Our new Risk & Compliance forecast (as at 18 March 2025) is now live. This month we report on items including: (1) plans to publish updated guidance on data breach reporting by the ICO; (2) the introduction of the Crime and Policing Bill 2025; (3) the development of a new Fraud Strategy by the government’s JFT; and (4) the application period with the SRA for specified solicitors to remain on the roll.

Our new Risk & Compliance forecast (as at 19 August 2025) is now live. This month we report on items including (1) the ICO’s upcoming consultations in August 2025 on guidance for recognised legitimate interests, handling data protection complaints, and direct marketing—all influenced by DUAA 2025; (2) the NCA’s newly published system priorities for tackling economic crime in 2025; (3) HMRC’s proposed changes to AML supervision fees; and (4) the SRA's 2025 practising certificate renewals.

Our new Risk & Compliance forecast (as at 20 August 2024) is now live, including an update on when new failure to prevent fraud guidance will be issued.

Our new Risk & Compliance forecast (as at 20 May 2025) is now live. This month we report on items including (1) the ICO's new consultation on encryption guidance; (2) HMT's planned package of changes to the Money Laundering Regulations; (3) OPBAS's planned targeted review of SARs; and (4) developments in the Crime and Policing Bill expanding corporate criminal liability..

Our new Risk & Compliance forecast (as at 20 November 2024) is now live. This month we report on items including: (1) publication of the long-awaited government guidance on the failure to prevent fraud offence; (2) consultation by the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) on proposed changes to FATF Standards and updates to grey listing criteria by FATF to increase focus on risk; (3) updates on the Data (Use and Access) Bill and Employment Rights Bill, and (4) three new consultations from the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) on client money management and consumer protection.

Our new Risk & Compliance forecast (as at 21 January 2025) is now live. This month we report on items including: (1) draft guidance by the ICO on the use of storage and access technologies and how to disclose information safely; (2) the initiation of a consultation on proposals to tackle the threat of ransomware; (3) the first reading of a Private Members’ Bill to establish an independent Office of the Whistleblower to protect whistleblowers and whistleblowing, and (4) statements by the ICO on expectations of several pieces of guidance to be published during 2025.

Our new Risk & Compliance forecast (as at 23 July 2024) is now live. This month we report on: (1) three new Bills announced in the King’s Speech on 17 July 2024: the Digital Information and Smart Data Bill, the Cyber Security and Resilience Bill, and the Equality (Race and Disability) Bill), (2) an update on the FCA consultation relating to the treatment of PEPs, (3) the outcome of the SRA consultation on its draft business plan and budget, and (4) the conclusion of the SRA consultation on changes to enable it to regulate CILEX members.

Our new Risk & Compliance forecast (as at 24 September 2024) is now live. This month we report on: (1) the new consultation from the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology on the data protection fee regime; (2) the reform of the AML supervisory regime; (3) updates to the ICO consultation on the regulation of Artificial Intelligence; and (4) confirmation that the new Office of Trade Sanctions Implementation will be up and running in October 2024.

Our new Risk & Compliance forecast (as at 25 November 2025) is now live. This month we report on items including (1) ICO’s new consultation on data protection enforcement procedural guidance, (2) HMT’s consultation response on the reform of the AML/CTF Supervision Regime, (3) updates to HMRC’s AML supervision fees and, (4) JMLSG’s consultation on proposed revisions to Part I of its guidance.

Law360: On 22 and 23 February 2024, the UK, US and EU imposed significant new sanctions on the second anniversary of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

A Russian court ruling in the case of PESA v UralTransMash (Case No. А60-24839/2024) has recently been issued on the enforcement of a foreign arbitral award and demonstrates the practical effects of the so-called 'Lugovoi law'. This law allows Russian sanctions parties to apply to Russian state courts irrespective of their arbitration agreements.

New SRA Claims Management Fees Rules came into force on 26 July 2024. The Rules are intended to protect consumers from excessive charges when they are represented by solicitors in claims relating to financial products and services. They include provisions setting out required information that must be provided to a client before agreeing to represent them in a financial services/product claim, and restrictions on the fees that may be charged for a claim, subject to a number of exceptions.