Legal News

Mahmood steps into the role After serving nine months as shadow Justice Secretary from September to May, she now succeeds Alex Chalk, who failed to retain his seat. Known for legal reform campaigns — from tackling rogue landlords to pressing for cladding remediation in homes after the Grenfell Tower fire — she brings a strong track record. In her new brief, Mahmood will head the Ministry of Justice, setting direction and priorities for the UK’s judicial strategy and overseeing resourcing. A priority will be managing the operation and capacity of the country’s overcrowded courts and prisons. Birmingham-born, she read law at Lincoln College, University of Oxford, graduating in 2002. She entered Parliament at the 2010 election following a period at the bar, and has held her seat in Parliament ever since......

L v R [2024] HKCFI 1611 What are the practical implications of this case? The High Court held that a procedural order bringing an arbitration to a formal end may amount to an arbitral award, emphasising that it is the substance of a decision, not the tribunal’s label, that fixes its legal status. Because orders and awards are subject to different enforcement regimes and thus varying levels of judicial scrutiny, tribunals should carefully anticipate how Hong Kong courts are likely to characterise their determinations in enforcement or challenge proceedings. Likewise, counsel should take care when deciding whether, and by what route, to contest a tribunal’s decision issued as a procedural order. In separating procedural orders from awards, practitioners must carefully concentrate on the decision’s substantive effect. Key considerations include whether the order is intended to conclude the arbitration or merely deal with...

Jump to: Editor's picks—the practice area/sector view New and updated Brexit related content Lex Talk®Brexit: a Lexis®Nexis community Useful information Editor's picks—the practice area/sector view This section showcases key Brexit updates curated by Lexis+®UK lawyers from their respective practice areas. Life Sciences New EU clinical evaluation guidance for orphan medical devices Guidance on evaluating orphan medical devices clinically has been issued by the Medical Device Coordination Group ( MDCG). Regulation ( EU) 2017/745, the Medical Devices Regulations ( MDR), has raised the level of clinical evidence that is required to place medical devices on the market, including for orphan medical devices (ie devices or accessories for rare diseases). This creates difficulties for orphan devices, as small patient populations make meeting the higher clinical evidence threshold challenging, and the guidance acknowledges that manufacturers might need to depend more on post-market studies and non-clinical data to support adequately these products......

Aegon has called on Keir Starmer’s party to concentrate on priorities. It is pressing Labour to enhance auto-enrolment in workplace pension saving schemes and provide help for those struggling to put enough aside. The firm is asking the incoming administration to deliver the long-postponed Pension Dashboards Programme ( PDP), which it believes could transform how people view and control their retirement pots. Aegon added that, should a commission be created, it should examine earlier government proposals alongside Labour’s agenda and decide which measures merit continuation, revision or scrapping. Steven Cameron, Aegon UK’s pensions director, noted that Labour’s pledged assessment of the pensions landscape may carry wide-ranging consequences for occupational and personal pensions. Given pensions’ role as a crucial long-term savings vehicle for millions, he cautioned against hasty reform, stressing that changes must not be rushed......

Labour’s manifesto offered scant detail on commercial disputes or the broader legal sector, bar proposals to expedite certain criminal cases through the courts at pace. And, in contrast to the Conservatives, Labour conspicuously omitted key legislative measures on arbitration and class actions from its manifesto entirely. Dispute resolution practitioners will look closely to see if Labour resumes the work started under the Conservative administration in this arena. Here, Law360 sets out what to anticipate from the new government under Prime Minister Keir Starmer now. Picking up the torch Lawyers and the litigation funding industry were left in limbo when a proposed bill drafted to reverse the effects of the 2023 Supreme Court decision, known as PACCAR, was not taken forward in the ‘wash-up’ period before Parliament was formally dissolved. The bill, which had received a second reading in the upper House of Lords, was...

Kendall, who represents Leicester West in the Midlands, is set to head the Department for Work and Pensions ( DWP) after serving as shadow secretary from September 2023. She succeeds the former officeholder, Conservative MP Mel Stride, who kept hold of Central Devon even as the Conservative Party endured a heavy loss in the national vote. Kendall, a 2015 contender for the Labour leadership, takes her Cabinet seat amid scrutiny over the outlook for the state pension. Labour’s manifesto upholds the triple lock, guaranteeing that the state pension rises by 2.5%, average earnings growth or inflation — whichever proves greater, committing to raise payments by the strongest of those indicators as pledged in its manifesto......

Original news Mr N, Mr E and Mrs E ( CAS-43783- B9R4, CAS-65180- W1S8, CAS-65175- F2D7)—4 December 2023 Summary The Pensions Ombudsman found in favour of a complaint concerning a hold-up in selling a pension scheme’s investments. The administrator of the scheme committed maladministration by dispatching investment instructions to an incorrect address. That maladministration gave rise to a possible investment shortfall and also stalled transfers to a self‑invested personal pension scheme. The Ombudsman’s decision serves as a reminder that administrative delays can result in investment loss. What were the facts? Mr N and Mr and Mrs E were trustee members of the Old Boys Trust (the Scheme), a small self‑administered scheme ( SSAS) run by Hartley Pensions Limited ( Hartley). In March 2019, Mr and Mrs E met a financial adviser to consider reorganising the Scheme’s investments and Mr N’s intended move of his share of the Scheme...

Original news Mrs T ( CAS-70350- K4M9)—19 December 2023 Summary The DPO has dismissed a complaint concerning a pension provider’s alleged failure to highlight the suitability of investments that had markedly fallen in value shortly before the complainant’s retirement. The provider had not undertaken any obligation to give unsolicited advice. The complainant had been directed to obtain advice and could have sourced further information from a range of places if unhappy with the investment outcomes. The DPO’s decision underscores how vital it is for pension providers to explain investment funds, and for members to seek appropriate advice... What were the facts? Mrs T was a member of the Aegon Retiready Pension (the Scheme), which was operated by Aegon. Mrs T placed her Scheme retirement account into a ‘lifestyle fund’. Some (but......

Original news Mrs S ( CAS-13504- S4M0) — 20 February 2024. Summary The PO has partly upheld a complaint concerning recovery of an overpaid lump sum and pension. The claimant succeeded with a change of position argument for the lump sum because, if the correct amount had been paid, she would not have gone ahead with a new bathroom. Conversely, she had no defence regarding the pension overpayments, as she would have taken out a funeral plan in any case. Even so, the Scheme failed to exercise its discretion on whether to pursue repayment of the pension overpayment and was directed to revisit that decision. This ruling serves as a reminder that those relying on a change of position must prove they spent money on something they would not otherwise have purchased... What were the facts? Mrs S was a member of the Teachers’ Pension Scheme (the...

Original news Mr R ( CAS-60559- J2R8) – 8 February 2024 Summary The PO found in favour of a member who claimed a brief pension transfer delay cost him a lucrative investment opening. The complainant was a seasoned investor employed in the finance sector. His complaint centred on the contention that the short transfer lag denied him the chance to invest in Japanese equities at the appropriate time, and the PO accepted that he would have made that investment had the transfer been completed promptly. Because of the delay, he missed a material rise in that market during the period in question. This ruling stands as a warning to providers that even minor transfer slippage can lead to a sizeable claim for loss of investment opportunity, and demonstrates how small delays can have large...

Labour has, for now, chosen consensus on key matters such as the state pension triple lock. Even so, the new administration has indicated that reform remains a possibility through its pledge to conduct a broad pensions review, according to experts. The review’s remit is yet to be defined, though Labour’s manifesto said it would look at ‘what further steps are needed to improve security in retirement, as well as to increase productive investment in the UK economy’. Calum Cooper, head of pension policy innovation at Hymans Robertson, called such a review ‘desperately needed’. He further argued that, to be genuinely effective, it should be led by an independent pensions commission, noting: ‘ This is about delivering later life security for today’s workers and generations to come and not a game of party politics’. The areas the review could examine, and its...

Antitrust Commission announces Visa and Mastercard voluntary continue their antitrust commitments on inter-regional fees beyond November 2024 The Commission released a statement recognising that Visa and Mastercard will, on a voluntary basis, prolong the commitments that the Commission accepted on 29 April 2019 under Article 9 of Regulation 1/2003. These undertakings were designed to tackle concerns that Visa’s and Mastercard’s inter-regional interchange charges on debit and credit card transactions contravened Article 101 TFEU. Inter-regional interchange fees refer to charges levied on purchases within the EEA where the payment card was issued outside the EEA. This continuation will apply beyond November 2024, covering debit and credit transactions......

Original news Mr S ( CAS-64392- H8Z8) – 5 February 2024. Summary The DPO declined a grievance about the pension transfer checks carried out by a scheme. The ceding scheme had undertaken sufficient checks with HMRC and the destination scheme, aligned with the then-current regulatory guidance. No warning signs were identified, and the matter should not be assessed through hindsight. This decision underlines that transfer due diligence is evaluated against the guidance in force at the material time, and not by later standards or outcomes. What were the facts? Mr S belonged to the Blue Sky Heritage Pension Scheme (the Scheme). In January 2013, Mr S set in motion a transfer of his Scheme benefits to a Small Self- Administered Pension Scheme (the SSAS)......

Original news Mr L ( CAS-65532- W1D0)—6 December 2023 Summary The DPO dismissed a complaint about a slowdown in administering the payment of a lump sum for a member holding fixed protection. A brief delay occurred in liquidating investments after the member requested a tax-free lump sum. The DPO decided that a wait of just a few days was reasonable, and that even if the request had been handled faster there would have been no loss on investments. This determination serves as a reminder that pension schemes should not unduly delay acting on a member’s instructions. Accordingly, the complaint was rejected by the DPO at that time, as reasonable action... What were the facts?......

The Irish housebuilder said the buyback includes a new €40m repurchase plan together with the remaining €5m from its prior buyback initiative announced in the 2023 financial year. The share reacquisition programme, to be executed by Goodbody Stockbrokers UC and Numis Securities Ltd, could run until 30 June 2025, subject to elements such as trading conditions and the group’s continuing capital needs. Legal counsel details for Cairn were not immediately available. ' The aim of the share buyback programme is to reduce the company’s issued capital', Cairn said, adding that the repurchased stock will be cancelled. Cairn could initially......

The Labour Manifesto Labour’s manifesto, titled ‘ Change’, was released ahead of the General Election. It outlines a programme of actions the party vowed to deliver once in office, as has now occurred. The document says ‘ the climate and nature crisis is the greatest long-term global challenge that we face’ and that ‘ economic growth, energy security, lower bills, and addressing climate change can be complementary ’. Consequently, most green commitments sit in the second of five missions to ‘rebuild Britain’, focused on making ‘ Britain a clean energy superpower’. At the heart of this is the Green Prosperity Plan, which—working with business through a National Wealth Fund—will invest to help the most energy intensive sectors decarbonise. The Manifesto also pledges action on the nature emergency, addressing pollution in rivers and seas, widening access to nature, supporting...

Insurance Europe and the European Insurance CFO Forum warned in a 3 July 2024 position paper that the current limitations give an incomplete view of insurers’ sustainability, putting the industry at a competitive handicap versus others. The EU’s taxonomy rule sets out which activities are sustainable for use in mandatory disclosures by insurers and other companies. It aims to shield investors from misleading claims about sustainability levels. The required reporting is anchored in key performance indicators, or KPIs, designed to reflect sustainability levels in investments and the premiums collected to profitably cover insurance risk. Insurers must disclose how much of their investing and underwriting is taxonomy-eligible, meaning it serves its environmental aims, such as climate change adaptation. However, there are several shortcomings which mean the insurance taxonomy KPIs as currently framed, in their present form and scope, remain...

News: Miss D ( CAS-58806- H1J6) — 20 February 2024 Summary The DPO dismissed a complaint about wrong information provided to members on the earliest age a member could retire without an actuarial reduction for taking benefits early. Although the statements were negligent and the complainant acted in good faith, she had not sustained any financial loss. The error was made many years before her retirement, and she should have checked the position when she retired. She also failed to mitigate any loss by choosing a reduced pension then available. This decision is a reminder that members must be able to demonstrate financial loss in a negligent misstatement claim. What were the facts? Miss D became a deferred member of the Local Government Pension Scheme (the Scheme) on 29 March 2006. The Scheme wrote to her the following month ( April) stating that a full pension would be...

Labour’s manifesto, ‘ Change’, set out a programme the party vowed to deliver once in government, a position it has now achieved. The stream of reform in property law and measures touching the property industry — the Leasehold Reform ( Ground Rent) Act 2022, the Levelling-up and Regeneration Act 2023 ( LURA 2023) and the Building Safety Act 2022 ( BSA 2022) — shows no sign of slowing now Labour holds power. Reforms from recent years continue to shape the property landscape, with no indication of abatement under the new government. Labour’s position suggests continuity rather than pause in this agenda for now. Leasehold and enfranchisement reform The incoming administration must progress the Leasehold and Freehold Reform Act 2024 ( LFRA 2024), which secured Royal Assent in the ‘wash up’ on Parliament’s final day before dissolution. Most of LFRA 2024 will be commenced by...

Private actions CAT dismisses application by certain local authorities to strike out pass-on defence in trucks damages litigation The CAT has delivered its decision in Adur District Council & Others v TRATON SE & Others, dealing with an effort by Adur District Council and several other claimants to secure strike out or summary judgment against aspects of the defendants’ mitigation of overcharge contentions. Those points were advanced by the truck manufacturers in response to the claimants’ damages claim, which is grounded in the European Commission’s decisions determining that certain EEA truck makers took part in an unlawful cartel, contrary to Article 101 TFEU......