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Monday, 25 May 2026

Compiled with AI from public news sources. Folio is editorial commentary for commercial-awareness practice, not legal advice. Verify any detail against the linked sources before relying on it professionally.

All M&A Capital Markets Banking & Finance Energy & Tech Regulation Disputes International AI & Law

Top Story/International

US-Iran Peace Deal 'Largely Negotiated' as Strait of Hormuz Reopening Framework Emerges, Creating Wave of Cross-Border Commercial Law Work

The United States and Iran appear to be closing in on a deal to end the approximately three-month-old war, with US President Donald Trump describing the negotiations as "largely negotiated" over the weekend. Regional officials indicate the framework would involve the gradual reopening of the Strait of Hormuz — the narrow waterway between Iran and the Arabian Peninsula through which roughly one-fifth of globally traded oil flows — and the ending of the US naval blockade of Iran. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, speaking after a joint press conference with India's External Affairs Minister in New Delhi, characterised the US position as seeking either "a good agreement" or dealing with Iran "another way," signalling that American negotiators retain leverage but are actively seeking a diplomatic conclusion. Talks are continuing, with the precise terms — including Iran's nuclear programme, sanctions relief, and sequencing of the Hormuz reopening — still to be finalised. For international commercial lawyers, the significance extends well beyond energy markets. A formal peace agreement would require the unwinding of extensive sanctions regimes, the renegotiation of shipping and insurance contracts constructed around the conflict, and the re-engagement of international financial institutions with Iranian counterparties. English law-governed trade finance, commodity, and shipping contracts that embedded war-risk clauses or invoked sanctions carve-outs during the conflict will require systematic review as normalisation proceeds.

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AI & Law

Australian Firm Thomson Geer Spins Out AI Legal Services Arm as Separate Company, Rebranding Core Practice as Thomsons in Structural Separation

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Banking & Finance

Dentons Promotes 13 New Partners Across Europe and Central Asia in 2026 Round Spanning Banking, Restructuring, and M&A Practice Groups

Dentons has announced its 2026 promotion round for its Europe and Central Asia region, elevating 13 lawyers to partner, six to Senior Counsel, six to Managing Counsel, and 30 to…

Dentons

“Internal promotions at scale signal where firms expect sustained deal demand — restructuring and banking fi…”

Bigger Picture

Sector Watch

Iran Deal Sanctions Unwind Pipeline

The reported near-finalisation of a US-Iran peace deal is the macro event that will shape legal deal flow across the second half of 2026. City sanctions practices, energy transactional teams, and shipping and trade finance lawyers face a multi-year unwind of the regulatory, contractual, and insurance structures built during the three-month conflict. The key near-term pressure point is the sequencing of US secondary sanctions relief — with extraterritorial reach, European companies cannot resume Iranian counterparty dealings without explicit guidance from OFAC (the US Office of Foreign Assets Control). English law commodity, LNG, and trade finance contracts that embedded force majeure or war-risk carve-outs will require systematic review. Firms with strong sanctions and energy practices — including Magic Circle and leading US firms — are best positioned to capture the wave of advisory work that a signed deal would immediately trigger.

One to Follow

The finalisation and formal signing of a US-Iran peace deal, including the specific sequencing and conditions of Strait of Hormuz reopening and sanctions relief

The legal work triggered by a signed deal — sanctions unwind, force majeure notice withdrawal, insurance contract amendment, and energy supply agreement renegotiation — will generate sustained demand across sanctions, energy, shipping, trade finance, and disputes practices at every major City firm. The precise terms of nuclear verification milestones and phased sanctions relief will determine the shape and duration of the advisory mandate for months to come.

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