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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 Sole traders, informal partnerships and outdated partnership deeds are common.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
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In this issue: UK mergers UK antitrust UK private actions UK competition policy UK market studies Daily and weekly news alerts New and updated content Caselex UK mergers CAT issues judgment refusing extension of time in Aramark challenge to CMA prohibition of merger The CAT handed down its judgment in Aramark Limited v CMA, concerning Aramark Limited’s ( Aramark) bid for extra time under Rule 25(3) of the CAT Rules 2015 (the CAT’s 2015 Rules) to lodge a notice of application under section 120 of the Enterprise Act 2002, seeking review of the CMA’s decision to block the Aramark/ Entier merger. The CAT declined to grant the extension. Background On 15 January 2026, the CMA published its final report following its phase 2 investigation into the completed Aramark/ Entier deal, ordering Aramark to unwind the merger (the CMA’s 2026...
Antitrust AG considers Latvian municipality not an ‘undertaking’ under Article 102 TFEU when organising in-house waste management Advocate General ( AG) Campos Sánchez- Bordona issued his opinion in Case C- 11/25 Jelgavas valstspilsētas pašvaldība v Konkurences padome, a reference from Latvia seeking clarification on whether Article 102 TFEU extends to a municipality’s decision to organise municipal waste services by directly awarding, via an in-house procedure, a long-term contract to a company in which it holds a majority interest. The AG suggested that the Court of Justice should declare that, where a municipality acts through its public authority prerogatives when organising municipal waste management, it cannot be treated as an ‘undertaking’ for the purposes of Article 102 TFEU. Background In 2004, Jelgava City Council ( City Council) set up SIA Jelgavas komunālie pakalpojumi ( SIA JKP), retaining 51% of the share capital and thus majority...
In this issue: Budgets and Finance Bills Employment taxes Taxes management and litigation Corporation tax VAT Daily and weekly news alerts New and updated content Latest Q& A Dates for your diary Trackers Useful information Budgets and Finance Bills Finance Bill 2026 substantively enacted On Wednesday, 11 March 2026, FB 2026 completed its report stage and third reading in the House of Commons. The government’s report stage amendments were approved, and the Bill is now treated as substantively enacted for IFRS and UK GAAP. To monitor changes as the Bill proceeds through Parliament, see: Tax— Finance Bill 2026 tracker—progress through Parliament. HMRC publishes updated explanatory notes to FB 2026 HMRC has issued explanatory notes covering the government’s amendments tabled for the report stage of FB 2026. As noted above, these amendments were passed on...
In this issue: Sanctions Other financial crime Artificial intelligence & information security Other Practice Compliance updates this week Daily and weekly news alerts Trackers New and updated content Sanctions DBT and FCDO publish guidance on Belarus sanctions licensing considerations and exceptions The Department for Business and Trade ( DBT) and the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office ( FCDO) have issued two fresh guidance notes under the UK’s Belarus sanctions framework, covering licensing factors and automatic exceptions. The DBT note acts as a look-up tool setting out what is weighed when granting trade sanctions licences across 12 areas, such as military interception and monitoring equipment, and machinery-related goods and technology. It explains when licences might be approved, including for humanitarian aims, safety and maintenance requirements, and medical or pharmaceutical purposes. The FCDO guidance on automatic exceptions defines where activities otherwise caught by sanctions may proceed without a licence, including matters involving personal effects and...
In this issue: Standard form construction contracts Building safety Expert Determination Litigation Arbitration Environmental issues Planning in construction Daily and weekly news alerts New and updated content Construction trackers Standard form construction contracts The SBCC Minor Works 2024 edition—what’s changed? On 26 February 2026, the SBCC unveiled its refreshed 2024 Minor Works contracts, replacing the 2016 Editions, with revised versions of the principal traditional contracts and the design and build forms to arrive later in the year. Michael Conroy, Partner and Head of the Construction & Engineering Practice at Harper Macleod LLP, sets out the headline amendments for the SBCC 2024 standard form suite and their anticipated practical effect. See News Analysis: The SBCC Minor Works 2024 edition—what’s changed? Building safety BSR rejects remedial scheme leading to split trial ( Woodland Court v RCGM Ltd &...
In this issue: Tax treatment Regulatory Budgets, Autumn Statements and Finance Bills Corporate governance Useful information Dates for your diary Weekly highlights from other practice areas Tax treatment FTT rules that shares issued by the appellant were employment-related securities, and that disposals above market value triggered income tax and NICs ( Cooper Vision Lens Care Ltd v HMRC). The UK First-tier Tribunal ( Tax) for the most part dismissed the appellant’s challenge to HMRC’s conclusion that it ought to have operated PAYE and accounted for Class 1 National Insurance contributions on sums paid to three of the four shareholders on the company’s sale in 2014. The shareholders had, between themselves, agreed a non-proportionate division of the consideration, under which certain majority holders took a larger slice than they would have received on a strict pro rata basis. HMRC maintained that the uplift over market value was taxable as income and subject to NICs under...
In this issue: Disputes and remedies Repairing obligations and dilapidations Service charges Contractual issues Rent and rates Enforcing security and property insolvency Property disputes in Scotland Additional Property Disputes updates Lex Talk® Property Disputes: a Lexis®Nexis community Daily and weekly news alerts New and updated content Dates for your diary Trackers Latest Q& As Disputes and remedies Costs application following a partly successful rights to light claim ( Cooper v Ludgate House) In Cooper v Ludgate House Ltd [2026] EWHC 484 ( Ch), the Chancery Division addressed costs after a decision where flat leaseholders proved both rights to light and their infringement by the developer’s project. Damages in lieu were ordered on a negotiating basis—£350,000 for Mr Cooper and £500,000 for the Powells—while an injunction compelling the defendant to reduce the...
In this issue: Pension reforms Taxation Pensions fraud and scams Daily and weekly news alerts Dates for your diary Trackers Pension reforms DWP policy paper sets out direction for DC scale measure reforms ahead of future regulatory consultation The Department for Work and Pensions has issued a paper outlining its policy principles on scale measures, a key strand of the Pension Schemes Bill’s broad reforms aimed at moving smaller defined contribution arrangements into fewer, larger multi‑employer schemes to boost efficiency, governance and long‑term value for members. The paper signals the government’s intended approach to these scale measures in advance of a full consultation on regulations following the Bill’s royal assent, and confirms it neither replaces formal consultation nor seeks to prejudge the final regulatory framework. Under the government’s scale requirement, from 2030 multi‑employer DC schemes must hold at least £25bn within a main default arrangement ( MSDA) to continue receiving...
The SFO’s role The Serious Fraud Office ( SFO) plays a pivotal role in any year as a matter of course. Yet the news—barely weeks into 2026—that its director, Nick Ephgrave, is stepping aside presents another challenge for the body. The consequences could shape much of the SFO’s work from hereon in, and it is still uncertain whether the organisation can sustain the drive and focus Ephgrave brought since his arrival in 2023. Graham Mc Nulty has been named interim director, taking up the role in April, with no shortage of matters competing for his time and attention. It is also worth noting that Ephgrave’s exit was disclosed only weeks after the government unveiled its new strategy to combat corruption (see below). The specifics of that strategy remain sparse for now. Whether this heralds shifts in the SFO’s in-tray and/or a heavier or lighter...
In this issue: Arbitration in England and Wales Institutional and ad hoc arbitration International arbitration Investment treaty arbitration Other arbitration and ADR-related news and developments Daily and weekly news alerts New and updated content Useful information Arbitration in England and Wales The Commercial Court addressed an application to determine a preliminary point of law under section 45 of the Arbitration Act 1996 arising from an ongoing investor arbitration under the 1976 UNCITRAL Arbitration Rules. In The Republic of India v CC Devas ( Mauritius) Ltd [2026] EWHC 156 ( Comm), India applied under section 45 in relation to the Tribunal’s procedural directions on the identity of the parties’ legal representatives in an English-seated investor–state arbitration. That arbitration involves India as respondent and three Mauritian companies as claimants pursuant to the 1998 bilateral investment treaty between India and the...
National Investment and Security Act 2021 Government responds to consultation on proposed reforms to the NSI Act 2021 mandatory notification regime The UK Government has released its consultation response ( CP 1529) on planned revisions to the National Security and Investment Act 2021 ( Notifiable Acquisition) ( Specification of Qualifying Entities) Regulations 2021 (the NARs), which set the boundaries of the mandatory notification requirements under the National Security and Investment Act 2021. Launched in July 2025, the consultation came after the Government’s 2024 statutory review of the NARs and earlier engagement with stakeholders via the 2023 Call for Evidence. The Government has confirmed it will advance a suite of targeted amendments to the NARs, ensuring the regime continues to capture national security risks within sensitive areas of the UK economy, whilst minimising the burden on low-risk transactions. Secondary legislation will be...
In this issue: UK, EU and international regulators and bodies Prudential requirements Operational resilience Financial crime and sanctions Investigations, enforcement and discipline Regulation of capital markets Sustainable finance and ESG Banks and mutuals Regulation of insurance Payment services and systems Fintech and cryptoassets Dates for your diary New and updated content Financial Services Enforcement Database Daily and weekly news alerts Lex Talk®Financial Services: a Lexis®Nexis community UK, EU and international regulators and bodies FCA issues CP26/8: Quarterly Consultation Paper No. 51. The Financial Conduct Authority ( FCA) has released CP26/8, its fifty-first Quarterly Consultation Paper. Source: CP26/8: Quarterly consultation paper No. 51. Prudential requirements The European Commission has adopted a Delegated Regulation updating the regulatory technical standards contained in Delegated Regulation ( EU) 2023/206, aligning references and terminology following amendments to Regulation ( EU) No 575/2013 (the Capital Requirements Regulation— EU CRR). The RTS detail the kinds of factors that national authorities should consider when judging the suitability of...
In this issue: Data protection e Privacy Daily and weekly news alerts New and updated content Data protection Government launches consultation on introduction of voluntary digital ID for public services The Cabinet Office, working alongside the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology, has opened a consultation on proposals to create a voluntary national digital identity document ( ID) for use when accessing public services. The exercise invites opinions on the planned system’s design, scope and governance. The government’s aim is for the digital ID to build upon existing identity verification frameworks. Participation would be optional, with no legal duty to acquire or present it, and established non-digital routes to public services would continue to be available. The consultation also requests views on topics such as the minimum qualifying age, the data elements to appear on the digital ID (for example, proof of...
Mergers The Commission authorised: the acquisition of joint control over Ryan, LLC by NB Alternatives Advisers LLC, Ares Management Corporation, G. Brint Ryan, and Onex Corporation ( M.12322) following a phase I investigation—see also Midday Express the acquisition of sole control over Lecta Paper Industries Intermediate Financing S.à r.l. by Apollo Capital Management, L. P.......
See Practice Notes: Tracker of Part VII transfer schemes hearing dates 2026: This Practice Note collates significant hearing dates, either proposed or shown in the High Court, Insolvency and Companies Court ( Chancery Division) daily cause list, commencing from 1......
A refreshed second version of the EU code of practice for generative AI has been presented to developers and users, featuring milder, adaptable pledges and generally softer, more flexible commitments overall. Under the EU’s AI Act, makers of tools such as Open AI’s Chat GPT and Anthropic’s Claude must tag synthetic outputs in machine-readable form, while users must flag deepfakes and other material of public significance. This updated voluntary code, intended to help meet the Act’s transparency rules and facilitate compliance, scales back several proposals, recasting elements judged to exceed the AI Act’s remit as optional actions rather than firm obligations. The text adds that the European Commission will further define the reach of transparency duties and any exceptions in forthcoming guidance to accompany the code, clarifying how scope and related carve-outs should apply in...
Lanesborough 2000 LLC v Nextres LLC , No. 24-2211 (2d Cir. 2026) What are the practical implications of the case? In Lanesborough 2000, the Second Circuit ruled that a purported waiver of the ‘right to appeal’ cannot foreclose appellate scrutiny where its wording admits more than one plausible reading. The panel deemed the provision ambiguous because it was uncertain whether it swept in every possible appeal, including a district court’s post-award orders, or was confined to challenges to the arbitral award itself. The decision underscores that courts will parse waiver clauses with care, and that uncertainty will generally favour permitting an appeal. The court also cautioned that even text that appears plain may still fail where the waiver is excessively expansive or relies on catch-all phrasing. By way of illustration, language declaring that an arbitrator’s decision ‘shall not be subject to any type of review or...
Mergers The Commission approved: the acquisition of joint control over Ryan, LLC by NB Alternatives Advisers LLC, Ares Management Corporation, G. Brint Ryan, and Onex Corporation ( M.12322) following a phase I investigation—see further Midday Express the acquisition of sole control of Lecta Paper Industries Intermediate Financing S.à r.l. by Apollo Capital Management, L. P.......
Private actions CAT issues judgment granting partial strike out in Gutmann collection action against Apple over ‘battery throttling’ The CAT has handed down its ruling in Mr Justin Gutmann v Apple Inc., Apple Distribution International Limited, and Apple Retail UK Limited, regarding an application by Apple Inc., Apple Distribution International Limited, and Apple Retail UK Limited (together, Apple) seeking summary judgment and/or to strike out collective proceedings brought by Mr Justin Gutmann (the Class Representative) under section 47B of the Competition Act 1998. Background In 2022, the Class Representative sought to commence opt-out collective proceedings under section 47B of the Competition Act 1998 against Apple, alleging abuse of dominance arising from its management of battery problems and the deployment of performance management features ( PMF) in certain i Phone models......
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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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