Due diligence meaning

Section 57 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 (TCPA 1990) requires planning consent for any material change in the use of buildings or land. Any limitations or conditions attached to a permission must likewise be adhered to. Liability for any existing breach will transfer to the purchaser. It is therefore essential to verify that the current use of the entire property is properly authorised and that all related conditions are being complied with, or to establish whether any unauthorised use or breach has become immune from enforcement. For further information, see Practice Note: Material change of use. Is the use authorised? Confirm the permitted use of the property, or, where relevant, each planning unit, and determine whether that use is authorised by: an explicit planning permission a certificate of lawful use, or permitted development rights If the permitted use does not mirror an express planning permission, do not assume it is unlawful; it may still be authorised by...

This timeline shows key developments relating to the UK securitisation regime from January 2024 onwards For earlier milestones, see EU and UK Securitisation Regulations—timeline [Archived]. On 1 November 2024, Assimilated Regulation (EU) 2017/2402 (the UK Securitisation Regulation) no longer applied in the UK, and new securitisation rules issued by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) and Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA) came into effect. For insight into the revised UK framework, see Practice Note: The UK securitisation regime. 2026 17 February 2026 — PRA/FCA CP2/26 – Reforms to securitisation requirements; CP26/6: Rules for reforming the UK Securitisation Framework; Applying the FSMA 2000 model of regulation to the Capital Requirements Regulation The PRA and FCA have opened consultations on changes to the UK securitisation framework. The FCA suggests simplifying reporting, disclosure and due diligence obligations. The PRA intends to lessen firms’ compliance load by making the regime less prescriptive and adjusting the capital treatment of loans under the Mortgage Guarantee...

Scope of this Checklist This Checklist sets out the points to consider when a company is proposing to grant a mortgage. It proceeds on the basis that an English or Welsh company will be granting a mortgage to a lender situated in England or Wales. In this Checklist: the company granting the mortgage is the 'mortgagor' the party to whom the mortgage is granted is the 'mortgagee' the document recording the mortgage is the 'security document' Preliminary questions before taking security by way of a mortgage Is a mortgage the right method of taking security? A mortgage transfers title to the asset, while preserving the mortgagor's equity of redemption so that, once sums due have been paid in full, title can be transferred back to the mortgagor (note that some mortgages, such as over land, are statutory, meaning there is no transfer of title). The use and possession of the asset will remain with...

Under the UK merger control rules the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) may assess or review mergers already completed as well as those still anticipated, provided a ‘relevant merger situation’ arises. See Practice Note: A ‘relevant merger situation’ under UK merger rules. Several distinct conditions must be fulfilled for such a ‘relevant merger situation’ to exist, and these requirements are set out in the flowchart provided below here...

During any due diligence for acquiring a lease that is itself an underlease, a purchaser ought to carefully evaluate: whether the superior lease could be forfeited or ended on the operation of a break clause—this may negatively affect the leasehold’s value and the prospects of disposal or funding as well as the ability to sell on or secure finance against it whether the covenants in the superior lease and the underlease align—the purchaser might assume far more burdensome duties because of a requirement to observe strictly in practice the superior lease covenants under the underlease whether the grant of the underlease has, in substance, operated as an assignment of the superior lease In this Checklist, references to the underlease mean simply the lease being acquired, and references to the superior lease mean the lease from which the underlease was granted. Is there any obligation to comply with superior lease covenants?...

Does the business maintain a due diligence policy that covers every party to a commercial relationship, including the company’s supply chain, agents, joint ventures, intermediaries, or any comparable or similar arrangement? Has this policy been rolled out and properly enforced in all of the markets in which the company trades and operates? See Precedent: Anti‑bribery and corruption policy The company must know who it is engaging with to carry out an effective risk assessment. It should use a due diligence information form that the contracting party completes and signs, so the due diligence information supplied can be reviewed and assessed by the company...

The Commission is considering changes to how products regulated under EU sectoral product safety laws are covered by the EU’s AI law As part of a broader effort to streamline digital rules, MLex has learned that the Commission is weighing revisions to the AI law’s treatment of goods already subject to EU sectoral product safety regimes. The potential adjustment, being worked into the Commission’s planned digital ‘omnibus’ package due on 19 November 2025, may reduce compliance obligations for areas such as medical devices and industrial machinery. The EU’s AI Act sets a rigorous due diligence framework for AI systems that present significant risks to people’s health and fundamental rights...

In this issue: Air emissions and climate change Contamination and pollution Energy efficiency and buildings Energy for environmental lawyers Environmental information Environmental taxes, reliefs and incentives ESG and sustainability Hazardous substances and chemicals Nature, biodiversity and habitat conservation Waste Water, flooding and drainage Daily and weekly news alerts New and updated content Air emissions and climate change Greenhouse Gas Removals (GGR)-UK government publishes Business Model documentation On 27 August 2025, the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ) released a suite of papers on its proposed Greenhouse Gas Removals (GGR) Business Model and accompanying policy. The Lexis+ Energy team, working with Navraj Singh Ghaleigh, Senior Lecturer in Climate Law at the University of Edinburgh Law School, set out the context for the GGR Business Model; its relationship with the Power BECCS Business Model; the technologies the GGR framework intends to encompass; its legal footing and principal features; and how...

In this issue: Air emissions and climate change Energy for environmental lawyers Environmental disputes and proceedings Environmental permits and consents Environmental taxes, reliefs and incentives ESG and sustainability Hazardous substances and chemicals Marine Nature, biodiversity and habitat conservation Waste Waste producer responsibility regimes Water, flooding and drainage Daily and weekly news alerts New and updated content Air emissions and climate change DESNZ releases quarterly waste data reporting template for the UK ETS. The Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ) has issued a template for quarterly waste data submissions under the UK Emissions Trading Scheme (UK ETS). It is designed for waste operators to use when sending quarterly data reports to their regulator during the voluntary monitoring, reporting and verification (MRV) period. See: LNB News 19/02/2026 50. AFME responds to European Commission consultation on climate resilience legislative framework. The Association for Financial Markets in Europe (AFME) has provided...

This Practice Note forms part of the Lexis+® UK Corporate private equity buyout transaction toolkit. The reporting process Every adviser appointed to carry out due diligence ought to flag principal findings as they emerge, particularly any significant risks or concerns, and then prepare a due diligence report to highlight material issues arising from their review work and analysis. The advisers’ engagement letters must clearly define the agreed timetable, format and scope of the due diligence report. Draft or interim reports can be produced and shared at intervals during the process, enabling material issues to be promptly addressed as they arise. Frequently, by the point the final report goes to the private equity investor, they will be aware of all material matters that could affect the transaction in question. The aim of a legal due diligence report is to: provide the investor with adequate information about the target and to summarise that material in a succinct and comprehensive ...

Governing legislation The process of transferring undertakings is regulated by SI No 131/2003 European Communities (Protection of Employees on Transfer of Undertakings) Regulations 2003 (Ireland) (SI No 131/2003 (IRL)), commonly known as the TUPE Regulations 2003 (IRL). These 2003 Regulations superseded SI No 306/1980 European Communities (Safeguarding of Employees’ Rights on Transfer of Undertakings) Regulations 1980 (Ireland), as later amended by SI No 487/2000 European Communities (Safeguarding of Employees’ Rights on Transfer of Undertakings) (Amendment) Regulations 2000 (Ireland). The earlier regime gave effect to the EU Acquired Rights Directive 77/187/EEC in Ireland. Relevant transfers Numerous European Court of Justice (ECJ) rulings have clarified what amounts to a transfer for the purposes of Directive 77/187/EEC and, in turn, the TUPE Regulations 2003 (IRL). A detailed review of that body of caselaw lies outside this Practice Note and is not attempted here. In essence, a transfer arises where the undertaking keeps its identity after the handover; in other words, where the undertaking is passed on as a going concern,...

Water pollution Polluted water can kill fish and other aquatic life, harm habitats, threaten drinking supplies, lower water quality and foul beaches. Many kinds of contaminant can enter waters—chemicals, microplastics, petrol, oils and fats, ammonia in sewage, mine waste, nitrates from farming and solid waste. Definitions of water ‘Controlled waters’ Relevant territorial waters (seawater to three nautical miles) Coastal waters (eg tidal waters) Inland freshwaters (rivers, streams, watercourses, lakes and ponds) Groundwaters (water stored in rock layers beneath soil) Section 104 of the Water Resources Act 1991 (WRA 1991) ‘Surface water’ Inland waters (all standing or flowing surface water, except groundwater) Transitional waters (partly saline estuaries substantially influenced by freshwater flows) Coastal waters (water up to one mile seaward) The Water Environment (Water Framework Directive) (England and Wales) Regulations 2017, SI 2017/407, Sch 1 ‘Groundwater’ — all water below the ground surface...

Insert the following definitions as new definitions into clause 1 of Precedent: Share purchase agreement—pro-buyer—corporate seller—conditional—long form: 1 Definitions and interpretation Sanctioned Activity: activity subject to a Sanctioning Body’s sanctions. Sanctioning Body: United Kingdom, United States of America, European Union, and any other authority administering sanctions. Sanctioned Entity: any person or entity that is, or is owned or controlled (directly or indirectly) by one that is, sanctioned or on a designated list of a Sanctioning Body; ‘owned or controlled directly or indirectly’ has the meaning in Sanctions Laws. Sanctions Laws: all law on a Sanctioned Activity binding either Party or the Agreement’s performance. Sanctions Policy: the Seller’s sanctions policy in Appendix [insert Appendix number], as updated and notified to the Buyer. is not a Sanctioned Entity; has not been notified of any Sanctioned Activity investigation; is unaware of Business circumstances likely to prompt such investigation; shall comply with Sanctions Laws and the Sanctions Policy; ...

1 Instructions on completing this form If while carrying out Client Due Diligence (CDD) checks, or through your ongoing monitoring duties as part of your obligations once a business relationship is already in place, you identify a material discrepancy between the beneficial ownership details supplied by the client and those appearing on the relevant registers (eg the Companies House register), you must complete this form and forward it to the [ state who the form should be sent to, eg nominated officer, head of risk, compliance officer ]...

Introduction This concerns the acquisition by [ insert buyer name ] (the Buyer) of the [ entire share capital of [ insert name of target company ] Limited, incorporated in England and Wales under number [ insert company number ] (the Company) OR [ insert description of the business to be acquired ] (the Business) as a going concern, together with specified assets used in the Business ] from [ insert seller name ] (the Seller) (the Proposed Acquisition). This questionnaire is intended to enable the Buyer, the Buyer's solicitors, patent and trade mark attorneys, and other professional advisers to gather essential information about the IP owned and/or used by the [ Company and its subsidiaries OR Business OR which the Buyer requires to assist in the valuation of the Company OR Business and with the negotiation of the Proposed Acquisition ] . Please respond to every single question in full. Please set out your answers in italics immediately beneath each question and supply copies of all relevant documentation,...

Tithes Tithes represent a tenth share of all produce—praedial, personal, and mixed—owed to God and, by extension, to the ministers of His church for their support and maintenance. They fall due annually on everything that, with husbandry, yields increase through the act of God, even if that increase is not realised in each year, the obligation nonetheless arising from such productive potential... Tithe rentcharges The difficulty of gathering tithe in kind, coupled with the variable income it produced, prompted early moves to compound tithes: voluntary arrangements termed ‘moduses’ or compositions real, and those established by local or general statutes referred to as ‘corn rents’ or tithe rentcharges. Then, in 1836, a formal process was set out for commuting all tithes into tithe rentcharges, whether achieved by agreement or enforced by compulsion; in practice, almost all tithes have subsequently been so commuted...

What is pre-planning restrictive covenant insurance? Restrictive covenant insurance safeguards people holding an interest in land that is burdened or encumbered by a restrictive covenant. It generally also covers losses including: damages awarded against the insured expenses to modify or demolish a building or other structures to comply with a covenant abortive works costs legal costs This cover can be arranged before planning consent has been obtained for a development where the intended development site is burdened by restrictive covenants. That includes situations where planning permission has not yet been obtained. When is it appropriate to take out a pre-planning restrictive covenant insurance policy? Clearly, if a restrictive covenant looks likely to affect the proposed development, all efforts should be made to resolve matters at the earliest opportunity. Every effort should be made to iron out issues as early as possible...

Section 7 of the Bribery Act 2010 (BA 2010) provides: (1) A relevant commercial organisation (“C”) is guilty of an offence under this section if a person (“A”) associated with C offers a bribe to another person with the intention of: (a) securing or retaining business for C; or (b) securing or retaining an advantage in the conduct of C’s business. (2) However, it is a defence for C to prove that it had in place adequate procedures devised to prevent persons associated with C from carrying out such conduct. BA 2010, s 8 defines an associated person: (1) For the purposes of section 7, a person (“A”) is associated with C if (disregarding any bribe under consideration) A is a person who performs services for or on behalf of C. (2) The capacity in which A performs services for or on behalf of C does not matter. (3) Accordingly A may (for example) be C’s...