The Law Show

The second major raft of changes in the Employment Rights Act 2025 have come into force across England, Wales and Scotland.

Some parts of the law have been active since the spring, including so-called "day one" rights to parental leave and statutory sick pay.

New rights include better protections for workers. Employers now need to take “all reasonable steps" to prevent sexual harassment, and are also now liable if a customer or patient harasses an employee, which has been dubbed "the customer isn't always right" law.

But what is meant by "all reasonable steps" and how is harassment defined?

There's another change too: unions now have new legal rights to request physical and digital access to all workplaces with more than 21 employees.

And there's an even greater change on the way; from January, the cap on compensation for unfair dismissal is being lifted, which could lead to more claims and far larger payouts.

But what will the changes mean for workers and employers, and could they add to the huge backlog in the employment tribunals system?

Presenter: Dr Joelle Grogan

Contributors:

Could Artificial Intelligence be used by judges in our courts - and even help make legal decisions?

It's a technology that's already being adopted by legal systems in other parts of the world, including a court in the Chinese city of Shenzhen where it is has helped judges navigate over 600,000 small claims cases. Other countries are more cautious, and maintain that AI should never replace human judicial decisions.

What are acceptable uses of AI in the judicial system, and what areas should be off limits? So far, in England, Wales Scotland and Northern Ireland, there have been AI pilots for legal administrative work and transcription services. In England and Wales, there are also plans for AI legal assistants to help with routine casework and help judges decide which cases are ready to be heard in court.

It's an issue which has been considered by Sir Geoffrey Vos - the recently retired Master of the Rolls, Head of Civil Justice in England and Wales. He speaks to Joelle about his findings and how he thinks we the legal system could benefit from AI - and the areas he thinks should be off limits.

Plus: is it illegal to buy the books of Irish author Sally Rooney, since she made public that she would like to donate her royalties to the proscribed group Palestine Action? The Independent Reviewer of Terrorism legislation, Jonathan Hall KC, explains the law.

Contributors:

So-called blitz courts are being expanded across England and Wales.

A number of courts across the two countries have been holding regular blitz hearings since April. Multiple cases are heard every day instead of just one, and are grouped by type. A set of plea hearings might be scheduled together in one blitz court, and sentencing hearings at another.

Blitz courts increase efficiency by making sure that all the parties concerned are ready and prepared for their day in court.

They are not a new idea. Rapid hearings are sometimes used to speed up justice in exceptional circumstances, such as after the 2011 summer riots in England, which saw large numbers of public disorder hearings.

It's part of plans by the Ministry of Justice to try to cut court delays and backlogs in England and Wales, which have reached record levels.

But will they help ease the crisis in the criminal courts?

Presenter: Dr Joelle Grogan

Contributors

The Representation of the People Bill 2026 is in the King’s Speech which means it’s on the Government’s legislative agenda and is going through Parliament.

The Bill covers parliamentary ballots cross the UK, and contains sweeping changes, including giving 16 and 17 year-olds the right to vote in a general election and referendums.

The Bill also aims to strengthen the rules around political donations. Giving money to a political party is completely legal, if you are on the UK electoral register, are a UK registered company or UK-registered organisation, but is there a limit on the size of your contribution? Can you be an anonymous donor or pay in cryptocurrency? How are the laws about political party funding being tightened up?

And what about individual MPs? Are they allowed to receive personal donations, and do they have to declare them?

Presenter: Dr Joelle Grogan

Contributors:

Note: this episode contains frequent references to rape, sexual assault and physical assault.

There's been public confusion and outrage over the sentences given to three teenage boys, who were convicted of rape.

In November 2024 and January 2025, two girls, then aged 15 and 14, were attacked in separate incidents in Fordingbridge, Hampshire, by two 14-year-olds. Another boy, then 13, was also convicted for his involvement in the second rape.

The teenage boys were given youth rehabilitation orders and walked out of court with 10 rape convictions between them.

The Prime Minister says the case will be referred to the Court of Appeal. He described the case as distressing and said "there are questions about the sentence". One of the girls who was raped told the BBC that the judge's decision was like a "rock straight in my face".

So what are the likely reasons why the three teenage boys were given non-custodial sentences?

Presenter: Dr Joelle Grogan

Contributors:

The Renter’s Rights Act came into force at the start of May, and it marked the biggest change to how private rentals work in England in a generation.

There are a host of new protections and legal entitlements for renters, and many potential pitfalls for landlords to consider.

Assured shorthold tenancies have been abolished, and have automatically been converted into rolling tenancies - sometimes known as ‘assured periodic tenancies’.

Section 21 notices - also known as "no fault" evictions have been abolished, and Landlords are not allowed to ask for more than 1 months' rent as a deposit. Bidding wars for rental properties are now forbidden, and there are measures to limit rent increases.

But it doesn't apply to all renters in all properties.

What about students? They all rent, but only some students are covered by the Act.

And if landlords don't follow the new laws carefully, they could face fines of thousands of pounds.

So what are the details that property owners and their tenants need to know?

Presenter: Dr Joelle Grogan

Contributors:

The Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood’s Restoring Order and Control policy is underway. It's based - in part - on measures carried out in Denmark which cut asylum claims there to a 40 year low.

From now on in the UK, people granted asylum - refugees - will face a review every two and a half years. If their country of origin is regarded as safe, they may be encouraged, or even forced, to go back.

There are lots of other changes. If someone is refused asylum, they’ll only be allowed a single appeal. If an asylum seeker breaks the law, works illegally or can financially support themselves, they’ll lose their benefits or accommodation.

Alongside the asylum reforms, there are also major changes to settlement in the UK, affecting both refugees and people on work and study visas. From now on, they will have to wait at least 10 years before they can obtain indefinite leave to remain, which means they can settle in the UK without restrictions.

You may be forgiven for thinking -"these are pretty big changes, I don’t recall there being a big debate in parliament or any votes?" And you’d be correct. This was all done through secondary legislation, meaning that it’s a change to existing rules.

But what are the possible legal battles for the government as it tries to introduce some of the toughest asylum laws in Europe?

Presenter: Dr Joelle Grogan

Contributors:

Under international law, when can a country declare war on another?

Was it legal for Israel and the United States to have carried out "pre-emptive" airstrikes across most of Iran’s provinces, which started the war? The USA says the attacks were justfied, because of an imminent threat from Iran's nuclear programme, and Israel claims it acted in self-defence.

The Israeli President went further - telling the BBC that focusing on the legality of the war instead of regional security is "mind-boggling" to him.

And what of Iran's response? Was it reasonable under international law? In the last few weeks, practically all its Gulf-state neighbours have been targeted, as well as its drones or missiles landing in Syria, Cyprus, Turkey and Azerbajan.

So does the Iranian retalliation justify the American and Israeli attacks under international law?

And if any country breaks international laws - are there any real consequences?

Contributors:

The Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood says she makes “no apology” for announcing the roll-out of Live Facial Recognition (LFR) to all the police services in England and Wales.

Under a government white paper on policing, the number of Live Facial Recognition vans will increase from 10 to 50.

Police say it’s groundbreaking technology in the fight against crime, but civil liberties groups say it’s authoritarian and a step towards a "surveillance state".

Facial recognition cameras are already used in shops; the difference with LFR is that the software used by police tracks faces against a watchlist - a specific database of faces - from a live video feed.

But the legal framework regulating the use of the technology is a patchwork of common law, human rights legislation and police guidelines, which has been challenged in the High Court.

There is also concern about a lack of oversight over how police watchlists are compiled, and why the number of people on the list now stretches into the thousands.

So is LFR legal?

Presenter: Dr Joelle Grogan

Contributors:

The courts system in England and Wales is in an unprecedented crisis. The backlog has reached 80,000 cases, and some defendants are being told they won't be able to have a criminal trial until 2030.

The government has introduced the Courts and Tribunals Bill, which contains a raft of measures to tackle delays and bring down the backlog; but the Justice Secretary David Lammy has admitted that things are going to get even worse before they get better.

The most controversial change is a plan to restrict the number of jury trials. The right to judgement by your peers has existed for more than 800 years, but for some offences, that's going to end.

Defendants will lose the right to choose between a jury trial or a magistrate's hearing in so-called "either-way" offences.

Magistrates will get increased sentencing powers - up from 12 months to 18 months.

More serious criminal cases, with likely sentences of up to three years will now be heard by a single judge - and no jury.

And only the most serious "indictable" offences, like murder, manslaughter and rape and any other offence with a sentence of longer than three years will be heard by a jury.

But will the reforms make a difference?

Presenter: Dr Joelle Grogan

Contributors: