Commercial Awareness Memo

Below, the Chambers Student team pick out the cases that have sparked our interest, from the UK government's controversial Rwanda plan, to doping in sport and Wagatha Christie, and take a look through a commercial and legal lens - a crucial skill for those navigating the path from law student to lawyer.

In this easy to digest format, we present all the information law students should be aware of, from how these stories connect to the legal space, to the effect they have on it. By offering commercial awareness in real time, our articles will ultimately help you understand how the legal market works, and where you might fit in.

 

New this week:

14th April - Higher education regulator fines university £585,000 over issues concerning freedom of speech

14th April - Marine Le Pen faces five-year ban from French public office following embezzlement conviction

 

April's top stories:

7th - UK firms fight for a place on the Legal Panel for Government

7th - New guidelines mean pregnant offenders could be spared custodial sentences

March's top stories:

31st - 23andMe files for bankruptcy amidst concerns over consumers' genetic data

31st - Germany's new military spending plans

24th - Paddy Power ordered to pay £1 million to prize winner

17th - Engineering professor wins £1 million for unfair dismissal

17th - Albania bans TikTok following concerns over youth violence

10th - International Women’s Day: The Chambers Student stats

10th - Boots owner to go private following $10 billion takeover deal

3rd - The name’s Bond, James Bond. But who owns it?

3rd - Law firm partner wins age discrimination claim

3rd - The EU’s Artificial Intelligence Act: Creatives concerned over copyright loophole

February's top stories:

24th - Migrant workers accuse British farms of exploitation

17th - Johnson & Johnson talcum powder lawsuit hits the English courts

17th - Family court reporting restrictions eased across England and Wales

17th - Meta and X targeted as Trump lawsuit strikes

10th - High Court to decide on Thames Water's £3 billion 'company plan'

3rd - Berlin to drive EU immigration policy change?

3rd - Disney sued over Moana copyright claim

3rd - The AI Opportunities Action Plan: UK government to invest £14 billion

January's top stories:

27th - What’s happening with the TikTok ban?

27th - Fly-tipping and the law

20th - The first US president with a felony conviction given unconditional discharge

20th - Elon Musk and the threat to European democracy

20th - Legal claim brought by Leicester City chairman’s family over helicopter crash

13th - Why is Liz Truss threatening Keir Starmer with a defamation lawsuit?

13th - Apple to pay $95 million in Siri privacy infringement lawsuit

December's top stories:

9th - Martial law and the unique case of South Korea

9th - Gisèle Pelicot trial calls French rape laws into question

9th - 'Sweetheart' deal no more: EU court rules that Apple must pay its €13bn tax bill

2nd - Barclays receives a £40m fine for "reckless" activity during the '08 financial crisis

2nd - Pro-Brexit views not protected against workplace discrimination

November's top stories:

25th - Another transatlantic merger: HSF to merge with US firm Kramer Levin

25th - Man's will written on back of food boxes is valid, High Court rules

18th - Apple facing legal action over iCloud prices

11th - The largest class action in English legal history makes it to the High Court

11th - EU seeks to recover Tunisia migration funds amidst claims of human rights violations

11th - Sentencing review could lead to overhaul of UK prison system

4th - The latest on assisted dying in the UK

October's top stories:

28th - Disney World and infinite arbitration

28th - Caught between East and West: Will Moldova achieve its EU and NATO dreams?

September's top stories:

16th - Priced out of prison: The SDS40 scheme and the prison crisis

16th - Lèse-majesté and human rights law: the unique case of Thailand

9th - What's in store for the UK's economy with Labour in power?

August's top stories:

26th - Google loses US antitrust lawsuit over illegal online search monopoly

26th - Pro-fox hunting group argues that hunters should be a protected minority

19th - What is joint enterprise and why is the CCJS arguing for reform?

19th - Ex-Twitter employee wins unfair dismissal case

12th - Revolut has finally been granted its banking licence. What now?

5th - Cyberattacks on the rise across the shipping industry

July's top stories:

29th - It's Oil Over: Just Stop Oil protestors sentenced for public nuisance

29th - The latest competition class action to hit the headlines: a royal pain for Royal Mail?

15th - What changes might Labour make to employment law?

8th - US Supreme Court rules that Trump has partial immunity from prosecution

8th - Promises to reduce outstanding court cases deemed unfeasible

1st - Record labels sue AI start-ups over copyright infringement

June's top stories:

24th - Supreme Court rules in favour of environmental activists over oil well plans

17th - Small retailers take on Amazon in class action suit

17th - This Means War! Are the Magic Circle feeling the pressure from US 'invaders'?

10th - McDonald's loses EU trademark for chicken Big Macs

10th - Unfinished business and lost laws: What happens before a general election?

3rd -  Daily Telegraph up for sale after UK law prohibits foreign state ownership of newspapers

3rd - Influencer Grace Beverley breaks UK advertising rules

3rd - WikiLeaks founder wins the right to appeal extradition to the US

3rd - ChatGPT accused of imitating Scarlett Johansson's voice for its chatbot

May's top stories:

20th - The Fortnite Fortune: How the game got in trouble for its 'misleading' marketing practices

20th - Netflix's Baby Reindeer and the case for defamation

20th - Barrister who dozed off during inquest cleared of professional misconduct

13th - The Enhanced Games: the drug-fuelled 'Olympics' causing a sporting and scientific storm

13th - Black cab drivers launch legal action against Uber

6th - Two men face criminal charges over felling of Sycamore Gap tree

April's top stories:

29th - Is the new Tobacco and Vapes Bill a genius plan or will it all go up in smoke?

29th - Sexually explicit deepfakes to become a criminal offence in the UK

22nd - How did AI contribute to the viral Willy Wonka experience?

15th - Swiss women achieve landmark win in human rights climate dispute

15th - Assisted dying in the UK: Scotland to lead the way?

15th - Hate Crime and Public Order Act introduced in Scotland

2nd - First person convicted of cyberflashing in England

March's top stories:

18th - Update: Post Office Horizon bill introduced by ministers

18th - Nationwide and Virgin Money: the biggest UK banking deal since 2008?

18th - Spain passes amnesty law for Catalan separatists

12th - Apple fined £1.5 billion by EU for breaking competition law

12th - Roman Polanski defamation trial kicks off in Paris

4th - Personal injury claim thrown out after Irish woman pictured throwing Christmas Tree

February's top stories:

19th - Unravelling Bitcoin’s identity: The Strange Case of Dr. Wright and Mr. Nakamoto

19th - Thailand plans to overturn progressive cannabis laws

12th - HMRC fails to prosecute any company over tax evasion in six years

5th - Brexit and the UK’s environmental standards

5th - Pregnant woman’s firearms sentence quashed in ‘landmark’ UK ruling

5th - Germany eases citizenship requirements for foreign nationals

January's top stories:

29th - Three Provisional IRA victims in England can sue Gerry Adams in personal capacity, judge rules

22nd - The latest from the Post Office Inquiry

22nd - Judicial review hearing granted over XL bully ban

22nd - Taiwan to join the International Criminal Court?

22nd - Shipping and global trade disrupted amidst Houthi Red Sea attacks

15th - The fight for Nature’s Rights: Should legal rights be given to animals, species and places?

15th - Critics say sexual harassment protections in the UK TV & Film industry in need of reform

15th - US proposes law to regulate AI copying voice and likeness

December's top stories:

19th - Wilko collapse: What happens when a company goes under?

19th - Generative AI & the legal industry

11th - Celebrating Sandra Day O’Connor: The US Supreme Court’s first serving woman

11th - What happened with David Walliams and why you need to know about it: torts, data, and GDPR

11th - King Charles’ Estate raking in bona vacantia

4th - Allen & Overy held to ransom: Law firms & cyber security threats

4th - Understanding the controversy behind the Parthenon marbles

4th - Axiom Ince trainees left in the dark over firm’s collapse

4th - Everton’s point deduction and its impact on English football

 

From the Archive:

18th April 2023 - Longer read: The Bar Council of India widens foreign access to India’s legal market

18th April 2023 - The Barclays Premier League and tax

27th March 2023 - Longer read: Gary Lineker vs the BBC: What can go into an employment contract?

27th March 2023 - The middle finger and the law

6th March 2023 - What legal hurdles face publishers looking to edit old books?

13th February 2023 - Student group claim against UK universities

16th January 2023 - Lifting the lid on doping and performance-enhancing drug use in sport

20th December 2022 - An inside look at what FTX’s collapse means for crypto law

21st October 2022 - Keep it on the QC?