Outdoor civil weddings and civil partnerships made permanent
Outdoor weddings at licensed venues in England and Wales will be legalised permanently after the change received overwhelming support from the public, faith groups and the wedding industry. The change will mean that marrying couples will continue to have greater choice in how they celebrate their big day. Temporary legislation allowing outdoor civil weddings and […]
“Cyberflashing” to become a criminal offence
“Cyberflashing” will become a new criminal offence with perpetrators facing up to two years behind bars under new laws to be introduced by the Government. The practice typically involves offenders sending an unsolicited sexual image to people via social media or dating apps, but can also be over data sharing services such as Bluetooth and […]
“Miserable and litigious” divorce law will remain
It has been suggested that no-fault divorce reform “will fail to achieve its aims” unless the courts review and reform the way they deal with financial settlements, with Justice Minister Lord Wolfson suggesting that the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) will be examining the area of financial provision “within a matter of weeks”. The claim, made […]
Government announces further changes to Online Safety Bill
The government announced on Thursday its amendments to the Online Safety Bill, which include tougher and quicker criminal sanctions for tech bosses and new criminal offences for falsifying and destroying data. The Bill aims to tackle a range of harmful online content in an effort to bring internet users a “safer online environment”. The government […]
SRA to consult on annual “keeping of the roll” exercise
The Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) is consulting on plans to reintroduce the requirement for non-practising solicitors to complete an annual application confirming that they wish to remain on the roll. Solicitors without practising certificates would be asked to complete annual application from 2023 onwards. In making their application, individuals will also be confirming that the […]
Sunak delivers “underwhelming” Spring Statement
Rishi Sunak, Chancellor of the Exchequer, delivered his Spring Statement to Parliament on Wednesday. In what has been described as a “mini-budget”, the Chancellor brought welcome tax relief across several areas of the economy, though some have suggested the measures do not go far enough amidst the current economic climate of inflation, increasing house prices, […]
