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This Practice Note outlines the law concerning criminal recklessness. The subjective test for recklessness Certain statutory and common law offences allow the prosecution to prove mens rea through ‘recklessness’. Put simply, recklessness is where the accused takes an unjustified risk that results in unlawful harm or damage. The House of Lords in R v G reaffirmed the subjective approach to recklessness. Before R v G, two distinct tests were used, depending on the offence charged: Subjective recklessness from R v Cunningham: the prosecution had to establish that the accused personally foresaw the risk. Objective recklessness from R v Caldwell: the prosecution only needed to show that the risk would have been obvious to a reasonable person, without proving the accused themselves foresaw it. In R v G, the House of Lords concluded that the objective test could operate unfairly where a defendant did not foresee the
This Practice Note examines the remedy of rescission, explaining when and in what manner a contract can be unwound (at common law, in equity and under statute) and thereby terminated and brought to an end. It covers the consequences and effects of rescission, the principal grounds for setting aside an agreement (misrepresentation, mistake, undue influence, duress, non‑disclosure, fiduciary misdealing and bribery) and the main obstacles to claiming rescission—affirmation, the intervention of third‑party rights and the impossibility of restitution. For further guidance on rescission in the context of misrepresentation, see Practice Note: Misrepresentation—rescission as a remedy. There are many ways in which a contract may reach its end; see: Terminating contracts—how and when a contract ends—overview for a brief and accessible summary, with links to the related further practical guidance, including Practice Note: Termination and expiry of contracts. For a table
What is a res judicata? A res judicata is a determination by a court or tribunal with jurisdiction over the cause of action and the parties, which finally disposes of the issues decided so they cannot be litigated again by those bound, save on appeal. Final judgments entered by default or by consent fall within this concept, whereas rulings on purely procedural points and any decision lacking finality do not. The doctrine’s aim is to bring litigation to an end and shield parties from being harassed by the same dispute twice. in personam—binds the parties and their privies in rem—binds all persons, privy or otherwise (ie a judgment binding the whole world) A party may rely on res judicata: as an estoppel to defeat an opponent’s claim or defence; and/or as the basis of their own claim or
The offence of causing grievous bodily harm with intent Wounding or causing grievous bodily harm (GBH) with intent can be tried solely in the Crown Court on indictment. Elements of the offence Under the Offences against the Person Act 1861 (OATPA 1861), the prosecution must establish that the defendant unlawfully and maliciously: wounded with the intention of causing GBH, or caused GBH with that intention, or wounded intending to resist or prevent the lawful arrest or detention of any person, or caused GBH intending to resist or prevent the lawful arrest or detention of any person ‘Unlawfully’ and ‘maliciously’ Unlawfully The wounding or causing of GBH must be unlawful. Such conduct may be lawful if used: in self-defence in defence of another in defence of property for the prevention of crime where the victim gave express or implied consent For further information on these defences, see below:
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Many employers provide staff with insured benefits, including private medical insurance, permanent health insurance ( PHI), life insurance, and directors' and officers' liability insurance. Such arrangements benefit both employer and employee, as the expense of group provision is generally far lower for an organisation than the cost individuals would incur securing equivalent protection themselves. This Practice Note offers a concise outline of the main insured benefits employers commonly make available and the related considerations. For example contract provisions, see Precedent: Clauses—insurance and other benefits, Clause 13 of Precedent: Executive service agreement, and Clause 14 of Precedent: Employment contract basic version. For more detail on directors' and officers' liability insurance, consult Practice Notes: Protecting a director from liability and Directors and officers insurance policies. Insurance benefits are not 'wages' Medical, permanent health and life insurance benefits do not constitute 'wages' for the purposes of sections 13–27 of the...
This Practice Note This Practice Note sets out the common during-employment restrictions and express clauses used to protect an employer’s interests: limits on involvement in other business activities, steps taken towards competitive undertakings, and obligations regarding the handling of confidential information while employed. It also examines further express provisions an employer may wish to include in the employment contract: a duty to act in the employer’s best interests, requirements to disclose breaches by the employee or others, dealing with approaches from alternative employers, and any intention to resign. Finally, it considers the enforceability of these restrictions. Employees are also subject to certain implied duties throughout their employment. The scope of those duties varies with seniority and whether the individual owes only a duty of fidelity or a more exacting fiduciary duty (see Practice Note: The duty of fidelity and fiduciary...
ARCHIVED: This Practice Note has been archived and is not maintained. From January 1973 until May 2025, Michael Rubenstein penned a ' Highlights' preface for each issue of the Industrial Relations Law Reports ( IRLR) published that month......
This Practice Note offers an overview of industrial action, covering what it is, picketing, the right to take industrial action, unlawful forms of industrial action, balloting for, and employer notification of, industrial action, and trade union liability. It also provides guidance on industrial action for employers and for employees. What is industrial action? Industrial action occurs when workers act together (ie collectively) against their employer because of a workplace dispute. It may take the form of a strike—which section 246 of the Trade Union and Labour Relations ( Consolidation) Act 1992 ( TULR( C) A 1992) generally defines as ‘any concerted stoppage of work’—but can also involve measures short of a total stoppage, such as: a ‘go-slow’ (ie workers take longer than usual to finish tasks) work-to-rule (ie workers do only what their contract requires and no more) an overtime ban (ie no...
This Practice Note This Practice Note sets out the extent of any ‘right’ to engage in industrial action and the restrictions on that right, arising both under common law and through statutory rules. It reflects the present position, and addresses: an outline of the legal framework governing the right to take industrial action, and expected developments in the law taking industrial action to settle a dispute common law liability linked to industrial action statutory immunity from liability what constitutes action taken in contemplation or furtherance of a trade dispute whether individual workers are protected from detriment or dismissal for planning or taking part in industrial action workers who are not entitled to strike the use of replacement labour during industrial action, and changes to industrial action law proposed by the Employment Rights Act...
Practice Note This Practice Note examines forms of industrial action that sit beyond the shelter from tort claims afforded by statutory immunities: secondary action (sympathy strikes), steps to compel union membership or secure recognition, and measures taken in response to the dismissal of unofficial strikers. As a matter of common law, industrial action is generally unlawful in principle. A trade union that calls such action will typically commit one or more of the so‑called economic or industrial torts. Individuals taking part in action are frequently in breach of their contracts of employment. Nevertheless, legislation intervenes to confer immunity from tortious liability on a trade union organising industrial action, though that safeguard is hedged about by extensive and intricate statutory regulation......
This Practice Note This Practice Note offers practical direction on multiple facets of industrial action from an employer’s standpoint. It explains what industrial action entails and outlines the constraints on the right to take such action. It identifies responses an employer might deploy when action arises, distinguishes between protected, official and unofficial action, and highlights the implications of the Employment Rights Act 2025 ( ERA 2025) changes. It also sets out options available when action is taken or anticipated by workers... It addresses settling the core dispute via conciliation, and preparing contingency measures to lessen disruption, which may include, in certain sectors, withholding pay from participants. It also describes when an employer can seek injunctive relief and recover damages. Further, it examines whether employers may lawfully dismiss staff involved, or impose measures short of dismissal, where statutory protection against detriment might not apply. A range of...
Statutory balloting and notice requirements This Practice Note sets out the statutory balloting and notice rules a trade union must meet to obtain immunity from tortious liability for industrial action (such as a strike or action short of a strike) the appointment of a suitably qualified, independent scrutineer for ballots requirements for voting papers electronic balloting (e-balloting) ballot turnout and support thresholds the obligation to notify members of the outcome It also addresses balloting obligations following the Employment Rights Act 2025 ( ERA 2025), effective from 18 February 2026, and, in light of international labour standards and ILO Convention 87, sets out the requirements for calling industrial action and the notices unions must serve on employers to retain statutory immunity At common law, industrial action is generally unlawful. A union that organises such action will typically commit one or more of the...
This ‘how to’ resource, a task-focused toolkit, sets out how to consult with individuals in a redundancy context where the statutory collective consultation duties do not apply. For guidance on running redundancy consultation when those statutory collective obligations do apply, see Practice Note: How to carry out collective redundancy consultation. Initial considerations—what kind of consultation is required When a redundancy situation arises, an employer’s first step is to decide whether consultation must be undertaken collectively with staff (or appropriate representatives) or only on an individual basis. Collective consultation will be required in the following situations: Where the employer proposes to dismiss as redundant 20 or more employees at a single establishment within any 90‑day period or less, it has statutory duties under the Trade Union and Labour Relations ( Consolidation) Act 1992 ( TULR( C) A 1992) to inform, consult, and to notify the...
This Practice Note considers unlawful indirect discrimination under the Equality Act 2010 ( Eq A 2010) There is a clear distinction between direct and indirect discrimination, and they are mutually exclusive concepts (though a claimant may, of course, advance them in the alternative): the prohibition on direct discrimination seeks formal equality of treatment: people who are otherwise in comparable situations must not be treated less favourably because of a protected characteristic the prohibition on indirect discrimination looks past formal equality towards a more substantive equality of outcomes: seemingly neutral criteria may place people sharing a particular protected characteristic at a disproportionate disadvantage The key divergence between the two is that indirect discrimination can be justified where it is a proportionate means of achieving a legitimate aim; direct discrimination cannot be justified, other than in relation to age. For general guidance on direct...
FORTHCOMING CHANGE: On 26 November 2025, within Budget 2025, it was confirmed that from April 2029 only the first £2,000 each tax year of pension saving made under a salary sacrifice arrangement will escape National Insurance contributions ( NICs). Any amount an employee sacrifices above £2,000 a year will attract both employer and employee NICs, meaning the surplus over £2,000 will, for NICs, be handled in the same manner as other employee workplace pension payments. Employer pension funding is unchanged, and income tax relief is also preserved. Employers must record and report the total value of salary given up using the existing payroll software already in use by employers for reporting purposes, and HMRC has pledged to work with stakeholders as appropriate in practice. HMRC will issue further guidance ‘before April 2029’. The National Insurance Contributions ( Employer Pensions...
ICER 2004 ICER 2004, SI 2004/3426 allows staff of medium and large employers (50+ employees) to combine to oblige their employer to set up a formal, prescribed framework for informing and consulting staff on certain operational matters. ICER 2004 were introduced to give effect to Directive 2002/14/ EC ( Information and Consultation Directive). Additional information and consultation duties may arise for larger cross-border organisations, including under the European Public Limited- Liability Company Regulations 2004, SI 2004/2326 (outside the scope of Lexis+® UK Employment) and the Transnational Information and Consultation of Employees Regulations 1999, SI 1999/3323 (see Practice Note: European works councils). Obligations to inform and/or consult also occur in specific contexts, such as proposed transfers covered by the Transfer of Undertakings ( Protection of Employment) Regulations 2006 ( TUPE 2006), SI 2006/246 (see Practice Note: TUPE—information and consultation), and proposed collective...
Securing compliance with Part I of the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974 ( HSWA 1974) is frequently achieved by serving statutory Improvement Notices and Prohibition Notices. Inspectors appointed under HSWA 1974, s 19(1), may issue such notices. This is one of several tools available to enforcing authorities (as defined in HSWA 1974, ss 18(7)(a) and 53(1)), with other responses ranging from informal guidance to prosecution. See Practice Note: Powers of health and safety inspectors under the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974. This Practice Note outlines the key features of Improvement Notices and Prohibition Notices, the consequences they entail and the ways they can be challenged. The main features of Improvement Notices Improvement Notices are addressed in HSWA 1974, s 21. An Improvement Notice requires the addressee to remedy a breach of the ‘relevant statutory...
This Practice Note examines general partnerships established under the Partnership Act 1890. It sets out the key statutes and case law that shape the legal framework for partnerships. It also explains how to assess whether an individual is a partner, when partners may properly be regarded as employees or workers, the extent of a partner’s authority, partners’ liability for the firm’s debts and obligations, and the treatment of partnership property... Sources of partnership law The principal source of law for a general partnership governed by English law (as distinct from a limited liability partnership, a limited partnership, or a partnership incorporated under Scottish law) is the Partnership Act 1890 ( PA 1890), which has remained largely unchanged for more than a century. However, it is not a comprehensive code: it expressly preserves the rules of equity and common law applicable to...
This archived Practice Note summarises the employment law pledges and policy statements of the Labour Party, the Conservative Party and the Liberal Democrats ahead of the General Election on 4 July 2024. Employment-related commitments are arranged by topic in tables. For reference, links to other parties’ manifestos are also included—see: Other parties’ manifestos, below. Parliamentary process Prime Minister Rishi Sunak sought, and obtained, the King’s approval to dissolve Parliament and announced a general election for 4 July 2024. Parliament was prorogued on 24 May 2024 and dissolved on 30 May 2024. The timeline is: 22 May: PM asked the King to exercise the prerogative to dissolve Parliament 22 May: King Charles agreed and the general election was announced 23 May: ‘ Wash-up’ period begins 24 May: Parliament is prorogued 25 May: Pre-election period of sensitivity begins (formerly...
Practice Note This Practice Note outlines detailed information about employment tribunal offices across England, Wales and Scotland, together with their appropriate hearing venues and locations. It further describes how to access employment tribunal judgments online, how to obtain hard copy transcripts of those judgments, and directs readers to the relevant minutes of the employment tribunal national user group meetings. Employment tribunals sit within His Majesty’s Courts and Tribunals Service, an executive agency of the Ministry of Justice. An employment tribunal claim can be lodged in three ways: online (see Practice Note: Submission of a claim to the employment tribunal— Presenting the claim ( Submitting a claim online)) by post (see Practice Note: Submission of a claim to the employment tribunal— Presenting the claim ( Submitting a claim by post)) by hand delivery, limited to specified ‘designated tribunal offices’ and on...
FORTHCOMING CHANGE: On 21 October 2024, the President of the Employment Appeal Tribunal ( EAT) published a fresh EAT Practice Direction. This updated Direction, which offers extra guidance on using the My HMCTS portal, revises and supersedes the 2023 Practice Direction. It will apply to appeals started on or after 1 February 2025, and to earlier appeals for any procedural steps taken on or after that date. It will come into force alongside amendments to the EAT Rules made by the Employment Appeal Tribunal ( Amendment) Rules 2024, SI 2024/1044. For more details, see: New Practice Direction governing appeals to the EAT from 1 February 2025, and LNB News 17/10/2024 46. ARCHIVED: This archived Practice Note reproduces the full text of the Employment Appeal Tribunal Practice Direction 2023, which took effect on 30 September 2023. 1 Introduction 1.1 What does the Employment Appeal Tribunal do? 1.1.1 The...
Termination Termination arises whenever a contract reaches its end. In addition to dismissal, termination also encompasses: expiry (without renewal) of a fixed term or limited term resignation by mutual agreement by operation of law See Precedent: Clauses—termination [ Archived]. Expiry Employment law does not distinguish between temporary and permanent employment. Contracts are either terminable on notice, or they continue for a set period (fixed-term contracts) or until a particular event (limited-term contracts) (see Practice Note: Fixed-term employees). A failure to renew a fixed-term or limited-term contract at its end is not a dismissal at common law, but it is treated as a dismissal for the purpose of the unfair dismissal legislation, so the employer will need to show a fair reason for choosing not to renew the...
ARCHIVED: this archived Practice Note is no longer maintained and is for background information only. After the government published its COVID-19 Response: Living with COVID-19, which removed the remaining domestic legal coronavirus ( COVID-19) restrictions in England from 24 February 2022, the ICO replaced its detailed, specific guidance with shorter guidance on data protection and COVID-19 from 28 March 2022. See: LNB News 28/03/2022 91. This Practice Note reviews the position under the ICO’s earlier, more comprehensive guidance, which was deleted on 28 March 2022. The material addresses the UK GDPR regime, and legislative references are to Assimilated Regulation ( EU) 2016/679, UK GDPR, unless expressly indicated otherwise. The coronavirus ( COVID-19) pandemic is expected to create circumstances requiring an employer to process—ie collect, use and record—personal data and special category data about its workforce, notably health data (health information). Before any such...
This Practice Note sets out the employment matters to consider when establishing, operating and bringing to an end a corporate joint venture ( JV). It addresses the following: TUPE transfers Non- TUPE transfers Secondments The harmonisation of employment terms Collective agreements and trade union recognition Pension issues Immigration issues Formation of the joint venture entity Many employment aspects at the outset of a JV will be shaped by the JV’s underlying aims. Although a JV can be created through a variety of structures, from an employee perspective the central question is whether their duties can be regarded as moving from their current employer to the new JV vehicle under the Transfer of Undertakings ( Protection of Employment) Regulations 2006, SI 2006/246 ( TUPE 2006). For more detail, see Practice Note: Preliminary issues (joint...
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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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