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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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Depending on the facts, a sum paid or a benefit given on the termination of an office or employment can be taxed in full, taxed in part, or, in limited cases, be wholly exempt. For a summary of the potential tax treatments of termination payments, see Practice Note: Termination payments and tax. The starting point for any termination sum is to consider whether it is chargeable, on basic principles, as earnings from, or an emolument of, an office or employment under section 62 of the Income Tax ( Earnings and Pensions) Act 2003 ( ITEPA 2003) or instead falls within other provisions of ITEPA 2003 that deem specified categories of termination payments to be earnings. For instance, since 6 April 2018, ITEPA 2003, s 402B has treated non-contractual payments in lieu of notice ( PILONs) as earnings for tax purposes under UK law......
FORTHCOMING CHANGE: Agricultural Minimum Wage rates are ordinarily reviewed each year by the Agricultural Advisory Panel for Wales (the Panel). As the recruitment of a new Chair is still underway, the Panel has not been able to finalise an Agricultural Wages Order for 2026. Accordingly, from 1 April 2026 the rates set out in the Agricultural Wages ( Wales) Order 2025, SI 2025/293, will continue to apply, except where superseded by changes to the National Minimum Wage ( NMW) or National Living Wage ( NLW). This Practice Note will be updated to reflect any amendments introduced by the Agricultural Wages Order for 2026 once it is made. FORTHCOMING CHANGE: Relevant provisions (not yet in force) of the Tertiary Education and Research ( Wales) Act 2022 will create a new scheme of apprenticeships in Wales, replacing the current regime under Chapter 1 of the...
Employers and workers may agree to dispense with notice when the employment relationship ends or is otherwise lawfully terminated. This Practice Note sets out when an employer or an employee may give up their contractual right to notice, or statutory entitlement, in full or by accepting a reduced period, and explains the situations in which such waivers are likely to arise in practice. Waiving contractual notice An employer may relinquish its right to receive contractual notice at any time. Any waiver of the right to notice should be clearly documented by the employer because: there might later be disagreement over whether the waiver was voluntary in fact it could alter the effective date employment is terminated on In principle, employees may give up their rights to notice or to pay in lieu of notice, though it will seldom be to their advantage to expressly agree, save where a...
This Practice Note This Practice Note reviews employment law matters that can emerge in connection with volunteers and voluntary workers engaged in voluntary or charitable activity. It covers how volunteers are recruited (notably criminal record vetting and immigration considerations), arrangements made with volunteers, the national minimum wage, equality and banned conduct, data protection, and health and safety. In broad terms, a person is regarded as a volunteer where they are free from any duty to work but choose to carry out tasks without remuneration. In the absence of consideration, no binding contract can exist (whether of employment or worker status). That said, volunteers may have out-of-pocket expenses properly repaid without jeopardising their volunteer status. A volunteer may generally arrive and leave at their own discretion. Because volunteer positions are frequently loosely defined, if any form of consideration is identified, the role performed by the...
This Practice Note offers practical direction on correctly executing documents when one or more parties to a contract are not physically together, often referred to as virtual signing or a virtual closing. The Law Society has brought together established materials covering: execution of documents by virtual means, use of electronic signatures, its ‘ Tips on how to operate in practice’ concerning virtual execution and the use of e‑signatures, and Q& A on using electronic signatures and completing virtual executions, including ‘ Our position on the use of virtual execution and e‑signature during the coronavirus ( COVID‑19) pandemic’. We have assembled a comprehensive, interactive collection to help users identify and navigate the concepts and common issues involved in executing documents, including by virtual means. Each section or phase contains practical guidance, precedent clauses and Q& As relevant to that stage. For more...
Unlawful victimisation under the Equality Act 2010 ( Eq A 2010) This Practice Note explores unlawful victimisation under the Equality Act 2010 ( Eq A 2010). Domestic laws introduced to fulfil the UK’s duties under EU law—such as the obligation to implement Directive 2000/78/ EC, the Equal Treatment Framework Directive, which the Eq A 2010 gives effect to—are treated as assimilated law. For further information, see Practice Note: Assimilated law. The aim of the victimisation provisions is to protect a person who raises concerns to assert their Eq A 2010 rights and is then treated unfavourably in retaliation. For example: a woman tells her (male) manager she believes he refused to promote her because of her gender the manager responds by dismissing her he maintains this was not due to her gender, but because she had the nerve to suggest he had...
This Practice Note explains how the Transfer of Undertakings ( Protection of Employment) Regulations 2006 ( TUPE 2006), SI 2006/246, influence an employer’s scope to amend contractual terms and conditions of employment. TUPE—the pre- January 2014 position [ Archived]— Variation of contract terms For details of the position in cases where: the relevant transfer under TUPE 2006 occurred before 31 January 2014; or the purported variation was agreed before 31 January 2014 (or, if not agreed, it began to take effect prior to that date) This Practice Note includes references to case law of the Court of Justice of the European Union ( CJEU). For guidance on whether CJEU judgments are binding on UK courts, see Practice Note: Assimilated law— Assimilated case law. EU-derived legislation—such as much of TUPE 2006—enacted to fulfil UK obligations under EU law (for example,...
In certain specifically defined circumstances, employees are entitled to be allowed time away during their working hours: to look after, or arrange care for, dependants (as defined); when a dependant passes away. The classes of individuals considered an employee's dependants for these purposes are narrowly restricted to only those listed below (see Who is a 'dependant'?)......
This Practice Note outlines the pragmatic measures an employer ought to weigh where actual, threatened, or suspected unlawful competition arises from a current or former worker, and before commencing substantive court action. Need to avoid repudiatory breach When alleged unlawful competitive conduct is carried out by one or more of the employer’s current employees, the paramount consideration throughout any engagement with them is to refrain from acts or omissions that could entitle the worker to assert constructive dismissal, namely any actual or anticipatory breach by the employer that strikes at the root of the contract and is serious enough to justify resignation without notice. Care should be taken at every stage of managing the individuals concerned to ensure no step could ultimately be treated as a fundamental breach by the employer. For broader guidance on the legal and practical...
The following rates and limits are included in this table: National Minimum Wage ( NMW) Statutory Sick Pay ( SSP) Income tax rates and allowances ( England and Northern Ireland), income tax rates and allowances ( Scotland) and income tax rates and allowances ( Wales) National Insurance contributions ( NICs) Pension allowances and limits Maternity, parental and carer-related pay Jury service allowance Data protection fees Each entry includes links to the relevant legislation, together with Practice Notes and News Analysis. For information on the compensation limits applicable to employment claims, see Practice Note: Compensation limits in employment claims......
ARCHIVED: This Practice Note has been archived and is no longer maintained. It sets out the different iterations of HMRC and DHSC guidance on the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme ( CJRS) released over time, and supplies tracked-change comparisons highlighting alterations from one update to the next, so practitioners can quickly determine which version of the relevant guidance applied on any given date. For a guidance tracker: covering the successive versions of HMRC guidance on the Self- Employment Income Support Scheme ( SEISS), see Practice Note: Self- Employment Income Support Scheme—guidance tracker [ Archived] covering the successive versions of general guidance on coronavirus ( COVID-19), see Practice Notes: Coronavirus ( COVID-19)—guidance tracker for employment (non- BEIS guidance) [ Archived] and Coronavirus ( COVID-19)—guidance tracker for employment ( BEIS working safely guidance to 18 July 2021) [...
ARCHIVED: This archived Practice Note is no longer updated and is provided solely for background reference. It addresses considerations for employers when bringing furlough to an end or ending employment during the coronavirus ( COVID-19) pandemic. It examines how an employer may conclude an employee’s period of furlough under the Coronavirus ( COVID-19) Job Retention Scheme ( CJRS), either by arranging a return to work or by terminating employment during, or after, furlough. The Practice Note also looks at redundancy consultation in the pandemic, including while employees are furloughed, and matters arising for employers when the CJRS closed on 30 September 2021. Under the CJRS as extended from 1 May to 30 June 2021, employers could claim 80% of an employee’s usual pay for hours not worked, up to £2,500 per month, for any furloughed employee employed on 30 October 2020, provided specified...
Practice Note This Practice Note offers direction on pinpointing the reason for dismissal and, once a potentially fair reason is shown, how a tribunal assesses whether the employer’s decision falls within the band (or range) of reasonable responses open to a reasonable employer. It outlines the statutory potentially fair reasons for dismissal, clarifies what amounts to an automatically unfair dismissal, and considers how a tribunal may approach a case alleging a reason that is both unfair and discriminatory. It also addresses situations where, during the hearing, the genuine reason for dismissal surfaces as different from the one first pleaded, and examines how such developments are handled. In addition, it explores the bearing of relevant Codes of Practice and the European Convention on Human Rights ( ECHR) on the overall assessment of fairness in dismissal decisions......
This Practice Note examines the deadline for lodging or submitting an unfair dismissal claim in the employment tribunal under section 111 of the Employment Rights Act 1996 ( ERA 1996). It addresses potential qualifications to the usual three-month period running from the effective date of termination ( EDT), the tribunal’s discretion to extend time where it has not been reasonably practicable to present the claim within the limit, and the possibility of extending time in relation to the early conciliation requirement. It also reviews when the time limit begins where dismissal is with notice. For detailed guidance on applying and calculating tribunal time limits generally, see Practice Note: Time limits for presenting employment tribunal claims... The general rule—three months from the effective date of termination An unfair dismissal complaint must ordinarily be presented to the employment tribunal before the end of the...
On 23 June 2016, the United Kingdom held a referendum on its EU membership, with a majority opting for the UK to leave the EU. On 29 March 2017, the Prime Minister sent formal notice of the UK’s intention to withdraw, setting in motion the Article 50 TEU process. At 11 pm on 31 January 2020 (exit day), the UK’s withdrawal took effect in law and the UK ceased to be an EU Member State. Exit day signalled the close of the Article 50 withdrawal phase and the beginning of a time-limited transition/implementation period, during which the interim arrangements in Part 4 of the Withdrawal Agreement applied. These transitional measures created a standstill period while the UK and the EU set about implementing the Withdrawal Agreement and negotiating the legal terms governing their future relationship, to apply after the transition ended. The EU- UK Trade and...
STOP PRESS: The Data ( Use and Access) Act 2025 ( Commencement No 6 and Transitional and Saving Provisions) Regulations 2026, SI 2026/82, bring into effect the remaining provisions of the Data ( Use and Access) Act 2025 ( DUAA 2025). Provisions concerning subject access requests, legitimate interests, purpose limitation, automated decision-making, international transfers and enforcement apply from 5 February 2026, while those covering penalty notices and complaints take effect from 19 June 2026. For further information, see Practice Note: Data ( Use and Access) Act 2025—employment implications. This Practice Note will be updated shortly to reflect these changes. This material currently considers Assimilated Regulation ( EU) 2016/679, the UK General Data Protection Regulation ( UK GDPR) and the Data Protection Act 2018 ( DPA 2018), and, unless expressly stated otherwise, legislative links are to Assimilated Regulation ( EU) 2016/679 and the UK GDPR. For a more...
FORTHCOMING CHANGE After a 2021 call for evidence and a 2023 consultation, the Autumn Budget 2024 confirmed that the government will bring forward new legislation to tackle non-compliance in the umbrella company market. Draft clauses were released on Legislation Day, 21 July 2025, with the provisions to be included in Finance Bill 2026. The reform, commencing in April 2026, will reallocate responsibility for accounting for Pay As You Earn ( PAYE) from employing umbrella companies to the recruitment agencies that place workers with end clients. If no employment agency features in the supply chain, the PAYE obligation will pass to the end client. For further detail on the announcement and the draft provisions, see News Analyses: Autumn Budget 2024— Tackling tax non-compliance in the umbrella company market and Legislation Day: Draft Finance Bill 2026—tackling non-compliance in the umbrella company market,...
What are the remuneration codes? The FCA Handbook currently sets out four distinct remuneration codes (the Codes) in total: Alternative Investment Fund Managers ( AIFM) Remuneration Code ( SYSC 19B), which applies to Alternative Investment Fund Managers—see the relevant Practice Note: UK AIFM Remuneration Code Dual- Regulated Firms Remuneration Code ( SYSC 19D)—see the related Practice Note: Remuneration Code for Dual Regulated Firms MIFIDPRU Remuneration Code ( SYSC 19G)—see the related Practice Note: MIFIDPRU— Remuneration Code Undertakings for Collective Investment in Transferable Securities ( UCITS) Remuneration Code, located in the FCA Handbook SYSC 19E In addition, the CRR Remuneration Code is set out in the Remuneration Part of the PRA Rulebook and applies to CRR firms ( UK banks, building societies and designated investment firms). For further information, see Practice Note: PRA remuneration requirements for UK banks, building societies and systemically important investment firms. Rules on the...
Restrictive covenants or undertakings These are promises employees make during employment or on leaving, limiting their behaviour or activities. Following historic debate over whether payments for such covenants or undertakings fell within general earnings under the relevant income tax legislation, a dedicated charging provision ensures that any sums connected with current, future, or past employments or offices are treated as taxable earnings... Tax treatment Section 225 of the Income Tax ( Earnings and Pensions) Act 2003 ( ITEPA 2003) brings into charge payments made to an individual for agreeing to restrictive covenants......
STOP PRESS: Abolition of non-dom regime and remittance basis of taxation from 2025–26 The Finance Act 2025 has scrapped the remittance basis and, from 6 April 2025, substitutes a residence-based system. The reforms bring in a new Foreign Income and Gains ( FIG) regime and revise the rules for overseas workday relief. For detailed guidance on these updates, refer to Practice Note: The abolition of the remittance basis of taxation from 2025–26. The UK operates a comprehensive framework for taxing employment income. This Practice Note explains the core income tax principles for employment income and the way they attach to earnings. Keep in mind that any form of remuneration connected to an individual’s employment can give rise to income tax and National Insurance contributions ( NICs) liabilities (for NICs, potentially affecting both employer and employee), together with possible...
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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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