Jonathan Goldsmith
Jonathan Goldsmith is Law Society Council member for EU matters and a former secretary general of the Council of Bars and Law Societies of Europe. All views expressed are personal and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Law Society Council
Contact info
OpinionBattle royal for our crown jewels
The UK is in an unfortunate position: large AI models, whose training the government is seeking to regulate, are predominantly US-developed and owned.
OpinionTrump v. ABA, streaming now
The fate of the American Bar Association is a guide to what might happen to other bars should a populist government come to power.
OpinionDeregulation is on its way
Widespread introduction of compliance rules is now seen as too burdensome or, in the case of the US, too woke. The pendulum is swinging the other way, for good or ill.
OpinionLifting our eyes to the stars
It is the role of lawyers to maintain the justice system's values against whatever pressure might arise (easy to say, difficult to do).
OpinionDEI as political football
The UK has mirrored the US in the depth and spread of its diversity, equity, and inclusion policies. Impact of the new executive order in the US should be watched closely.
OpinionLawyers and oligarchs
Here’s another prediction for 2025: our law firms will have to be as careful in their involvement with the new US oligarchy as with the former Russian one.
OpinionWhat did the European Court of Human Rights do in 2024?
A summary of last year's key cases from the ECtHR.
OpinionMy prescient prediction for 2025
President-elect Trump and his court are influencing the political weather, including on our own laws and legal system.
OpinionLawyers being targeted for their clients
Attacks on solicitors point to a future where they are the route to the client and are to be punished for the client’s actions.
OpinionLawyers and climate - latest
As lawyers, we should follow climate-related developments. As citizens, we must make up our own minds as to how to act.
OpinionA tale of two professions: Why we need another Dickens
Recent parliamentary events have led me to long for a new Charles Dickens to bring alive the extremes of our legal system.
OpinionMore regulation is no longer the answer
The more that someone is regulated, the less responsibility that person takes for decisions, on the basis that what is not against the rules can be done.
OpinionEnsuring the regulator is properly regulated
The SRA is in danger of losing the trust and confidence of the entire profession. How can proper regulation take place in such circumstances?
OpinionTrump, ESG and lawyers
A first take on how a Trump presidency may affect lawyers’ work, including here in the UK.
OpinionDoing the right thing
What happens if a regulator which has been publicly exposed does not respond in the way in which it expects those whom it regulates to behave?
OpinionIs it time to turn luddite against legal AI?
Panglosses of the legal world may continue singing that AI is the best in the best of all possible worlds. But their happy song does not take into account its other side.
OpinionHow do we fare comparatively in justice?
Statistics should be taken with a pinch of salt given the different backgrounds of countries surveyed in an evaluation on European judicial systems. Nevertheless, they provide some telling truths.
OpinionAct now before truth and falsehood merge
Conspiracy theories and false allegations are used to shore up beliefs against reality breaking in. AI has arrived with perfect timing to hinder us further in telling truth from falsehood.
OpinionIs there a right to consult a lawyer for non-contentious legal advice?
There is a tradition among continental bars, much stronger than here in the UK, to challenge in the courts new legislation or regulations with which they do not agree.
