Latest insights

Mishcon de Reya has relocated its Oxford team to Oxford North’s new global innovation district. The firm has taken a five‑year lease on the first floor of The Red Hall, a state‑of‑the‑art building at the centre of the £1.2 billion development. The move strengthens the firm’s presence in Oxford and supports its Vision 2030 strategy, which focuses on the Innovation Economy and the Golden Triangle.

The CJEU’s Pelham II ruling provides long-awaited clarity on the scope of the pastiche exception, confirming it requires a recognisable creative dialogue with the original work - not mere imitation. UK case law reinforces that the defence will fail where works replicate or deceive rather than transform. As AI-generated content grows, the decision sharpens focus on human creativity and whether outputs truly engage with, rather than substitute for, existing works.

The Crime and Policing Bill 2025 received Royal Assent on 29 April 2026, becoming the Crime and Policing Act 2026 (CPA). Enacted to rebuild public trust in policing, the CPA introduces significant reforms spanning areas including offensive weapons, stalking and public order, confiscation, and corporate criminal liability.

On 14 May 2026, the Government released the annual coroner statistics for 2025 in England and Wales. Coroners are independent judicial office holders who investigate certain kinds of death. The statistics can be viewed here.

A below-threshold merger - also referred to as a non-notifiable deal - is one that falls below the filing thresholds set by merger control regimes. Historically, such transactions were considered low-risk from a regulatory standpoint.

The Employment Rights Act 2025 introduces a major shift to collective redundancy rules, with a new organisation-wide trigger capturing redundancies across multiple sites. This change, coupled with significantly increased financial penalties, raises the stakes for multi-site employers. With implementation expected in 2027, businesses should act now to centralise tracking, plan consultation logistics, and align their processes.