Warning! Unfortunately your browser has disabled scripting. Please enable it in order to display this page.

Some insights from our team and others that will hopefully inspire you.

Strictly Boardroom is our board-level legal briefing for business leaders in all sectors.

O’Connors News is our update on our reportable client deals and developments within our business.

Podcasts are our conversations with legal and sector specialists.

02.04.25 Strictly Boardroom

The FCA's five year strategy - Balancing growth and consumer protection

The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has outlined its strategic priorities for the next five years, focusing on deepening trust, rebalancing risk, supporting growth, and improving lives. This strategy involves a commitment to being a smarter regulator, supporting growth, helping consumers navigate their financial lives, and fighting financial crime. Below, we’ve summarised some of the key takeaways.
Continue Reading
01.04.25 Strictly Boardroom

FCA to simplify Consumer Duty compliance

The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has announced an ambitious and much-needed program to simplify its requirements for firms, following the implementation of the Consumer Duty. This initiative seeks to address justified concerns about the complexity and volume of FCA rules and guidance, which have often forced firms, diverse in their nature and scale, into a regulatory Procrustes' bed. The attempt to fit all firms into the same rigid framework has resulted in disproportionate burdens and stifled innovation.
Continue Reading
26.03.25 Strictly Boardroom

The shifting sands of UK litigation funding - A look ahead

The landscape of UK litigation funding is undergoing a period of transformation, marked by significant growth, high-profile cases, and increasing regulatory scrutiny. At O'Connors, we understand the critical role litigation funding plays in ensuring access to justice, and we are committed to providing our clients with clear and insightful guidance through these evolving times.
Continue Reading
24.03.25 Strictly Boardroom

Balancing innovation and consumer protection - The FCA's perspective on AI in credit decisions

The use of artificial intelligence (AI) in financial services is rapidly increasing, promising innovation and growth. This push for technological advancement, however, needs to be carefully balanced with the need to protect consumers, as emphasized by the FCA's principle of Consumer Duty.
Continue Reading
18.03.25 Strictly Boardroom

Crypto Exchange's AML deficiencies lead to FCA rejection

The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) recently issued a Decision Notice outlining its refusal to register Zeux Limited as a cryptoasset business. This decision, predicated on deficiencies within Zeux’s anti-money laundering (AML) framework, serves as a salient reminder of the critical importance of robust AML compliance for firms operating in the cryptoasset sector.
Continue Reading
13.03.25 Strictly Boardroom

Protecting data during the sale of a law firm

With minds focussed on negotiating the deal and the due diligence bun fight, it is easy for sellers and buyers of law firms to forget that the heart of every law firm transaction is the management of data. As law firms are in a position of trust with their clients, much of the data will be classified as protected personal data that must be dealt with appropriately.
Continue Reading
12.03.25 Strictly Boardroom

Heads of terms are key to successful commercial negotiations

When entering into a commercial agreement, whether as an individual or as a business, it is important to have a mutual understanding with the other party of the ‘contractual non-negotiables’ and the key commercial details that will form the basis of the proposed contract. Such details can be set out in a document commonly known as ‘heads of terms’ (or ‘HoTs’). This should lay the foundations for a smooth and successful contractual relationship going forward.
Continue Reading
27.02.25 Strictly Boardroom

Court of Appeal clarifies law on composite insurance policies and furlough payments

The Court of Appeal recently handed down judgment in Liberty Mutual Insurance Europe SE & Ors v Bath Racecourse Company Limited & Ors EWCA Civ 153, a case which raised important issues regarding the interpretation of composite insurance policies and the treatment of furlough payments under business interruption insurance policies.
Continue Reading
19.02.25 Podcasts

My Life In Sport - Nicola Palios

Series 1, Episode 1: My Life in Sport Our very own Phil Bowers interviews Nicola Palios, the Co-owner & Vice Chair of Tranmere Rovers Football Club.
Listen now
06.02.25 Strictly Boardroom

Navigating company law changes in 2025

Following Royal Assent on 26 October 2023, the changes to the Companies Act 2006 made by the Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act 2023 (ECCTA) have been implemented via a phased approach, with many of the new measures due to come into force in 2025.
Continue Reading