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Lucasfilm did not benefit in any way at Tyburn Film Productions Ltd's expense, counsel said to the appeals court there on 3 December 2025, in part because it already possessed rights over Cushing's likeness and an agreement and consent from the Cushing estate to 'resurrect' him as Grand Moff Tarkin. Tyburn contends it earlier made an agreement with the late actor then, at the time, granting the company a veto over any use of his image prior to his 1994 death. That contract concerns a TV series titled 'Heritage of Horror', which never aired. Tyburn further asserts the deal permits it to effectively 'resurrect' Cushing using stand-ins and CGI to ultimately finish the programme then if the actor were to die whilst filming remained in progress...
Irish telecom operator Eircom’s damages lawsuit against BT Group over a public-sector contract must be carefully managed to trial to deal with confidentiality issues and other matters, a UK judge told the parties today. At the High Court in London today, a judge said Eircom’s damages action against BT over a public-sector contract needs tight case management through to trial to address confidentiality and related concerns. Eircom brought the claim after Ofcom in 2020 penalised BT for its behaviour during a tender. Speaking to both sides, Judge Adam Johnson urged them to resolve any confidentiality flashpoints themselves and signalled he had no wish to step in unless it became unavoidable. He also expressed confidence that parties would do everything possible to keep confidential designations to a minimum, noting this was necessary to maintain control over the conduct of the trial. He framed this as the
The following document is attached: Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2026/274 dated 5 February 2026, revising Implementing Regulation (EU) 2025/1981, establishing a final anti-dumping levy on imports of ceramic tableware and kitchenware produced in...
Justice Richard Arnold granted AstraZeneca leave to appeal and permitted lorries carrying about 175,000 packs of Glenmark’s generics to move on to wholesalers, provided they did not reach pharmacy shelves while the case continued at any point during those interim proceedings. In this way, Glenmark could keep its first-to-market advantage, while causing only minimal detriment to AstraZeneca should the Court of Appeal later be persuaded to issue an injunction against supply. The judge said this approach maintained the status quo with the least possible prejudice to Glenmark’s position overall. The hearing was arranged at short notice, just days after the High Court refused AstraZeneca an injunction to block the diabetes generic from sale while the court considered whether the patents supporting the branded medicine were valid in law. Glenmark, Generics (UK) Ltd and Teva Pharmaceuticals have each begun proceedings in the UK to set...
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The FRC reported that nearly 300 asset managers, pension providers and others have signed on to the Code. They collectively oversee £50trn in assets under management and will now have clearer reporting requirements explaining how they intend to provide long-term value for investors. Richard Moriarty, the FRC’s Chief Executive, said in a statement that the refreshed code prioritises long-term, sustainable value creation, trims unnecessary reporting and lifts the quality of engagement. The current signatories to the voluntary code include Black Rock Inc and HSBC Global Asset Management ( UK) Ltd, two of the largest asset managers. The FRC said it brought in the changes after more than 1,500 discussions with relevant businesses. The simplified Code has been introduced following a four-month consultation that concluded in February 2025......
In this issue: Free webinars Probate Court of Protection UK taxes for Private Client Tax avoidance, evasion and non-compliance HMRC Manuals updates Family businesses and ownership structures 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+® community New and updated content Dates for your diary Trackers Useful information Free webinars Free webinars on costs in contentious estates and Will validity issues We’re delighted to highlight recent sessions from Lexis Nexis Webinars. To view and browse the full on‑demand catalogue in Lexis Nexis University, use the credentials below; the webinar will be ready to ‘launch’ within the Private Client area. The links remain active until 13 June. Costs in...
Britain’s buoyant legal tech scene is, courts and legal services minister Sarah Sackman KC said, indeed exceptionally well placed to drive innovation and open fresh opportunities, speaking in the opening keynote at the main London International Disputes Week conference. Growth, Sackman — a former barrister at Matrix Chambers — told delegates, as we all recognise, does not arrive by chance; it must be constructed on robust, firm foundations: certainty, trust, and a climate that encourages invention. She told the room that, to stay on the cutting edge, the sector’s laws, legal processes and technology have to keep step with the needs of the modern world today. Innovation, she went on, is no longer a matter of choice......
What did the review look at and why? The review commenced in October 2024 to explore ways to bolster the UK's enforcement model. Overall oversight sat with the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office ( FCDO), and it incorporated input from HM Treasury, the Department of Business and Trade, the Department of Transport, HM Revenue and Customs, and the National Crime Agency. Furthermore, the process also drew on further meetings with various cross industry sanctions specialists, academics, and others, informing its conclusions......
Independent fashion designer loses design right battle against Boohoo.com ( Edwards v Boohoo.com & others) Edwards v Boohoo.com UK Ltd and others [2025] EWHC 805 ( IPEC) What are the practical implications of the case? The Intellectual Property Enterprise Court ( IPEC) concluded that four of the five designs advanced by the claimant were valid, but not infringed, as there was no evidence that Boohoo had copied them. The ruling reasserts key legal principles on the subsistence of unregistered design rights and delineates the scope of design protection. Even so, the decision stands as a cautionary reminder of the exposure faced by designers who rely on unregistered rights to safeguard garment designs, particularly in the fast fashion arena, where the churn of new styles is exceptionally high. Thus, while most designs subsisted, the claim failed for lack of proof of copying. For designers in fast...
Subsidy control The Subsidy Advice Unit has agreed to prepare a report giving guidance to the Department for Business and Trade on its proposed Transformation and Network Investment subsidy for Post Office Limited—see the case page. Note— For all decisions referred to the Subsidy Advice Unit under the Subsidy Control Act 2022, see the UK subsidy control—ongoing cases tracker. Upcoming dates: for forthcoming UK competition developments, see the UK Competition calendar......
What is the background to this consultation and how does it fit in with the IPO’s transformation programme? The IPO’s transformation programme is an ambitious upgrade designed to streamline how UK IP rights are filed, administered and contested. Its ambition is to provide a single, integrated digital platform spanning patents, trade marks, designs and IPO tribunal services. In 2022 the IPO ran a public consultation on the changes needed to underpin its forthcoming digital patents service, scheduled for release later on in 2025. The government’s reply, issued in August 2023, set out several legal and procedural adjustments necessary to support construction of that service. A further consultation followed in 2023 to shape the subsequent phase of the programme, this time covering trade marks, designs and tribunal services. The government’s response, published on 10 April 2025, confirmed its intended approach to a range of...
Banking & Finance— May 2025 case round-up Nationwide Building Society v The Bank of New York Mellon, London Branch and another company [2025] EWHC 1046 ( Comm) Debt capital markets—notes not admitted to listing Nationwide issued proceedings against its solicitors, A& O Shearman ( A& O), claiming an approximate £83m tax detriment flowing from the omission to list notes, as pleaded by Nationwide. A& O, in response, pursued a contribution from BNY Mellon ( BNY), contending that BNY contributed to the non-listing. The central point was whether a signing and closing agenda (normally a process checklist) could impose a binding duty on BNY to confirm that the notes were listed. The Commercial Court refused BNY’s application for summary judgment, concluding that A& O’s case had a realistic prospect of success at this stage. It determined that whether the transaction suite, including the agenda, created...
See Q& A: To what extent can an executor sell estate properties and collect in the rest of the estate assets if they are put on notice of a claim under the Inheritance ( Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975? Assume the relevant properties are neither held under a joint tenancy—since otherwise they would then fall outside the estate automatically by the right of survivorship—nor subject to any limitations set out in the deceased’s Will, which may well apply where the properties are co-owned as tenants in common. Under the Inheritance ( Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975 ( I( PFD) A 1975), an application must be lodged within six months from the date the grant of probate. Throughout that period, and for a further four months to permit service of proceedings, an executor should avoid distributing the estate or making final...
Mergers The Commission approved both: the takeover of sole control of Löhr & Becker by Van Mossel Automotive International ( M.11951) following a phase I review—see Midday Express the purchase of joint control of Next Gen Healthcare, Inc......
The Mayor and Commonality and Citizens of The City of London v 48th Street Holding Ltd and another company [2025] EWHC 1130 ( KB) What was the background? The second defendant (‘ POLL’) traded in devising rate mitigation schemes (the RMS) for empty premises for third parties. The first defendant, 48SHL, implemented one such arrangement and relied on it as a defence to a claim for non‑domestic rates. Under the arrangement, once relevant property fell vacant, section 45(1) of the Local Government Finance Act 1988 together with the Non‑ Domestic Rating ( Unoccupied Property) ( England) Regulations 2008, SI 2008/386, regs 3 and 4a, operated to confer an exemption from liability for unoccupied rates for three months and, on the expiry of that three‑month period. To facilitate this, 48SHL granted POLL a lease of the premises and, at the same time, served a break notice...
Employment Judge Peter Mc Tigue In a ruling published on 23 May 2025, Employment Judge Peter Mc Tigue concluded that Nottinghamshire County Council, in central England, did not unfairly dismiss a teacher who had raised safeguarding concerns in relation to the school’s direction to use a child’s chosen gender. He found that her dismissal in 2022 stemmed from misconduct. The decision records that she had on numerous occasions used the school’s Child Protection Online Monitoring System ( CPOMS) to view the child’s information without authorisation. According to the 82-page decision, she offered the disciplinary panel no assurance that, if allowed to return to her role, she would refrain from using CPOMS without proper authority......
The Employment Appeal Tribunal ( EAT) The EAT found that the ET’s direction requiring the Home Office to share the ‘gist’ of its defence to Mohammed Shah’s sex discrimination claim overstated the tribunal’s capacity to balance the parties’ competing interests. Shah maintained that the EAT should not rely on the Home Office’s assertions made in ‘good faith’ and ought to interrogate its reasons for withholding material said to be vital to his case. Judge Simon Auerbach accepted the tribunal has ‘some role to play’ in rigorously testing the state’s national security position. However, he noted that deciding what is, or is not, in the interests of national security is, in principle, a function for the executive rather than the judiciary......
Eyre and others v HMRC [2025] UKFTT 566 ( TC) The case concerned the disposal of shares in Phoenix Spencer Sandbanks Ltd ( PSSL), a vehicle that had purchased a mixed‑use site in Poole and was proactively pursuing planning permission for its redevelopment. The appellants, serving as both directors and shareholders, then sought entrepreneurs’ relief under Chapter 3, Part 5 of the Taxation of Chargeable Gains Act 1992 ( TCGA 1992), contending the share sales amounted to ‘qualifying business disposals’. The FTT concluded that, in the critical and relevant one‑year window before the disposals, PSSL was not in fact conducting a trade at the time in question......
Mergers The Commission received notifications under the simplified procedure for: Multiply/ CVC/ PAI/ Tendam ( M.11943); Frasers/ XXL ( M.11874); Equitix/ Baltic Cable/ Greenlink ( M.11971); and APG/ MGETS/ Sky NRG ( M.12019). It also published the public version of its Kingspan/ NWG ( M.11309) decision—see further, decision. NOTE— For all live merger investigations, see further, EU mergers—ongoing cases tracker. Antitrust The Court of Justice held a hearing in Joined Cases C‑258/23 Imagens Médicas Integradas, C‑259/23 Synlabhealth II, and C‑260/23 SIBS – Sociedade Gestora de Participações Sociais and Others, Portuguese references asking whether, among other matters, Article 7 of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the EU precludes seizure of business records derived from e‑mail between managers and employees during an Article 101 TFEU investigation—see further, application ( C‑258/23), application ( C‑259/23), and application ( C‑260/23). The General Court heard Case...
What is the background to the consultation? The consultation, ‘ Local Government Pension Scheme in England and Wales: Access and fairness’, released on 15 May 2025, seeks to fundamentally enhance fairness in, and access to, the LGPS. It will examine five principal areas of concern: tackling survivor pensions and death grants reducing the gender pensions gap examining the high rate of opt-outs from the LGPS strengthening forfeiture provisions delivery of the Mc Cloud remedy What is being proposed? The document explains that some proposals offer definitive resolutions to entrenched issues (for example, securing equal survivor benefit entitlement), while others begin longer-term work (including measures to reduce the gender pensions gap). We highlight two central reforms: revisions to survivor benefits and actions to improve the gender pensions gap. Survivor benefit entitlement Currently, survivors in same-sex marriages, survivors in same-sex civil partnerships, and female survivors of opposite-sex marriages and opposite-sex civil...
Subsidy control The Government has issued the Subsidy Control ( Subsidy Database Information Requirements) ( Amendment) Regulations 2025 ( SI 2025/635) (the Regulations). Designed to reduce and rationalise reporting duties on public authorities, the Regulations cover entries made on the UK Subsidy Database. They will take effect on 18 June 2025—see Regulations for further information. The Government published a draft of the Subsidy Control ( Subsidies and Schemes of Interest or Particular Interest) ( Amendment) Regulations 2025 (the Regulations). ......
Domestic Department of Finance consults on Distance Marketing of Consumer Financial Services On 11 April 2025, the Department of Finance ( Do F) issued a regulatory impact assessment presenting its Public Consultation on the Distance Marketing of Consumer Financial Services Directive (( EU) 2023/2673), seeking views on the Directive’s transposition. The measure recognises the effects of digitalisation on the financial services market and engages with sectoral legislation. Chapter 3 details the discretions within the new regime, and the Do F is inviting feedback on these. The consultation concluded on 2 May 2025. Responses will inform decisions on the optimal method of transposing the Directive... CBI announces appointment of new Director of Policy and International On 29 April 2025, the Central Bank of Ireland ( CBI) confirmed Micheál O’ Keeffe as Director of Policy and International. O’ Keeffe currently serves as Senior Adviser to Minister Pascal Donohoe in his role as...
On 28 May 2025, FCA chief executive Nikhil Rathi confirmed the regulator will release interim conclusions on premium finance arrangements in summer 2025. He noted a distinct report on how home and travel insurance claims are processed will follow in due course. The FCA opened its premium finance probe in October 2024, covering models where policyholders spread the cost of annual cover over monthly instalments instead of paying upfront. Under these set-ups, insurers may impose eye-wateringly steep interest charges on repayments, in these types of agreements. The......
What was the background to the consultation? What was proposed? On 14 November 2024, the Df E opened a consultation examining adjustments to member contribution rates and the extension of Fair Deal to further education institutions within the TPS. The department requested feedback on potential increases to member rates after the 2020 scheme valuation indicated a lower-than-expected member contribution yield. In the TPS, members collectively are expected to contribute 9.6% of pay across the entire membership — the ‘member contribution yield’ — yet the 2020 estimate came in at 9.45%. The consultation papers highlighted that, if contribution rates were left unchanged, the resulting shortfall in member payments would need to be met by employers and, in the end, the taxpayer. Consequently, the Df E consulted on keeping the current six-tier contribution model, while raising the member contribution rates for tiers 2 to 6 by 0.3...
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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 ]...
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