A word of honesty before anything else: we're not going to publish a specific release date for next year's edition of anything here. Exact dates can shift by a few days year to year, and a page confidently stating a wrong one is worse than no page at all. What we can tell you accurately is the pattern each title has followed — which is usually all you actually need to know.
Annual editions: Archbold and similar titles
Archbold: Criminal Pleading, Evidence and Practice has published a new edition every October for at least the last seven consecutive years running — 2019 through 2025, without exception. That kind of consistency is common among the major annually-updated practitioner texts, even though the exact day within the month varies slightly year to year.
The practical implication is straightforward: if you're holding last year's edition once October arrives, it's about to be superseded, and that's exactly the point at which it stops being a working reference and starts being worth having valued.
Just upgraded to a new edition? The one it replaced is still worth an enquiry, whatever condition it's in.
Get my free valuation →Monthly and ongoing: Current Law and the report series
Not every title works like Archbold. Current Law's Monthly Digest is, as the name suggests, published every month, summarising that month's case law and legislation. The bound Yearbook that consolidates a given year's digests comes later — typically around five months after the year ends, so the 2024 Yearbook was published in May 2025, not January.
The report series each have their own, specific rhythm, rather than a single shared pattern: the All England Law Reports are issued in weekly parts, consolidated into four bound volumes a year, each covering twelve weeks. The Weekly Law Reports follow a similar weekly-parts model — around 46 a year, with breaks over Easter and summer — bound into volumes at year end. The Law Reports itself, ICLR's most authoritative series, is actually the exception among the three: it's issued in twelve monthly parts, not weekly. For any of these, the useful question usually isn't "when's the next one" so much as "how far does my run go, and is it still worth keeping now the digital version covers the same ground."
A second annual title, a different month: the White Book
Archbold isn't the only major title on an annual cycle — the White Book, the standard reference for civil procedure, is also republished every year, confirmed consistently across at least five recent editions. But it lands in March, not October, plus around ten newsletters and two or more supplements through the rest of the year to keep it current between editions. The lesson generalises: "annual" doesn't mean "same month as everything else" — each title has its own established cycle, and it's worth knowing which one applies before assuming last year's copy is either current or obsolete.
Rolling reissue: Halsbury's Laws
Halsbury's Laws of England doesn't have a single annual release date at all. Individual volumes are reissued on a rolling basis throughout the year, updated at different times depending on how much the underlying law in that subject area has actually changed — a volume covering a fast-moving area might be reissued more often than one covering a settled, stable area of law.
That means a Halsbury's set can be a genuine mix of edition years even when it's complete and well maintained — which is normal, not a sign anything's wrong with it, and something worth knowing before assuming a set needs to be uniform to have value.
Why this is when to sell, not just when to note it down
The pattern matters commercially, not just as trivia. A superseded edition of an annually-updated title has a real shelf life for resale — demand for last year's Archbold is highest in the weeks and months right after the new one lands, before it's had time to feel properly out of date. Waiting a couple of years to deal with it doesn't make it worthless, but it does mean the moment of highest, easiest interest has already passed.
If you've just taken delivery of a new edition of anything — Archbold, the White Book, Chitty, or otherwise — the practical thing to do with what it replaced is usually to deal with it there and then, not let it sit on a shelf until a bigger clear-out eventually happens.
Whatever you're replacing, and whatever edition it is, it's worth a straight answer before it goes in a cupboard for good.
Get a valuation →FAQ
When does the new edition of Archbold come out?
Every October — confirmed across at least seven consecutive years of editions. We don't publish an exact date for the current or next edition here, since it can shift by a few days year to year, but the month has been consistent.
How often is Current Law updated?
The Monthly Digest, as the name suggests, every month. The bound Yearbook covering a given year is typically published around five months after that year ends — the 2024 Yearbook, for example, was released in May 2025.
How often are the All England Law Reports published?
Weekly, as individual parts, consolidated into four bound volumes a year — each covering twelve weeks. The Weekly Law Reports follow a similar weekly model; The Law Reports itself, ICLR's most authoritative series, is published monthly rather than weekly.
Does the White Book publish in the same month as Archbold?
No — the White Book is also an annual edition, but it lands in March, confirmed consistently across recent years, compared to Archbold's October. Each annually-updated title has its own established month.
Does Halsbury's Laws have a single annual release date like Archbold?
No — Halsbury's Laws is reissued volume by volume on a rolling basis throughout the year, not as one annual edition. Different volumes get updated at different times depending on how much the underlying law has changed.