BAILII: Recent Decisions
High Court (Chancery Division)
Patel v O’Sullivan & Ors (Re Estate of Kantaban Ratilal Patel) [2026] EWHC 801 (Ch) (02 April 2026)
Hoarean v Read [2026] EWHC 763 (Ch) (23 March 2026)
Source: www.bailii.org
Ending or suspending parental responsibility – new laws – The Transparency Project
‘You’ll often see this topic described as “stripping” or “removing” an abusive father’s parental rights but parental responsibility (PR) can’t often simply be taken away – although where the circumstances justify it, PR can be restricted or effectively suspended. There are quite a few changes in the law going through at present and the landscape can look confusing, so here is a brief guide and update.’
The Transparency Project, 8th April 2026
Source: transparencyproject.org.uk
Provisional damages – failure and success in one case – Quarterly Medical Law Review
‘In Lynch v Princess Alexandra Hospital [2026] EWHC 657 (KB) Mrs Justice Ellenbogen provided a very useful distillation of the law relating to claims for provisional damages, as well as an example of the careful application of that law in a clinical negligence context. The judgment is also a useful discussion of a range of other interesting issues pertinent to the assessment of damages, but those fall outside the scope of this article.’
Quarterly Medical Law Review, 8th April 2026
Source: 1corqmlr.com
Maternity report – Quarterly Medical Law Review
‘On 26 February 2026, Baroness Amos published her Interim Report as Chair of the independent National Maternity and Neonatal Investigation. The Investigation was set up in June 2025 to drive urgent improvements in patient care and safety.’
Quarterly Medical Law Review, 8th April 2026
Source: 1corqmlr.com
Changes to the written representations procedure process for appeals – Local Government Lawyer
‘Gary Soloman and Connor Maunder set out significant changes to the written representations procedure process for planning appeals that came into effect this month.’
Local Government Lawyer, 9th April 2026
Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk
Bar tribunals: Earlier naming and all rulings published – Legal Futures
‘Rulings by Bar disciplinary tribunals which clear barristers of misconduct are to be published in all cases, not only where requested, the Bar Standards Board (BSB) has decided.’
Legal Futures, 9th April 2026
Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk
Clinical negligence: A Spring Update – Law Pod UK
‘1COR’s Lizanne Gumbel KC and Matthew Leitch join Jim Duffy to talk through some of the latest judgments in the field of medical law. Among the highlights are the use of surveillance footage, “lost years”, percentage offers under Part 36 and secondary victimhood.’
Law Pod UK, 7th April 2026
Source: audioboom.com
Family court demand rises as legal bodies warn of pressure on system – Family Law
‘Demand on the family courts in England and Wales increased during 2025, with new figures showing a 3% rise in overall cases compared with the previous year, prompting renewed calls for greater investment in the justice system.’
Family Law, 7th April 2026
Source: www.familylaw.co.uk
New family court allocation guidance to streamline handling of children cases – Family Law
‘The President of the Family Division has issued new guidance on the allocation and gatekeeping of children cases in the Family Court, aimed at improving efficiency and ensuring cases are heard at the appropriate judicial level.’
Family Law, 7th April 2026
Source: www.familylaw.co.uk
Francesca Jackson: King Charles, President Trump and the State Visit: Some Constitutional Considerations – UK Constitutional Law Association
‘Buckingham Palace has finally announced that the King and Queen’s planned visit to the US will indeed go ahead at the end of April 2026. After US President Donald Trump launched a string of verbal attacks on the UK Prime Minister, there had been growing calls for Keir Starmer to cancel the King’s visit, which he is due to make to celebrate the 250th anniversary of US independence. The Liberal Democrats, for instance, had urged the PM not to grant “yet another huge diplomatic coup” to a President “who repeatedly insults and damages our country.” However, little academic attention has been paid to the issue of whether, as a matter of constitutional law, it would have even been possible for the PM to cancel the visit in the first place. Further, what say, if any, might the King himself have had in the matter?’
UK Constitutional Law Association, 8th April 2026
Source: ukconstitutionallaw.org
ChatGPT, Copilot, and L&RUK – Law & Religion UK
‘For the present post, we asked both Copilot and to ChatGTP to provide an answer to the question: To what extent do search engines identify Law and Religion UK as a source of information (on law and religion)?. The responses were followed up by additional considerations on the future role of AI in “specialist blogs”.’
Law & Religion UK, 8th April 2026
Source: lawandreligionuk.com
Autism: What Is It? – Neurodiversity in Law
‘Studies indicate that the number of people diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Condition (ASC) is rising, and whilst ASC itself has been well-studied, knowledge around its origins is still limited. There are several theories behind the “cause” of autism, which are explored below.’
Neurodiversity in Law, 7th April 2026
Source: neurodiversityinlaw.substack.com
Parallel family and criminal court proceedings ‘confusing for parties’, judge notes – Law Society Gazette
‘A family judge dealing with domestic abuse and coercive control accusations in a case already running for 57 weeks has lamented the parallel process of criminal and family courts dealing with the same allegations. ‘
Law Society Gazette, 7th April 2026
Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk
AI is mainstream in law – but clients are not told, survey finds – Law Society Gazette
‘Nearly nine out of 10 legal professionals say they use AI in some capacity – but clients are usually unaware of the fact, according to a survey for a legal tech company. The research also suggests that adoption of AI is rushing ahead of adequate governance.’
Law Society Gazette, 8th April 2026
Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk
Portals: Bringing It All Together – Financial Remedies Journal
‘Tips and tricks on using the digital court portals from a member of the stakeholder group for the profession, including how to avoid the double login, when to denote documents as confidential, and how to prompt a response from the court.’
Financial Remedies Journal, 8th April 2026
Source: financialremediesjournal.com
Victims and bereaved families to get more time to challenge ‘unduly lenient’ sentences – The Guardian
‘Victims and bereaved families will be given six months to challenge “unduly lenient” sentences handed to criminals, under changes announced by David Lammy.’
The Guardian, 8th April 2026
Source: www.theguardian.com
Airing of Bafta racial slur breached BBC standards, corporation finds – The Guardian
‘The BBC breached its editorial standards by broadcasting a racial slur during the Bafta film awards ceremony in February, the corporation’s executive complaints unit (ECU) has found.’
The Guardian, 8th April 2026
Source: www.theguardian.com
Freedom of belief vs freedom of expression: Word of Life – Law & Religion UK
‘Word of Life Church of Christians of Evangelical Faith in Armenia and Simonyan v Armenia [2026] ECHR 57 was primarily about the role of domestic courts in upholding the State’s duty of neutrality and impartiality in religious matters.’
Law & Religion UK, 7th April 2026
Source: lawandreligionuk.com
Law and religion roundup – 5th April – Law & Religion UK
‘The Guardian reports that Robert Bush, funeral director at Legacy Independent Funeral Directors in Hull, has admitted giving families the wrong ashes, lying to them, stealing from them and stealing from charities. He pleaded guilty at Hull Crown Court to 30 counts of preventing a lawful and decent burial, and one of theft from twelve charities, including the Salvation Army and Macmillan Cancer Support, after 30 bodies and a quantity of ashes were found at the funeral home in 2024.’
Law & Religion UK, 5th April 2026
Source: lawandreligionuk.com
Judge: Unqualified agency advocates “risk undermining legal system” – Legal Futures
‘The use of unqualified advocates by agencies has “the potential to undermine the integrity of the legal system”, a judge has ruled.’
Legal Futures, 8th April 2026
Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk
