OTHER NEWS

This Ministry of Justice consultation is aimed at anyone with an interest in criminal legal aid in England and Wales, particularly in the work carried out by criminal legal aid advocates.

Follow the link below to submit your views.

The Inspirational Women in Law Awards seek to identify individuals from across the legal profession who are leading the way in improving equality and diversity. Nominations are invited for trailblazing individuals dedicated to achieving equality.

Follow the link below to complete the nomination form.

The Law Commission has published two Consultation Papers: 

• Business Tenancies: the right to renew Consultation Paper 2 - modernising security of tenure. A link to the project page, which includes the Consultation Paper and Summary, is here. 

• Commercial Leasehold: overcoming barriers to transactions. A link to the project page, which includes the Consultation Paper and Summary, is here. 

Both projects share the objective of improving commercial leasehold law and are being progressed in tandem. 

Details of how to respond to the consultations are available on the project pages linked above. 

Closing date for both consultations: 16 September 2026.

See the link below for all the Law Commission's current projects.

The Law Commission has published a Consultation Paper on homicide offences. This first consultation paper sets out our provisional proposals for reform of the homicide offences to ensure that the law of homicide is clear, consistent, fair, proportionate and practical. A copy of the paper is available from here and a summary of the paper is available here. The consultation period will run until 30 September 2026. Responses to the consultation paper should be submitted using the online response form, available here. A printed form is available on request. 

The Talent Development Awards are available to promote the acquisition and advancement of skills in relevant areas by UK-based researchers, supporting innovative research methods, be that through skills development, collaboration or dissemination. The aim of the scheme is to enable researchers to build their skills and capacities in core areas to develop their current and future research.

Closing date: 7 October 2027.

The independent Sentencing Council has launched a consultation on proposed amendments to the Imposition of community and custodial sentences guideline as a result of legislative changes to sentencing in the Sentencing Act 2026.

The consultation is open to everyone, including members of the public, members of the judiciary, legal practitioners and individuals who work or have an interest in criminal justice. It will run for 12 weeks from 10 June. Closing date: 4 September 2026.

The Ministry of Justice has launched an independent review examining the function and purpose of criminal courts for child defendants and identifying options for longer-term reform. Whilst the Chair of the review, David Ormerod, will reach out directly to some academics with particular specialisms, the review team would welcome views from all academics with an interest in this area, specifically on the challenges affecting criminal courts for children in England and Wales and possible solutions. The review team are also interested in novel approaches to youth justice more broadly, including case studies from other jurisdictions. Submissions should be emailed by 30 September 2026 (or as soon as possible thereafter) to the following address: criminalcourtsforchildren@justice.gov.uk. For more information see the terms of reference on the link below.

The First 100 Years Project is a digital museum and historical video collection that celebrates the heroes (and heroines), commends the pioneers and charts the journey of women in law from 1919 up until 2019: all to protect the historical legacy, ensure past mistakes are not repeated, and further entrench gender equality and advance change.