UK, United Kingdom meaning

Where a scheme of arrangement, restructuring plan, company voluntary arrangement or individual arrangement is put forward in respect of a regulated firm (defined below), the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) should be engaged at the earliest possible stage. The FCA serves as the conduct regulator for both financial services firms and for the financial markets across the United Kingdom. Under section 1B of the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 (FSMA 2000), it is tasked with pursuing specified objectives, including one centred on consumer protection in practice. The FCA states its statutory aims as securing an appropriate level of protection for consumers and safeguarding and strengthening the overall integrity of UK financial markets, with the intention of limiting the volume of proposed compromises it deems unsuitable (see FG22/4 para 1.2). On 5 July 2022, the FCA issued guidance on compromises by regulated firms (FCA Guidance FG22/4 July 2022, updated January 2024), prompted by serious concerns that these mechanisms were being advanced and deployed by firms to sidestep redress due to customers...

In brief In summary, UK data protection rules exist to make sure details about living people — captured as 'personal data' — are handled lawfully, fairly and responsibly. To achieve this, the United Kingdom General Data Protection Regulation, Assimilated Regulation (EU) 2016/679 (UK GDPR) places a range of obligations on anyone 'processing' personal data, and on the controllers supervising that processing, when they fall within the scope of the UK GDPR regime. The UK GDPR also confers rights on individuals whose personal data is handled (the 'data subjects'). 'Processing' covers practically any operation performed on personal data, meaning doing almost anything with it, such as storing, sharing, deleting, or using it. It is almost impossible to run a business or other organisation without processing personal data. Among other requirements, the controllers of personal data processing must provide information to data subjects, to make sure they are aware of the following: the reasons their personal data is collected; the ways it is used; ...

This Checklist summarises guidance on pursuing a ‘UK GDPR claim’. It draws on the United Kingdom General Data Protection Regulation, Assimilated Regulation (EU) 2016/679 (UK GDPR), together with the Data Protection Act 2018 (DPA 2018) legislation. Where the EU has jurisdiction, proceedings are governed by the EU’s General Data Protection Regulation, Regulation (EU) 2016/679 (EU GDPR). UK data protection rules—most notably Assimilated Regulation (EU) 2016/679 (UK GDPR)—originate to a large extent from EEA data protection frameworks and, as a result, generally rest on comparable principles, although some provisions differ slightly in detail. In the UK, ‘assimilated law’ denotes retained EU law (REUL) that continues to have effect after the end of 2023 and remains in force, for example the UK GDPR legislation. Re-labelling REUL (and related terminology) as assimilated law signals a shift in its status and handling in UK law, in practice, meaning it is now generally construed by reference to ordinary domestic legal standards and principles...

This Flowchart It outlines the competent authorities tasked with implementing UN and UK sanctions pursuant to the Sanctions and Anti-Money Laundering Act 2018 (SAMLA 2018) within the United Kingdom jurisdiction...

Mergers Tereos fined for failure to comply with requirements of CMA information during phase 2 investigation The CMA has issued a notice, dated 25 September 2024, penalising Tereos SCA and Tereos United Kingdom and Ireland Limited (together, Tereos) under section 110 of the Enterprise Act 2002 for failing to comply with a section 109 notice that required the provision of board minutes and internal documents relating to Board and corporate governance. The CMA levied a £25,000 fine. Tereos did not supply all information sought by the deadline. Board minutes were only submitted after the CMA prompted compliance. Other documents falling within the notice’s scope were not provided. Without further CMA enquiries after the main party hearing, a significant volume of responsive material would not have been produced. Tereos adopted an unjustifiably narrow interpretation when identifying responsive documents, at points contradicting its earlier representations to the CMA; this stance was untenable on any reasonable view, given the context and purpose of the merger...

In this issue: International Arbitration Investment treaty arbitration Institutional and ad hoc arbitration Other arbitration and ADR-related news and developments Daily and weekly news alerts New and updated content Useful information International Arbitration Singapore—carve-out from restructuring moratorium granted in favour of arbitration In restructuring, it is vital that a debtor is afforded time and space to craft its plan. This is usually delivered by a moratorium, preventing third parties from initiating actions against the company or its assets. That safeguard can create friction with arbitration. In a pro-arbitration seat like Singapore, must the court invariably permit an exception to the moratorium to let a third party commence arbitration against the debtor? In Sapura Fabrication v GAS, the Singapore Court of Appeal ruled there is no automatic obligation to allow such a carve-out. The court, however, retains discretion to grant one. Factors guiding the decision include the nature of the intended claim, the timing of the request...

State aid AG issues opinion recommending Court of Justice should set aside the General Court’s judgment and annul the Commission’s decision regarding tax breaks granted by the UK to certain multinational groups between 2013 and 2018 Advocate General Medina has delivered his opinion in the appeals in the following Joined Cases, arising from the Commission’s 2019 decision and the General Court’s judgment. C-555/22 P United Kingdom v Commission C-556/22 P ITV v Commission and Others C-564/22 P LSEGH (Luxembourg) and London Stock Exchange Group Holdings (Italy) v Commission and Others The appeals contest the General Court’s judgment in Joined Cases T-363/19 and T-456/19, which dismissed an action for annulment against the Commission’s decision of 2 April 2019 (SA.44896). In that decision, the Commission found that, during 2013–2018, the UK had provided unlawful State aid to certain multinational groups via tax advantages. Advocate General Medina proposes that the Court of Justice overturn the General Court’s judgment and annul the Commission’s 2019...

This Practice Note offers practical direction on the recently unveiled trade arrangement between the United Kingdom (UK) and the European Union (EU). Introduction On 19 May 2025, at the inaugural UK–EU Summit, the EU and UK revealed a new trade deal. Termed the Strategic Partnership, the arrangement is intended to build upon the Withdrawal Agreement, the UK–EU Trade and Cooperation Agreement and the Windsor Framework. For materials, see: For guidance on trade in goods under the UK–EU Trade and Cooperation Agreement, see Practice Note: Trade in goods under the UK–EU Trade and Cooperation Agreement. For guidance on trade in services under the UK–EU Trade and Cooperation Agreement, see Practice Note: Trade in services under the UK–EU TCA—an overview. For guidance on the Windsor Framework, see Practice Note: Joint Decision for Windsor Package to commence. The new deal is not yet finalised. Rather, the EU and UK have settled on a path for their negotiations towards a trade agreement. The...

This Practice Note offers practical guidance on sanitary and phytosanitary (SPS) measures within the Australia and United Kingdom Free Trade Agreement (Aus-UK FTA). Introduction The Aus-UK FTA spans trade in goods and services, along with a range of matters linked to those areas. In respect of trade in goods, it covers: rules of origin. For guidance on rules of origin under the Aus-UK FTA, see Practice Note: Rules of origin of the Aus-UK FTA. For guidance on claiming origin under the Aus-UK FTA, see Practice Note: How to claim preference under the Aus-UK FTA customs procedure and trade facilitation technical barriers to trade, and trade remedies Chapter 6 of the Aus-UK FTA addresses SPS measures. Chapter 6 aims to: protect human, animal and plant life and health within the parties’ territories while enabling trade between them ensure the parties’ SPS measures do not create unjustified barriers to trade reinforce and build upon implementation of...

STOP PRESS: On 19 June 2025, the Data (Use and Access) Bill secured Royal Assent, transforming into the Data (Use and Access) Act 2025 (DUAA 2025) and taking partial effect on that same date. Provisions of DUAA 2025 dealing with issues such as handling data subject access requests, and granting the power to make further regulations, commenced immediately on 19 June 2025. Other elements, relating to notices issued by the Information Commissioner and certain facets of law enforcement processing, began to apply on 19 August 2025 (being two months from the date of Royal Assent). The bulk of DUAA 2025’s measures will only commence once additional regulations, by way of statutory instruments, are made and brought into force. Parts 5 and 6 of DUAA 2025 operate to revise and update areas of UK data protection and ePrivacy law within the UK, including the United Kingdom General Data Protection Regulation, Assimilated Regulation (EU) 2016/679 (UK GDPR), the Data Protection Act 2018, and the Privacy and Electronic Communications (EC Directive) Regulations...

The Schedule 1 Definitions 1.1 In this Schedule: Adequate Procedures – must be interpreted in line with BA 2010 and any guidance issued under it; Associated Person – means any or all of: (a) the officers, employees, agents, subcontractors, subsidiaries, and individuals Associated With a party (Associates); and (b) persons Associated With any of those Associates, in every instance engaged in carrying out services for, or on behalf of, that party, the Services, and/or this Agreement; and Associated With – where used: (a) in paragraph 2 and in relation to bribery, is to be construed in accordance with BA 2010 and guidance issued under it; (b) in paragraph 4 and regarding the facilitation of tax evasion, is to be construed in accordance with Part 3 of CFA 2017 and guidance issued under it; (c) in paragraph 5 and as regards fraud, is to be construed in accordance with Part 5 of ECCTA 2023 and guidance issued under it; BA 2010 – means the...

Note These provisions are prepared on the basis that the applicable contract is a business-to-business arrangement, with the supplier acting as processor for a customer in the role of controller, in relation to the processing of personal data governed by the United Kingdom General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR), Assimilated Regulation (EU) 2016/679. The terms ‘supplier’ and ‘customer’ (in place of ‘processor’ and ‘controller’) are used to simplify incorporation into commercial contracts. The drafting also relies on the additional defined terms ‘Agreement’, ‘Business Day’, ‘Customer’, ‘Data Protection Laws’, ‘Data Subject’, ‘GDPR’ and ‘Supplier’, which are assumed to be defined appropriately elsewhere in the relevant agreement. It is further assumed that ‘GDPR’ refers to UK GDPR and that ‘Data Protection Laws’ includes UK GDPR. These provisions can also be adapted for circumstances where the EU General Data Protection Regulation (EU GDPR), Regulation (EU) 2016/679, applies... 1 Definition (to be incorporated into relevant part of the agreement) 1.1 Representative •...

THIS DOCUMENT IS IMPORTANT AND REQUIRES YOUR IMMEDIATE ATTENTION. If you are uncertain about the Offer or what steps to take, you should obtain immediately your own personal, independent financial advice from your stockbroker, bank manager, solicitor, accountant or another independent financial adviser duly authorised under the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 (as amended) if you are resident in the United Kingdom, or, if you do not, from a suitably and appropriately duly authorised independent financial adviser. If you have sold, sell or otherwise transferred all of your Shares (other than pursuant to the Offer), please promptly forward this document together with any accompanying materials (but not any personalised Form of Acceptance) to the purchaser or transferee, or to the stockbroker, bank or other agent through whom the sale or transfer was arranged, for onward delivery to the purchaser or transferee. Nevertheless, do not distribute, forward or transmit these documents in or into any jurisdiction where doing so would breach, contravene or otherwise infringe the relevant...