Block transfer meaning

This Checklist should be read in conjunction with the Practice Note: Block transfer orders—the law and practice. Read this Checklist alongside the Practice Note: Block transfer orders—the law and practice. There are three principal scenarios that necessitate a block transfer of office-holder appointments: where an office-holder dies on the retirement of an office-holder from practice where an office-holder is otherwise unable or unwilling to continue in office. This may happen if an office-holder moves firms, or loses their licence to practise as a result of regulatory action The Insolvency (England and Wales) Rules 2016 (IR 2016), SI 2016/1024, rr 12.35–12.38, govern applications to the court for the block transfer of cases from one office-holder to another. The block transfer application process applies to the following types of appointment: compulsory liquidation (winding up by the court) voluntary liquidation (both members’ voluntary liquidations and creditors’ voluntary liquidations) administration bankruptcy voluntary arrangement (both company voluntary...

At first glance, a Scots law building contract, professional appointment or collateral warranty will seem much like its English law counterpart to any experienced practitioner. Look more closely, though, and you will find a range of subtle but significant distinctions that merit attention. This Checklist sets out practical pointers for converting an English law construction contract into one that complies with Scots law (often referred to as ‘kilting’ a contract). It is not comprehensive and proceeds on the basis that the parties are using standard mid-market construction forms without extensive project-specific drafting. Where such bespoke drafting is included, further divergences between Scots and English law may need to be considered. Execution issues There is no concept of ‘execution as a deed’ under Scots law. Scots law documents are ordinarily signed in ‘self-proving’ form pursuant to the Requirements of Writing (Scotland) Act 1995. They are not front-dated; instead, each party inserts its own signing date within its respective execution block...

Horizontal and vertical agreements that include clauses which would otherwise breach Article 101(1) TFEU can, in certain cases, escape the ban on anti-competitive arrangements by relying on one or more relevant block exemption regulations adopted by the Commission under Article 101(3) TFEU, which exclude specified categories of agreements from the application of Article 101(1) TFEU. This Checklist sets out a snapshot of the EU block exemption regulations currently in effect and outlines the key criteria that must be met for each regulation to take effect. Block exemptions applying to horizontal agreements The following block exemption regulations concern horizontal arrangements, that is, agreements between undertakings operating at the same tier of the supply chain (principally agreements between rivals). For exemptions relevant to vertical arrangements, refer to Block exemptions applying to vertical agreements below...

In this issue: Advertising, marketing and sponsorship Agency and distribution Consumer protection Contracts Contractual joint ventures International Daily and weekly news alerts Dates for your diary Trackers New and updated content Advertising, marketing and sponsorship ASA rulings—19 March 2025 A single complaint was made to the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) about Haven Leisure Ltd’s claims on holiday pricing. The ASA upheld the complaint. See: LNB News 19/03/2025 11. Agency and distribution Recovery Partners GP Ltd v Rukhadze [2025] UKSC 10 The Supreme Court dismissed the appellants’ appeal against an order to account for profits earned in breach of duty; they were employees of the respondent companies and owed fiduciary duties. The court affirmed strict adherence to the fiduciary ‘no profit’ rule, rejecting arguments for a ‘but for’ causation test and for counterfactual enquiries into whether the gains could have been authorised if consent had been sought. See: Recovery Partners GP...

Antitrust CMA launches consultation on replacement of TTBER; proposes new UK block exemption order The CMA has opened consultation on a draft recommendation to the Secretary of State for Business and Trade (SoS) concerning the replacement of the assimilated Technology Transfer Block Exemption Regulation (Assimilated TTBER), which will lapse on 30 April 2026...

In this issue: IP and technology Patents General IP LexTalk®IP: a Lexis®Nexis community Daily and weekly news alerts New and updated content Dates for your diary Trackers Useful information IP and technology EU AI Act starts to apply and Commission plans guidance The initial provisions of the EU AI Act took effect on 2 February. They cover the definition of an artificial intelligence (AI) system, AI literacy obligations, and a list of prohibited AI uses judged to present unacceptable risks in the EU. The European Commission intends to issue guidance on the AI system definition, publish a repository of AI literacy practices, and provide direction on banned AI practices to aid compliance. The Commission has also introduced measures to spur AI innovation, including an AI innovation package for start-ups and SMEs, and forthcoming AI Factories to deliver computing capacity for AI development. See: LNB News 03/02/2025 50. Commission opens consultation on Technology Transfer...

Intellectual property (IP) agreements IP arrangements—such as technology licensing or collaborating on the creation of new technologies—can restrict competition. Yet their pro‑competitive advantages are acknowledged through block exemptions that offer a ‘safe harbour’ from Article 101, TFEU. Where a deal sits squarely within a relevant block exemption, only a brief review of Article 101, TFEU concerns is typically required. In practice, though, multiple block exemptions may seem to apply, and confirming that an agreement truly benefits from a safe harbour can be challenging—so a more pragmatic assessment of everyday commercial deals is often warranted. Most block exemptions share a common framework, and understanding this helps with application of the rules. Recitals: set out the overarching aim and rationale of the instrument. Definitions: clarify key terms that shape how the exemption should operate. Scope of the ‘safe harbour’: identifies the categories of agreements covered and the types of undertakings involved. From a practical standpoint, it is wise to scrutinise the recitals and...

FORTHCOMING DEVELOPMENT : Section 10 of the Finance Act 2022 will lift the normal minimum pension age (NMPA) from 55 to 57 on 6 April 2028, with members of the firefighters, police and armed forces public service pension schemes excluded. The Act also preserves access before age 57 for members of registered schemes who, on or before 4 November 2021, either already held an ‘unqualified right’ to draw benefits, or were part-way through a substantive transfer to a scheme conferring an unqualified right to a protected pension age below 57 by that date. To rely on this 2028 protection, the scheme’s rules must, as at 11 February 2021, have contained an unqualified right to take scheme benefits before 57. For more detail, see Practice Note: Increasing the normal minimum pension age (NMPA) to 57—pensions impact. As a general position, members of registered pension schemes can commence taking pension benefits from age 55 (from age 50 before 6 April 2010), unless they meet the ill-health condition...

A pension transfer A pension transfer takes place when an individual’s rights under one pension scheme are moved to another. The ceding scheme passes the relevant assets to the receiving scheme, which then assumes responsibility for providing the benefits for the person concerned. Members of all UK registered pension schemes that are personal pension schemes have an overriding statutory entitlement to transfer the cash equivalent of their benefits to another pension arrangement, subject to meeting certain prescribed conditions. Many personal pension schemes also allow transfers out in wider situations than those giving rise to the statutory right, for example: partial transfers transfers of benefits that are in drawdown transfers of particular assets in non-cash form In practice, it is crucial that transfers paid from personal pension schemes constitute a recognised transfer for HMRC purposes and do not inadvertently forfeit any tax-related protections or statuses the member may hold. Personal pension schemes can also receive transfers from other pension...

This Q&A raises the issue of the extent to which a person who takes an assignment of the reversion to a residential lease is able to recover rent which fell due before the date upon which it takes effect Upon serving the tenant with notice of assignment of the reversion, the assignee’s rights depend on when the residential lease was granted: Leases granted before 1 January 1996: under section 141 of the Law of Property Act 1925, the assignee is entitled to rent falling due in the future. In addition, as established in Re King, the assignee may pursue arrears that accrued before the assignment, and once the transfer takes effect, the outgoing landlord’s ability to recover those sums is lost. Leases granted on or after 1 January 1996: the Landlord and Tenant (Covenants) Act 1995 applies. By virtue of LT(C)A 1995, section 3(3)(b), an assignee of the reversion is entitled to rent which becomes payable after the assignment takes effect. In...