Matilda Battersby is a freelance journalist and editor, and a senior reporter at the Today’s Media titles. She worked at The Independent newspaper for many years, but has also worked at The Times, Evening Standard, Telegraph and I newspapers since going freelance in 2015. Her specialisms are property and books, having worked extensively for various trade property magazines and The Bookseller magazine. She is based in East London.
A new study aiming to provide the most comprehensive and authoritative insight into the Welsh legal market has opened for anonymous contributions by legal professionals in Wales. The study is being conducted by Legal News
The Solicitors’ Charity partner Lawsight is supporting the call for more tangible action on wellbeing in the law ahead of Mental Health Awareness Week in May. Lawsight is recommending practical steps that can be implemented
The Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) has fined Taylor Rose more than £160,000 for compliance failures including failing to return client money promptly. The SRA directed the firm to pay a financial penalty of £160,059 and
The Rt Hon Lord Justice Stephen Cobb has been appointed President of the Family Division by the King. His appointment, which follows the retirement of Sir Andrew McFarlane on 13 April 2026, was made on
The Family Court has taken the unusual step of naming an unregulated sperm donor in a judgment on a parentage case. The Rt Hon Sir Andrew McFarlane, President of the Family Division, publicly named Robert
The government has announced its intention to crack down on harmful pornography under new amendments tabled to the Crime and Policing Bill, as part of its pledge to halve violence against women and girls within
Changes to paternity leave, which became a day one right earlier this month, will have important implications for family law, and “place fathers and partners on a more equal footing from the outset”. Julian Bremner,
HM Courts & Tribunals Service will test using artificial intelligence to produce court transcripts in a move intended to improve access to justice for victims and families. The new study will see if the Ministry
UK legal professionals spend nearly three hours a day on non-billable tasks, according to a new industry report. Profitability in Law: Global Report 2026, commissioned by LEAP Legal Software, surveyed around 700 legal professionals across
One in five partners are considering leaving their employers within the next few years, a survey across the UK Top 250 law firms suggests, as assumptions that being made partner meant you had a job
Interest in law-related jobs has dropped by a third over the past year, recruitment website data suggests. The number of jobseekers pursuing legal roles fell by 32.9% between January 2026 and 2025, according to Indeed
Richard Orpin, the new chief executive of the Legal Services Board, has hailed legal services as a “huge economic success story,” but warned that “AI is blurring the boundaries between regulated and unregulated legal advice.”
The Property (Digital Assets etc) Act 2025 has removed legal uncertainty and resolved private law impediments to new technology, Master of the Rolls Sir Geoffrey Vos (pictured) says. Speaking at a reception on 12 March
A new report calls for the creation of a Commissioner for Separated Families to represent families in government consultations, coordinate “fragmented” policy and keep the welfare of children at the heart of provision. Currently, four
Economic abuse plays a role in more than half of domestic abuse–related deaths but is routinely overlooked by the agencies, according to a new report. Surviving Economic Abuse analysed 454 domestic homicide reviews (DHR) for
A judge has granted a journalist permission to see reports by a psychologist in four private family law cases, having concluded that to do so would “advance open justice”. The expert reports will be strictly
A psychotherapist who attempted to block being named in the judgment on a case for which she was a witness has had her bid for anonymity refused by the Court of Appeal. Aimee Dover, a