Legal News

The Boston Consulting Group UK LLP and others v HMRC [2024] UKFTT 84 ( TC) The appellants were individual partners of a management consulting firm that carried on business in the UK via a UK LLP, together with that LLP. The core question concerned the proper tax characterisation of amounts received by those individuals when disposing of particular interests in the LLP known as ‘ Capital Interests’. These Capital Interests were granted to partners and their value rose or fell in line with the group’s worldwide performance. Under the terms of the limited partnership agreement, in specified events—including retirement—an individual was obliged to transfer their interests to the LLP’s corporate partner ( BCG Ltd). The appellants argued that, as partnership interests, the disposal proceeds should be assessed to capital gains, benefitting from entrepreneurs’ relief. HMRC contended that the sums were chargeable as income. On the...

Fasano v (1) Reckitt Benckiser Group Plc (2) Reckitt Benckiser Health Ltd [2024] EAT 7 What are the practical implications of this judgment? This decision makes plain that Eq A 2010, s 109 allows no room for a ‘purposive’ interpretation, even where that leads to the undesirable result that a claimant has no remedy for discriminatory treatment. The EAT affirmed the employment tribunal’s rejection of an indirect age discrimination claim brought by a retired employee who was denied payment under a long-term incentive plan ( LTIP) after the employer’s parent company changed the rules to promote staff retention. That said, the EAT found the tribunal’s approach to agency under Eq A 2010, s 109 to be perverse and unsustainable. On orthodox common law principles, there was no sound footing for the tribunal’s conclusion that the parent company was acting as the employer’s agent so as to fix the...

Mergers The CMA opened a call for views on Theramex HQ UK Limited’s purchase of specified rights in Viatris Inc’s Femoston and Duphaston products—see further, case page The CMA began a call for views on the anticipated acquisition of Telegraph Media Group by Red Bird IMI—see further, case page NOTE— For every live merger before the CMA, see further, UK mergers—ongoing cases tracker NOTE— For an overview of ongoing and completed merger transactions where the UK government has intervened on public interest grounds under the Enterprise Act 2022, see further, Government interventions on public interest grounds—merger cases tracker Upcoming dates For dates of forthcoming UK competition developments, see further, UK Competition calendar......

2024 On 1 February 2024, Hymans Robertson signalled it expects heightened competition among insurers for buy-ins, with the sector heading towards a record wave of multibillion-pound transactions this year. Ongoing improvements in scheme funding over recent years have prompted a marked increase in retirement plans aiming to pass their liabilities to insurers, a process referred to as pension risk transfer. In these arrangements, corporate defined benefit schemes hand over part or all of their obligations to an insurer in return for a single, upfront premium. Hymans Robertson also suggested more schemes are set to shed liabilities, forecasting that 2024 will deliver another record for buy-in activity—overtaking the £50bn recorded last year......

Assimilated Regulation ( EU) 2015/2120 Assimilated Regulation ( EU) 2015/2120 initially applied in the UK by virtue of the nation’s EU membership. Once IP completion day had passed, the instrument became part of retained EU law. Owing to the Retained EU Law ( Revocation and Reform) Act 2023 ( REUL( RR) A 2023), from the close of 2023 it has instead sat within the corpus now described as assimilated law. That category is handled somewhat differently from retained EU law: the supremacy principle that once attached to the latter no longer bites on assimilated law, and does not apply to it. Nevertheless, despite this alteration in status and treatment, Assimilated Regulation ( EU) 2015/2120 still provides the cornerstone of the UK’s net neutrality regime and, as such, remains a principal reference point for Ofcom’s guidance. What were the key findings in Ofcom’s review of net...

Folds Farm Trustees Ltd and another company v Cutts and others [2024] EWHC 12 ( Ch) What are the practical implications of this case? This claim illustrates trustees seeking the court’s approval for a decision in category 2 of Public Trustee v Cooper [2001] WTLR 901 (not reported by Lexis Nexis®UK), on the basis that the step was considered ‘particularly momentous’. There was no meaningful uncertainty about the extent of the trustees’ powers, and they had already determined how they intended to use them. Points of practical note for practitioners included: At a directions hearing, the court permitted reliance on updated expert evidence and, unusually, ordered the trustees’ witnesses (their directors) to attend the final hearing for cross-examination. At the final hearing, the Master observed, in the context of valuing real property, that appointments out of assets held on...

R (on the application of Fiske) v Test Valley Borough Council [2023] EWCA Civ 1495 What are the practical implications of this case? Overlapping planning permissions made the news after the Supreme Court’s decision in Hillside Parks [2022] UKSC 30, [2022] 1 WLR 5077 in late 2022, which prompted the sector across the industry as a whole to reassess how overlapping consents can continue to be implemented lawfully in practice. This Court of Appeal ruling addresses the stage before implementation, at issue: namely, whether an LPA may lawfully issue a permission that conflicts with an existing consent. It concludes that the answer is yes, with the court stressing that responsibility lies with the developer to assess any inconsistencies between consents and to decide how best to resolve them so as to avoid a breach of planning control. That message underscores the need to think...

Nilsson and another v Iqbal and another [2024] EWHC 49 ( Ch), [2024] All ER ( D) 68 ( Jan) What are the practical implications of the case? The decision confirms that a potential proprietary estoppel must be addressed even where it is not advanced by formal pleadings. The dispute was determined within a possession and sale application issued by Mr Iqbal’s trustee in bankruptcy, using an Insolvency Act 1986 application notice. Mrs Iqbal relied solely on witness statements to put forward a proprietary estoppel, without any application to serve formalised pleadings. The court nevertheless considered that defence and engaged with the point in its judgment. The ruling also serves as a reminder that unseating an express declaration of trust in a form TR1 is exceptionally challenging. The starting point is that such a declaration is conclusive. The three routes to displace the...

Amazon's move mirrors one by Google Google has likewise allowed its users to opt out of the automatic merging of data across its platforms, including online search, You Tube’s video-streaming service, and the Play Store. Following a weekend app update, Amazon let customers choose to ‘personalise’ its service, explaining that permitting data combination would ‘improve your Amazon experience including by using your browsing and order history along with other personal information about your use of Stores to make better recommendations across other Amazon services’. The change brings both companies closer in how they handle cross-service data policies......

Yesss ( A) Ltd v Warren [2024] EWCA Civ 14 What are the practical implications of this case? This judgment adds to the series of significant Court of Appeal decisions on relief from sanctions. It confirms that a late bid to adduce expert evidence, where the trial date is unaffected, is not a relief from sanctions application, so the Denton principles do not apply. In doing so, it resolves a clash in earlier High Court rulings on this issue. The ruling also has broader significance in two respects: It indicates that the notion of implied sanctions in the rules is tightly limited, apparently restricted to notices of appeal and respondent’s notices. As a material counterbalance to the overall tenor, it stresses that the shift towards stricter adherence to rules, orders and practice directions operates not only within the sanctions framework but also across...

Bramley Solar Farm Residents Group v Secretary of State for Levelling up Housing and Communities and others [2023] EWHC 2842 ( Admin) What are the practical implications of this case? The judgment offers a timely reminder of the core factors inspectors should weigh when an amended scheme is advanced on appeal. It confirms that inspectors enjoy discretion over whether to entertain a revised proposal at inquiry, and demonstrates that claimants face a steep hurdle to prove an inspector acted irrationally in addressing a revision. The case prompted updated government guidance on planning appeals in England, clarifying what matters are relevant when a scheme is altered after an appeal has been lodged. That guidance now expressly cites Holborn Studios Ltd v The Council of the London Borough of Hackney [2017] EWHC 2823 ( Admin). That judgment sharpened the ‘ Wheatcroft principles’ derived from Bernard...

On 31 January 2024, Economic Secretary to the Treasury Bim Afolami informed a committee of MPs that ministers intend to curb possible regulatory arbitrage arising from differences between the frameworks for superfunds and insurance firms, seeking to address the gap between regimes. Since 2020, the nascent defined benefit ( DB) superfund market has been working to interim rules set out by The Pensions Regulator. Despite repeatedly promising a lasting framework via primary legislation, the government has yet to deliver, close to four years later, and a permanent regime remains outstanding......

What is the background to the proposed new rules? The financial sector is witnessing a swift move from cash to purely digital payments. Back in 2007, cash accounted for 64% of transactions; by 2022, only 14% were cash based. Opportunities to obtain cash (for example, at a local bank or ATM) have also dropped markedly. Yet for many people—particularly those with limited financial resilience or who have vulnerable characteristics—cash access remains vital. In response, the FCA wants to protect the ability to get and use cash for members of society who still depend on cash-led transactions. Who would the new rules apply to? The proposed framework would affect three groups of organisations. Firms offering current accounts to personal or business customers that expect to be designated by the Treasury under Part 8B of the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 ( FSMA 2000). These firms would be...

Fosse Urban Projects Ltd v Whyte and another [2023] UKUT 286 ( LC) A recent Upper Tribunal ruling in Fosse Urban Projects Ltd v Whyte and another warns developers to resolve restrictive covenants before breaking ground. The outcome signals a shift from a well-known earlier case and shows the Tribunal is unlikely to use its discretion to lift or alter a covenant to endorse a scheme where a developer has intentionally and knowingly breached it purely for commercial motives... Background Fosse Urban Projects Ltd (the developer) secured planning permission in July 2021 to construct a dwelling on land burdened by a covenant limiting its use to “garden land” serving an “adjoining property”. The developer later applied to the Upper Tribunal in October 2022 under section 84(1) of the Law of Property Act 1925, which empowers the Tribunal, in defined...

Labour said it would commence a review to 'pinpoint and remove the obstacles preventing pension schemes from putting more money into UK productive assets' within its Plan for Financial Services, released on 31 January 2024. This mirrors the government’s Mansion House reforms, a suite of measures unveiled in 2023 aimed at spurring the pensions industry to back growth assets. Specialists greeted Labour’s commitment as signalling political continuity for the pensions sector over the medium to longer term horizon......

The French State v The London Steam- Ship Owners Mutual Insurance Association Ltd; The Kingdom of Spain v The London Steam- Ship Owners Mutual Insurance Association Ltd [2023] EWHC 3263 ( Comm) What are the practical implications of this case? This ruling offers practitioners in the UK courts clear direction on the threshold for securing permission to appeal in the context of compulsory arbitration. It delineates two distinct benchmarks relevant to such applications and clarifies how they operate in practice for challenges arising out of arbitration awards and related court decisions. The benchmark for appealing a conclusion that parties have contravened their arbitral duties under AA 1996, s 69(8). The benchmark for the grant of a leapfrog certificate under AJA 1969, s 12 in these circumstances. More broadly, the court confirmed that leave to appeal under AA 1996, s 69(8) depends on a two-limb...

The CCPC has secured commitments from a number of Irish technological universities to change their procurement practices in the supply of graduation gowns. In October 2022, the CCPC was notified of a concern about potential anti-competitive behaviour by ATU Donegal (previously Letterkenny Institute of Technology) at the time. ATU Donegal now sits within the multi-campus ATU, established in April 2022 through the merger of institutes of technology in Donegal, Sligo, Mayo and Galway. It was claimed that ATU Donegal had led graduands—those preparing to graduate—to assume they should obtain their graduation gowns from a single provider. The complainant argued that the institution’s messaging amounted to anti-competitive communication in nature and effect......

Jump to: General Brexit headlines Brexit SIs and sifting updates EU settlement scheme Made Brexit SIs laid in Parliament Draft Brexit SIs laid in Parliament Post- Brexit transition guidance Editor’s picks—the practice area/sector view New and updated Brexit related content Lex Talk®Brexit: a Lexis®Nexis community Useful information General Brexit headlines This section highlights the principal, overarching Brexit news headlines. Brexit Bulletin— NIO issues policy paper on safeguarding the Union. The Northern Ireland Office ( NIO) has released a policy paper on safeguarding the Union, intended to reinforce the UK Internal Market and the Union over the long term while enabling the UK to benefit from EU freedom. Building on the Windsor Framework, its seven chapters report on progress to date, outline a new package of measures, and set out the next steps. See: LNB News 31/01/2024 79. Brexit Bulletin— Withdrawal Agreement Joint Committee draft decision published. The Prime Minister’s Office, 10 Downing Street, has published the ‘ Draft...

Transparency International's 2023 Corruption Perceptions Index Transparency International’s 2023 Corruption Perceptions Index largely echoes previous instalments from the Berlin-based anti-corruption organisation, once more concluding that the majority of the world’s jurisdictions are stuck in a corruption-fighting rut and not moving forward at the pace hoped for. Gary Kalman, executive director of Transparency International US, told Law360 the results highlight the need to keep pressing these issues, as progress remains below expectations. The study assesses perceived domestic corruption in 180 countries and sets each on a 100-point scale, where higher marks indicate lower levels of corruption. Scores draw on datasets from 13 institutions, among them the World Bank and the World Economic Forum. The index captures a range of abuses, including bribery, political corruption, diversion of public funds, effective criminal prosecution of corrupt officials, and legal protections for...

In this issue: Brexit headlines Brexit SIs Post- Brexit transition guidance Constitutional and administrative law State accountability and liability Judicial review Equality and human rights State security and intelligence Information law Public procurement Subsidy control and State aid Management and strategic planning Lex Talk®Public Law: a Lexis®Nexis community Daily and weekly news alerts New and updated content Dates for your diary Trackers Useful information Brexit headlines Brexit Bulletin— NIO unveils policy paper on safeguarding the Union. The Northern Ireland Office has issued a policy paper intended to bolster the UK Internal Market and the Union for the long haul, whilst enabling the UK to benefit from EU freedom. Building on the Windsor Framework, it spans seven chapters, setting out progress so far, outlining a new suite of...