Jemma Gore-Booth

Auctions can offer speed and opportunity, but the winning bid may commit you to much more than the purchase price.

Buying residential property at auction can be an effective way to secure a home or investment, often within a much shorter timeframe than a conventional purchase. However, the legal commitment can arise immediately, leaving little opportunity to investigate problems or renegotiate afterwards. This article explains how auction purchases work, the main risks and the steps you can take to bid with confidence.

The Government is proposing to replace the Lifetime ISA (LISA) with a new First Time Buyer ISA (FTB ISA), to help people save for their first home. The consultation closed on 18 August 2026, but the new product is not yet available and no launch date has been confirmed.

For now, the LISA remains available under its existing rules. Current LISA holders can keep their accounts and continue contributing to them. Under the proposals, the FTB ISA would have no upper age limit or withdrawal charge. The contribution limit, Government bonus and property price cap have not yet been confirmed.

The Government’s schools white paper, Every Child Achieving and Thriving, and the SEND consultation, Putting Children and Young People First, set out a major proposed restructuring of the schools and SEND system in England.

Employers will soon be required to give workers a written statement explaining their right to join a trade union. The Government has now confirmed what the statement must contain and how it must be provided. It expects the duty to come into force between December 2026 and January 2027, rather than in October 2026 as previously indicated.

Following consultation, the government has confirmed that regulations prescribing a new process for handling flexible working requests, and the new reasonableness test under the Employment Rights Act 2025, will both take effect in autumn 2027.

The Employment Rights Act will make significant reforms changes to many aspects of employment law. 

Tribunals awarding aggravated damages must identify a specific aggravating factor, explain what further injury it caused and ensure that this is not already compensated by an injury to feelings award.

From April 2027, employees will have a day one right to up to two weeks' bereavement leave, covering a wide range of family relationships, and pregnancy loss before 24 weeks.

The Employment Appeal Tribunal (EAT) has reminded litigants that they remain responsible for documents prepared with generative AI, including their accuracy, relevance and compliance with procedural rules.