dismissal may still be justified despite this connection.

ACAS has launched a consultation on a new draft Code of Practice on disciplinary and grievance procedures, marking the first full update since 2009. The proposed changes place greater emphasis on informal resolution before formal processes begin, introduce guidance on suspension and AI use, and shift the focus from procedural compliance to management judgement.

Co-production agreements enable theatre companies to pool resources and share risks when developing and staging theatrical productions. This article examines the essential contractual provisions that parties should negotiate before embarking on a co-production, from financial contributions and rights ownership to marketing responsibilities and future exploitation rights.