Featured documents
R (Greyhound Board of Great Britain Ltd) v Welsh Ministers [2026] EWHC 670 (Admin) What are the practical implications of this case? The ruling reinforces the constitutional divide between the courts and the legislature. It explains that the scheme and framework of the Government of Wales Act 2006 (GWA 2006) embody that separation of powers, and that any judicial attempt to recognise and enforce a common law obligation on Welsh Ministers to consult prior to introducing legislation in the Senedd would trespass upon that boundary. This is not a departure from established principle; case law has already upheld comparable rules for lawmakers in Scotland and at Westminster. However, this is the first express confirmation of the position for Welsh lawmakers, and the first time this dimension of the GWA 2006 has been analysed in such depth. The court examined earlier
The solution arrived through the United Nations Compensation Commission (UNCC), a quasi‑judicial body handling mass claims, created under UN Security Council Resolution 687. By addressing environmental harm—most notably via its ‘F4’ claim class—the UNCC set a seminal benchmark shaping how international law and contemporary arbitral panels allocate financial responsibility for wartime ecological devastation. With present-day wars in areas such as Eastern Europe and the Middle East bringing dam breaches, strikes on chemical facilities, and the burning of farmland, the UNCC’s legacy endures as an essential reference point for states, global investors, and companies engaged in post‑conflict arbitration. The F4 claims: Quantifying the unquantifiable Prior to the 1990s, mechanisms in international law for war reparations overwhelmingly favoured property loss, foregone earnings, and bodily injury. The natural world was commonly treated as a mute, non-compensable victim of armed hostilities...
Understanding the farming business as a business Many farms still use long-standing structures that arose by habit, not strategy. Sole traders, informal partnerships and outdated partnership deeds are common. While once effective, such setups can cause major issues around succession, tax planning and involving the next generation. A corporate team can take a fresh, business-led view of the farm, asking: Who owns the land and other critical assets? Who manages daily operations? Who carries the risk and who enjoys the return? What is the enduring plan for succession? From this review, the team can confirm whether the current setup is fit for purpose or if an alternative — for example an updated partnership agreement, a company, a limited liability partnership, or a blended model — would better meet the family’s aims. Tax efficiency through joined-up advice Tax sits at the centre of most
Most recent News
At Silverstone, the Midlands Grand Prix circuit, the Prime Minister unveiled his party’s general election manifesto, promising to cut employees’ National Insurance contributions, taken from wages, to 6% by April 2027—provided the Conservatives overturn their roughly 20-point polling gap. The Conservative administration has already reduced the rate in two stages, from 12% in November to 8% in March. The 80-page manifesto also outlines an ambition to scrap the levy altogether over time. Sunak restated his party’s adherence to the pensions triple lock, ensuring the state pension rises each year by average earnings, inflation, or 2.5%, whichever is higher. He also reiterated a May pledge that state pension payments would always remain below the income tax threshold, as part of a plan......
In this issue: General election 2024 Trusts Court of Protection HMRC Manuals updates Tax avoidance, evasion and non-compliance Insolvency— Private Client Contentious trusts and estates Pensions, insurance and tax efficient investments International Question of the week Additional Private Client updates this week Daily and weekly news alerts Lex Talk®Private Client: a Lexis®PSL community New and updated content Dates for your diary Trackers Latest Q& A Useful information General election 2024 General Election 2024: tax aspects of manifestos The Liberal Democrat manifesto, ‘ For a Fair Deal’, was issued on 10 June 2024. The Conservative and Unionist Party’s 2024 manifesto was released on 11 June 2024. The Green Party’s manifesto followed on 12 June 2024. The Labour Party manifesto was published on 13 June 2024. Each...
See Q& A: Is it a gift with reservation of benefit ( GROB) where an undivided half share of a property (that falls under one title and is split as to 1/2 being a basement flat and 1/2 being a commercial premises that is let) is given to the donee but the donor receives all the income and stays in the flat from time to time? Although the donee does not live on the land, they oversee management of the let commercial unit. Broad rules on gifts with reservation of benefit appear in section 102 of the Finance Act 1986 ( FA 1986)......
Revenue and Customs Commissioners v Burlington Loan Management DAC [2024] UKUT 152 ( TCC) What are the practical implications of this case? This ruling will be welcomed by the secondary debt market, as pricing for debt transfers commonly reflects whether relief under a double tax treaty is available. In this instance—mirroring standard practice—the consideration for the debt claim tracked market value but was adjusted to recognise that some buyers could access a domestic exemption from UK withholding tax or rely on double taxation treaty provisions, so UK withholding tax was not a lasting cost. Commercially, at the point of the offer SICL would have appreciated that BLM was outside the scope of UK withholding tax, though it would not have known the precise rationale. Embedded in BLM’s bid was the expectation that interest arising on the claim would be taxed in Ireland rather than the...
D’ Angelin v HMRC [2024] UKFTT 462 ( TC) The taxpayer was UK-resident but not domiciled and used the remittance basis. In 2016 he brought £1.5m of overseas income to the UK and placed it into a UK company where he was the sole shareholder and director. That company operated providing advice to international clients and family-owned holdings. He claimed business investment relief under section 809VA of the Income Tax Act 2007 ( ITA 2007) in relation to the investment, with the result that the £1.5m was treated as not remitted to the UK (and therefore not taxable). During 2017/18 he used the company credit card for private spending, from an i Tunes subscription through to the personal use of a jet, and those outgoings were posted to his director’s loan account. The balance on that account peaked at about £71,000. At all times he held...
Standish v Standish [2024] EWCA Civ 567, [2024] All ER ( D) 104 ( May) What are the practical implications of this case? This ruling clarifies two key dimensions of how the sharing principle is applied, a central touchstone since the House of Lords’ authorities in White v White [2000] 2 FLR 981 and Miller v Miller; Mc Farlane v Mc Farlane [2006] UKHL 24, [2006] 1 FLR 1186. In essence, the sharing principle provides that wealth built up during the marriage through the parties’ joint endeavour—whatever their respective roles—should be divided on an equal basis... Conversely, non-matrimonial property (including pre-marital assets and inheritances) falls outside the sharing exercise, though it remains available to satisfy needs where necessary. The courts have also recognised that fairness may, in some cases, warrant bringing some or all of that non-matrimonial property within the sharing principle (often referred to as...
HMRC v Burlington Loan Management DAC [2024] UKUT 152 ( TCC) Background of the dispute After LBIE’s collapse, trading in its debt claims sprang up on a secondary market. The administrators ultimately realised enough assets to discharge all liabilities in full, creating a surplus from which statutory interest on those debts was paid. The Supreme Court determined that the statutory interest arising in the LBIE administration constituted yearly interest and was therefore subject to UK income tax withholding unless an exemption or relief applied (see News Analysis: Administration— Supreme Court confirms statutory interest can be yearly interest ( HMRC v Joint administrators of LBIE)). In the circumstances here, a claim against LBIE was transferred by SICL—then in liquidation—to Burlington, via an interim assignment to a broker engaged by SICL’s liquidators to sell the claim. As LBIE’s liquidators had already returned the £142m principal to SICL, the right...
In this issue: Probate Powers of attorney and advance decisions Court of Protection Spouses, civil partners and cohabitants HMRC Manuals updates Tax avoidance, evasion and non-compliance Insolvency— Private Client Digital assets and cryptoassets Pensions, insurance and tax efficient investments International Question of the week Daily and weekly news alerts Lex Talk®Private Client: a Lexis®PSL community New and updated content Dates for your diary Trackers Latest Q& As Useful information Probate Court finds deceased had made gifts mortis causa ( Rahman v Hassan) Mini summary: GIFTS— GIFTS MORTIS CAUSA— DECLARATIONS. The Chancery Division granted the claimant’s application for declarations concerning dealings between the claimant and the deceased individual. The deceased had effected ‘donationes mortis causa’ while contemplating his death. The defendants, relations by blood of the deceased’s late wife, expressly resisted the claim on the basis that, at the date of death, the will had not been executed so as to capture, in particular, the transactions in question. The claimant maintained that the...
See Q& A: When it comes to applying for probate, should a personal representative who questions the validity of the Will and believes the last Will is invalid, when cited to take or refuse probate, accept probate and apply for it in their name, or should they refuse probate? Authorities on the validity of Wills span widely—from Banks v Goodfellow through Kenward v Adams (1975), and from Parker v Felgate to Baker v Hewston—illustrating the breadth and diversity of the jurisprudence. The personal representative ( PR) is central to handling and distributing the deceased’s estate (see: Personal representatives—overview). Section 25 of the Administration of Estates Act 1925 stipulates that PRs must ‘collect and get in the real and personal estate of the deceased and administer it according to the law’. These responsibilities are demanding, and a PR should recognise the potential for personal...
In this issue: Probate UK taxes for Private Client Budgets and Finance Bills HMRC Manuals updates International Question of the week Additional Private Client updates Daily and weekly news alerts Lex Talk®Private Client: a Lexis®PSL community New and updated content Dates for your diary Trackers Latest Q& As Useful information Probate Committee key findings in enquiry into Probate Service delays With the general election announced on 22 May 2024 and Parliament subsequently dissolved, the Justice Committee’s enquiry into HMCTS Probate Service delays has ceased. On 23 May, its chair, Sir Robert Neill MP, wrote to Mike Freer MP outlining the committee’s principal conclusions to date. Among them was the observation that, until 2017, the Probate Registry managed application volumes, including in 2006 when the peak of 311,127...
See Q& A: In order for the downsizing addition to apply in a claim for the residence nil rate band, are there any conditions about where the deceased should have lived and with whom after they sold the qualifying former residential interest and downsized? Acknowledging that many older individuals might sell their family home so as to move to a smaller place, enter a residential care home, or meet the cost of nursing care, the original provisions in Finance Act 2015 were strengthened by Finance Act 2016 with steps designed to counter the potential loss of available residence nil rate band ( RNRB) on downsizing. It applies to those who have downsized or sold their......
L v HMRC [2024] UKFTT 401 ( TC) The taxpayer sought a hearing in private and anonymisation on two main grounds. The first concerned a substantial threat to her health. She had bipolar disorder and had gone through repeated episodes of psychosis, depression and anxiety. Her earliest episode, precipitated by workplace stress, was, in her view, the foundation for the discriminatory treatment she considered she had received from her employer. The prospect of a public hearing intensified her anxiety, and her psychiatrist’s opinion was that compelling her to face the pressures of a public forum created a high risk of relapse. These matters were central to her request. As its starting point, the FTT turned to Rule 32 of the Tribunal Rules, the provision that mandates that all hearings be held in......
Osmond and Allen v HMRC and KPMG LLP as third party applicant [2024] UKFTT 413 ( TC) Osmond and Allen v HMRC and Stewarts Law LLP as third party applicant [2024] UKFTT 414 ( TC) KPMG and Stewarts Law, as third party applicants, asked the FTT to disclose the skeleton arguments relating to the O& A appeal. KPMG also requested disclosure of any additional written submissions in the O& A appeal. At the point of applying, KPMG acted for three appellants whose appeals were stayed behind O& A, so it sought access in order to advise them. Stewarts sought disclosure because, at that time, it represented three clients considering challenges to assessments under the transaction in securities legislation, including whether the assessments were out of time; that issue arose in the O& A appeal and was therefore ‘directly relevant to [...
What is the revenue rule? The revenue rule is a broadly recognised principle: a nation’s courts will decline to give effect to the tax legislation of a different state. It is widely treated as a universal doctrine across jurisdictions. Why does this principle exist? At heart, it reflects a hesitation to permit state A to wield sovereign authority to levy taxes within the jurisdiction of state B’s courts. Lord Denning captured the spirit of the doctrine in Att- Gen of New Zealand v Ortiz [1984], observing: ‘ No one has ever doubted that our courts will not entertain a suit brought by a foreign sovereign, directly or indirectly, to enforce the penal or revenue laws of that foreign state. We do not sit to collect taxes for another country or to inflict punishments for it.’ So, forget ‘take back control’: the judiciary would rather it had...
In this issue: Court of Protection UK taxes for Private Client HMRC Manuals updates Budgets and Finance Bills Insolvency— Private Client Contentious trusts and estates Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland International Question of the week Additional Private Client updates this week Daily and weekly news alerts Lex Talk®Private Client: a Lexis®PSL community New and updated content Dates for your diary Trackers Latest Q& As Useful information Court of Protection Court of Protection approves indefinite extension of injunction against P’s son in order to protect and support best interest decisions made for P ( MK (‘ P’), In the Matter of) This matter relates to MK, an 81-year-old woman with vascular dementia. To safeguard court-ordered best interests decisions concerning MK’s living arrangements and care, the court continued, on an...
What has happened? The Prime Minister ( PM) has confirmed that the next UK general election will take place on 4 July 2024. This is the first such announcement since DCPA 2022 reinstated the Sovereign’s prerogative to dissolve Parliament on the PM’s advice. What follows is guided mainly by parliamentary convention rather than statute. The headline timetable is: 22 May — PM asked the King to dissolve Parliament 22 May — King Charles agreed; the election was announced to the country 23 May — ‘ Wash-up’ period starts 24 May — Parliament prorogued 25 May — Pre-election period of sensitivity begins (formerly ‘purdah’) 30 May — Parliament dissolved 30 May — Pre-election period begins 4 July — General Election What does ‘wash-up’ mean? ‘ Wash-up’ is the stretch between calling a general election and...
See Q& A: The deceased was resident and domiciled in the Isle of Man. Most of their estate lay there, but they also owned UK shares valued at about £50,000. A grant of probate has already been obtained in the Isle of Man. Is a further grant of probate necessary to deal with the UK assets? If so, what steps are needed, considering the Will is no longer available......
In this issue: Court of Protection; UK taxes for Private Client; HMRC Manuals updates; Tax avoidance, evasion and non-compliance; Insolvency— Private Client; Contentious trusts and estates; Pensions, insurance and tax efficient investments; International; Question of the week; Additional Private Client updates this week; Daily and weekly news alerts; Lex Talk®Private Client: a Lexis®PSL community; New and updated content; Dates for your diary; Trackers; Latest Q& As; Useful information. Court of Protection Court of Protection rules that evidence from a family member and ‘expert by experience’ is not admissible in dispute over treatment plan ( University College London Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust v HER) This Court of Protection matter involved HER, a 53-year-old with a metabolic disorder and epilepsy, who lacks capacity to decide on her medical care. A disagreement arose between the treating hospital trust (the Trust) and HER’s sister ( SR) about the Trust’s proposed new...
See Q& A: A vendor of a home owned as joint tenants dies post-exchange yet prior to completion. For inheritance tax purposes, should one report the deceased’s half interest in the property, or the entitlement to receive a half share of the sale proceeds (which then ultimately pass to the surviving co-owner by survivorship)?......
In this issue: Probate Court of Protection UK taxes for Private Client HMRC Manuals updates Pensions, insurance and tax‑efficient investments Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland International Question of the week Additional Private Client updates Daily and weekly news alerts Lex Talk®Private Client: a Lexis®PSL community New and updated content Dates for your diary Trackers Latest Q& As Useful information Probate HMCTS Probate helpline hours update An HMCTS notice on 3 May 2024 confirmed the temporary change made in February to the probate helpline—now 9am to 1pm, Monday to Friday—will remain in place until further notice, subject to review every six weeks. Professional users may still contact the service by webchat from 9am to 5pm on weekdays and track ongoing applications through My HMCTS. For guidance on probate applications, see: Application for probate and letters of administration—overview. HM Land Registry updates Practice Guide 6 HM Land Registry has revised Practice Guide 6— Devolution on the death of a registered proprietor. Section 8 has been updated to...
Popular documents
When evaluating a general damages claim, the practitioner ought initially to refer to the Judicial College Guidelines (JCG)...
This Practice Note This Practice Note reviews mechanisms used in settling litigation. A Tomlin order consists of a consent order paired with a schedule. It operates to stay proceedings on terms that have been agreed. The provisions contained in the schedule may remain confidential. This Practice Note describes the scope of confidentiality attaching to the schedule and sets out how it differs from a standard consent order. Sample wording for a Tomlin order is included, alongside links to precedents, as well as guidance on court approval. It also addresses varying, setting aside and enforcing a Tomlin order, including the considerations the court will take into account when handling applications for each. Further guidance is provided on interpreting and applying the relevant provisions of the CPR; however, some courts and divisions impose very specific requirements for both drafting and approval, and for approaching the schedule and confidentiality issues. Accordingly, you must consider the particular rules and court guide provisions in the forum where your claim is proceeding when drawing up the Tomlin order...
Date [ date ] Parties [ name of Landlord ] [ of OR incorporated in England and Wales (company registration number [ number ]) with its registered office at ] [ address ] (Landlord) [ name of Tenant ] [ of OR incorporated in England and Wales (company registration number [ number ]) with its registered office at ] [ address ] (Tenant) [ [ name of Guarantor ] [ of OR incorporated in England and Wales (company registration number [ number ]) with its registered office at ] [ address ] (Guarantor) ] [ [ name of Mortgagee ] [ of OR incorporated in England and Wales (company registration number [ number ]) with its registered office at ] [ address ] (Mortgagee) ] Definitions Within this Deed, the terms below shall be interpreted as follows: [ Annual Rent • the annual sum reserved under the Lease; ] [ Insurance Rent • the Tenant’s share of the Landlord’s costs of insuring the Property (as set out in the Lease); ] Lease • the lease of the Property dated [ date ], entered into between (1) [ the Landlord OR [ name ...
I, [ name ], of [ address ], solemnly and sincerely state that: [ Matters to be verified, set out in numbered paragraphs ] I make this solemn statement in good conscience, believing it to be true, and pursuant to the provisions of the Statutory Declarations Act 1835. DECLARED at [ details ] this [ day ] day of [ month and year ] Before me ................................................................................ [ signature of the person before whom the declaration is made ] A [ commissioner for oaths OR [ solicitor OR [ insert other qualification ] ] authorised to administer oaths ]...
Discover more from LexisNexis
