228: Breaking the silence: clause 22A and reforming the law on NDAs
In this episode, Lucy McCann is joined by Zelda Perkins, CEO of Can’t Buy My Silence UK and former PA to Harvey Weinstein, who broke her NDA and has since campaigned against the use of NDAs to silence workers speaking out against abuse, and Emma Darlow Stearn, a barrister practising from Cloisters Chambers, who specialises in employment and discrimination law and, in her previous role as Senior Legal Adviser for whistleblowing charity Protect, collaborated with Zelda to make the law on NDAs more accessible.
Zelda shares her personal story about the signing and breaking of her NDA, which had prevented her speaking up about Harvey Weinstein’s behaviour, and about her campaign Can’t Buy My Silence UK which has in large part led to amendments to the Employment Rights Bill (under Clause 22A) that will ban employers from using NDAs in cases of harassment and discrimination. Zelda and Emma discuss the nature and possible impact of those amendments which, since the time of recording, have been approved by the House of Commons and are due to become law in Autumn 2025 as s.202A Employment Rights Act 1996.
Law Pod UK is published by 1 Crown Office Row. This episode was co-produced by 1 Crown Office Row and Emma Darlow Stearn. Supporting articles are published on the UK Human Rights Blog. Follow and interact with the podcast team on Twitter.
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227: The Best of Law Pod UK so far 2025
Rosalind English revisits enlightening moments from our pre-summer catalogue.
Law Pod UK is published by 1 Crown Office Row. Supporting articles are published on the UK Human Rights Blog. Follow and interact with the podcast team on Twitter.
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226: Inquests in Tudor England
In this episode, Lucy McCann is joined by Professor Steven Gunn, historian at Merton College, Oxford to discuss his recent book, An Accidental History of Tudor England (co-authored with Tomasz Gromelski). They explore the world of the sixteenth century Coroners’ Court, examine what records of inquest reveal, and consider about how people died and what this can tell us about everyday life at the time, to draw comparisons with modern day inquest proceedings and coronial statistics.
Law Pod UK is published by 1 Crown Office Row. Supporting articles are published on the UK Human Rights Blog. Follow and interact with the podcast team on Twitter.
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225: Rain of Dust
Death, deceit and the lawyer who busted big Asbestos. Rosalind English talks to author David Kinley and lawyer Richard Meeran about an international legal drama involving a UK mining company and its South African employees, tackling questions of corporate veil, forum and causation in a huge class action.
Rain of Dust is available here.
Law Pod UK is published by 1 Crown Office Row. Supporting articles are published on the UK Human Rights Blog. Follow and interact with the podcast team on Twitter.
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224: Parenthood in the modern age
Ahead of the city’s Pride celebrations next month, Jim Duffy is joined by Clare Ciborowska and Pauline Troy of 1COR Brighton. They take us through the legal, social and political history behind the concept of parenthood in the UK today. Drawing from their experience as seasoned advocates in the family courts, Clare and Pauline describe how the evolution of equality and human rights laws around sexual orientation have helped lead us to where we are today in terms of parenthood. They examine legal developments in relation to surrogacy, and the recent shelving of proposals by the Law Commission in England and Wales for significant reform in that area.
Law Pod UK is published by 1 Crown Office Row. Supporting articles are published on the UK Human Rights Blog. Follow and interact with the podcast team on Twitter.
Law Pod UK covers developments across all aspects of civil and public law in the United Kingdom. It is brought to you by the barristers at 1 Crown Office Row with presenters Rosalind English, Emma-Louise Fenelon, Jim Duffy and Lucy McCann. Information accompanying the podcast episodes is published on the UK Human Rights Blog.
UK