Key date meaning

Introduction to freezing injunctions and scope of this checklist A freezing injunction (also known as a freezing order) is a temporary court order that prevents a respondent from disposing of or transferring its assets out of the relevant jurisdiction—namely England and Wales—or, in the case of a worldwide freezing order (WFO), from moving them anywhere in the world. The court’s principal aim in granting such relief is to preserve the respondent’s assets so that, if the applicant later obtains judgment against the respondent, there will be assets available for recovery by the applicant and, if necessary, enforcement action. This Checklist explains how to make an application for a freezing injunction where claims are contemplated or already underway in a corporate or personal insolvency context. As the precise circumstances of each matter must be assessed, this Checklist does not claim to be exhaustive; rather, it provides an overview of the key considerations at each stage when seeking an order of this kind. The focus throughout is asset preservation pending determination...

This Checklist pinpoints the principal provisions commonly found in a trade mark coexistence agreement. It may serve as a prompt for matters to address when preparing, assessing, or negotiating these arrangements. It can be relied upon as a list of points to review at drafting stage, during review, and throughout negotiations and sign-off process. It may equally be tailored as heads of terms to capture core positions whilst a full trade mark coexistence agreement is finalised. For help on doing so, see Precedent: Heads of terms—commercial contracts. For a model coexistence agreement, see Precedent: Trade mark coexistence agreement. For further detail on factors to weigh when drafting a coexistence agreement, see Practice Notes: Trade mark coexistence agreements and Negotiation guide—trade mark coexistence agreement. Checklist Points to consider Further information Notes (if any) (A) Key commercial considerations ☐ Parties Verify which entities will sign the agreement—specify who owns the trade marks (and related rights) and who is exploiting them. Confirm each party’s legal form and...

ARCHIVED: This Flowchart has been archived and is not maintained. Retained EU law is a concept introduced by the European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018 (EU(W)A 2018) as part of Brexit preparations, establishing a new category of domestic legislation. It denotes the collection of EU‑derived rules preserved and converted into UK law under the EU(W)A 2018 (as amended) at the end of the post‑Brexit transition period (IP completion day). For background on the transition period, and what it means for retained EU law, see: In the context of Brexit, what is meant by the ‘transition or implementation period’? For further background reading on the underlying legislation, see: Practice Note: Brexit—key legislation explained News Analysis: What does IP completion day mean for the status of EU law in the UK? What is retained EU law? Retained EU law is a broad, complex legal term defined by the EU(W)A 2018. It covers anything that continues to form part of domestic law on or...

The flowchart below summarises the key steps required in order for an employer to be able to claim or deduct liquidated damages under the JCT Design and Build Contract 2024 While it concentrates on liquidated damages for delay in finishing the Works, the identical procedure equally applies to cases of late completion of a Section. Importantly, under the JCT Design and Build Contract 2024, if the contract ends before the Works are complete, the Employer may recover liquidated damages only up to the termination date, and general damages for any ensuing delay thereafter, rather than further liquidated damages for that period instead. For details, refer to Practice Note: JCT contracts—time—Liquidated damages and termination...

In this issue Working time and flexible working Pay Tax Prohibited conduct (discrimination etc) Employment tribunal equality claims Diversity and gender pay gap Industrial action Unfair dismissal Employment tribunals Immigration Northern Ireland ESG and sustainability: employment issues Daily and weekly news alerts Dates for your diary Trackers New Q&As Working time and flexible working Code of Practice (Requests for Flexible Working) Order 2024 (SI 2024/429): The Order designates 6 April 2024 as the date on which the updated Code of Practice on handling requests for flexible working, issued by the Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service (Acas) under section 199 of the Trade Union and Labour Relations (Consolidation) Act 1992 (TULR(C)A 1992), takes effect. It also clarifies that the revised Code does not cover applications for flexible working made under section 80F of the Employment Rights Act 1996 (ERA 1996) that are lodged on or before 5 April 2024;...

In this issue: Decision to prosecute and alternatives to prosecution Criminal procedure and evidence Proceeds of crime Appeals and judicial review Sentencing Bribery, corruption, sanctions and export controls Cybercrime and data protection offences Fraud, forgery, tax and theft offences Health and safety and corporate manslaughter offences Other corporate crime updates LexTalk®Corporate Crime: a Lexis®Nexis community Daily and weekly news alerts New and updated content Dates for your diary Trackers Useful information Decision to prosecute and alternatives to prosecution Deferred Prosecution Agreements—an ‘expiry date’ or a ‘best before’? (Guralp Systems Ltd v Serious Fraud Office) The statutory framework for Deferred Prosecution Agreements (DPAs) requires an expiry date within every DPA, mandates that any breach application is made while the DPA remains in force, and provides that where a DPA lasts until its expiry, the proceedings are to be discontinued. In this case, the DPA’s terms specified effectiveness for...

In this issue: Criminal procedure and evidence Proceeds of crime Appeal and judicial review Sentencing Bribery, corruption, sanctions and export controls Cybercrime and data protection offences Environmental offences Financial services and pensions offences Food safety and hygiene offences Fraud, forgery, tax and theft offences Health and safety and corporate manslaughter offences Local authority prosecutions Money laundering International LexTalk®Corporate Crime: a Lexis®Nexis community Daily and weekly news alerts New and updated content Dates for your diary Trackers Useful information Criminal procedure and evidence Court delays soar as backlogs break records Between April and June 2025, the criminal courts in England and Wales amassed an unprecedented caseload of almost 440,000, with incoming matters exceeding disposals and a system hampered by long-standing funding shortfalls. In response, the Ministry of Justice (MOJ), together with The Rt Hon David Lammy MP, confirmed extra resources to accelerate outcomes for...

This tracker captures legislation taking effect in 2026, arranged in chronological order. Updates are published on a month-by-month basis throughout the year, and links to relevant news reports are included where appropriate. For legislation commencing later in 2026, see Practice Note: Legislation tracker—Employment. For measures in force prior to 2026, refer to these Practice Notes: Archived—2025 Legislation tracker—Employment Archived—2024 Legislation tracker—Employment Archived—2023 Legislation tracker—Employment Archived—2022 Employment horizon scanner—dates for your diary Legislation in force—January 2026 Commencement date (unless otherwise indicated) Legislative change 6 January 2026 Exclusivity clauses—protections for low-income and zero hours workers Section 8 of the Employment Rights Act 2025 (ERA 2025) widens the current protections to apply to all zero hours arrangements, whether contractual or not, and covers any restriction on taking work elsewhere. Any such term is void and unenforceable...

FORTHCOMING CHANGE: Agricultural Minimum Wage rates are ordinarily reviewed each year by the Agricultural Advisory Panel for Wales (the Panel). As the recruitment of a new Chair is still underway, the Panel has not been able to finalise an Agricultural Wages Order for 2026. Accordingly, from 1 April 2026 the rates set out in the Agricultural Wages (Wales) Order 2025, SI 2025/293, will continue to apply, except where superseded by changes to the National Minimum Wage (NMW) or National Living Wage (NLW). This Practice Note will be updated to reflect any amendments introduced by the Agricultural Wages Order for 2026 once it is made. FORTHCOMING CHANGE: Relevant provisions (not yet in force) of the Tertiary Education and Research (Wales) Act 2022 will create a new scheme of apprenticeships in Wales, replacing the current regime under Chapter 1 of the Apprenticeships, Skills, Children and Learning Act 2009 (ASCLA 2009), from a date yet to be determined. This Practice Note is a guide to the key elements of employment...

This Practice Note consolidates the HMRC Manuals tracker that featured weekly in the Private Client highlights from January 2021 to December 2024, arranged by HMRC Manual in reverse chronological order. It captures many of the key amendments to the HMRC Manuals set out below that will interest Private Client practitioners. For the combined tracker from January 2025 onwards, see Practice Note: Consolidated HMRC Manuals tracker 2025–26–Private Client. Avoidance Handling Process Manual Pages amended • Date of change • Comments Added: AHP1000, AHP1200, AHP1300, AHP1400, AHP1450, AHP2000, AHP2100, AHP2200, AHP2300, AHP3000, AHP3100, AHP3200, AHP3300, AHP3400, AHP3500, AHP4000, AHP4100, AHP4200, AHP4300, AHP4350, AHP4400, AHP4500, AHP4550 and AHP4570 Date: 29 September 2023 Summary: This new manual sets out HMRC’s method for managing tax avoidance risks across all taxes and HMRC directorates, aiming for consistency and effectiveness. The overview sections describe what HMRC regards as tax avoidance, as distinct from lawful tax planning. They also outline the role of iTAPE, a specialist network within HMRC that leads...

Variations can also push back the completion date, and may give the Claimant a right to extra time and to prolongation costs. These elements of a variation claim are commonly pursued separately, as an extension of time claim and a prolongation costs claim. By way of illustration, the principal JCT forms provide distinct procedures: one for pricing the changed work, and another for evaluating loss and expense arising from the variation’s effect on the progress of the works (see Practice Note: JCT contracts—variations — Valuing variations under JCT contracts). Accordingly, Claimants should take care not to ‘double dip’ across the separate elements of the claims. No. Description of Variation Claimant’s case Defendant’s response Judge/Tribunal comments The Claimant intended to adopt slab foundations for block A, as depicted on the Claimant’s drawing reference XX dated XX. By email dated XX, the Defendant directed the use of piled foundations for block A...

This Agreement is dated [ insert date ] Parties [ insert licensor name ], [ of OR a [ company OR partnership OR limited liability partnership ] [ incorporated OR constituted ] in [ insert jurisdiction, eg England and Wales ], registered number [ insert company or LLP number ], with [ registered office OR principal place of business ] at [ insert address ] (Licensor); and [ insert licensee name ], [ of OR a [ company OR partnership OR limited liability partnership ] [ incorporated OR constituted ] in [ insert jurisdiction, eg England and Wales ], registered number [ insert company or LLP number ], with [ registered office OR principal place of business ] at [ insert address ] (Licensee) Each of the Licensor and the Licensee is a party; together, the Licensor and the Licensee are the parties. Background The Licensor is the proprietor of the Technology IP. The Licensee has agreed...

From: [ insert name of production company ] at [ insert address ] (the Producer) To: [ insert name ] at [ insert address ] (you) Date: [ date ] Dear [ insert name ] We write to record the agreement between you and the Producer for your services, which will be provided under the terms and conditions detailed below. In this letter, Personal Data refers to any details about a living person that enable identification, whether directly or indirectly, notably by reference to an identifier such as a name, an identification number, location data or an online identifier, or to one or more elements specific to that individual’s physical, physiological, genetic, mental, economic, cultural or social identity. 1 Engagement 1.1 The Producer retains you and, in consideration of the Producer’s undertakings set out in paragraph 3, you agree to supply the Producer with your services as a [ specify capacity ] (Services) in connection with [ insert name of production ] (the...

There are two lines of reasoning for how Brexit could shield the UK from the Financial Transactions Tax (FTT) plans. The first is a policy-based case: the EU states that remain may shy away from a levy that would divert activity from the bloc towards a nimbler, post-Brexit UK, and so abandon the plans. The second, a narrower technical case, is that UK firms would fall outside the FTT once the UK is outside the EU. At present, neither case is especially strong, though the policy rationale appears the more persuasive of the pair to date overall...

The question considered by the Supreme Court in Lipton, and the Interpretation Act (or accrued rights) analysis In Lipton v BA Cityflyer, the UK Supreme Court, speaking obiter, examined the temporal reach of the European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018 (EU(W)A 2018). The issue was whether the provisions on retained EU law (REUL) must be applied by courts to disputes founded on facts predating IP completion day at the end of 2020, and to rights and liabilities that had already crystallised by that point. For ease of reference in this Q&A, matters turning on facts from before IP completion day are called ‘pre-Brexit cases’, while those arising from facts after that date are termed ‘post-Brexit cases’. On one interpretation, the response is that the EU(W)A 2018 provisions concerning REUL and assimilated law have no application to pre-Brexit cases. The temporal operation of REUL and of assimilated law is straightforward: before IP completion day, the UK’s domestic law operated insofar as it implemented the UK’s EU...