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Introduction to statutory interpretation The aim of statutory interpretation is to determine the legal meaning of a statute, that is, the sense that expresses the legislator’s intention. The clearest guide to that intention is the statutory wording itself, read in its context and with its overall purpose in mind, and its broader legislative setting. Courts should seek to fulfil the purpose of legislation by construing its language, so far as they can, in the manner that most effectively serves that purpose. Put differently, the courts’ default method is purposive, and every enactment is to be construed with that end in view. There is a starting presumption that the grammatical and ordinary sense of an enactment reflects the meaning intended by the legislator. Where an enactment reasonably bears only a single meaning, and no other interpretative tools or
This Practice Note addresses identifying a fiduciary, fiduciary duties and obligations, the no conflict rule, the no profit rule, a fiduciary's duty of confidence, and the remedies available for breach of fiduciary duty. Who is a fiduciary? There is no definitive catalogue of relationships that give rise to fiduciary obligations at common law in every situation universally. Certain relationships are inherently fiduciary, eg trustee and beneficiary, solicitor and client, principal and agent, business partner and co-partners, together with mortgagor and mortgagee. The obligations of some fiduciaries have been set out in statute; for instance, trustees owe a statutory duty of skill and care under section 1 of the Trustee Act 2000 (TrA 2000), and directors' relationships with their companies are addressed in the Companies Act 2006 too. For guidance on directors' fiduciary duties, see Practice Note: of directors for further detailed
Definition of ADR Alternative dispute resolution (ADR) is defined in the CPR Glossary as a collective label for methods of settling disputes other than through the usual trial process. Some courts adopt the term ‘negotiated dispute resolution’ (NDR) to describe resolution by alternative means; for ease, this Practice Note uses ADR. For guidance on how ADR is addressed in the various court guides, see Practice Note: ADR and NDR in the court guides. In essence, ADR is a means of resolving a dispute outside the court system. It typically involves a neutral third party who either helps the parties reach a negotiated outcome, or issues a determination of the dispute that is legally binding. A binding result can follow where the agreement to refer the dispute to ADR so provides. There are multiple forms of ADR processes. For an outline of the different types and their
In brief The British constitution is uncodified, meaning it does not spring from a single constitutional document or code. It draws on a wide range of written and unwritten sources. Alongside the principal written sources of law in England and Wales—legislation (which has also introduced international and human rights principles into our constitution) and the common law—the constitution also rests on two further unwritten bases within this system: the prerogative, and non-legal constitutional conventions. In addition, on one view the basic or prevailing principle of our constitution, Parliamentary sovereignty, is ultimately grounded in political fact rather than in law. Legislation Legislation is the foremost source of constitutional law. Acts of Parliament may set out detailed constitutional rules, or even pass authority to create them to ministers or to others. Under the doctrine of Parliamentary sovereignty, legislation is traditionally regarded as taking precedence over any other form or kind of
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A discretionary trust provides a highly adaptable type of arrangement. Under such trusts, trustees exercise discretion over when distributions are made, in what manner, and to which recipients, covering both capital and income. Beneficiaries, or a class of them, appear in the trust deed, and the choice of who among the potential beneficiaries should benefit rests wholly with the trustees, sometimes with the guidance of a letter of wishes. Accordingly, timing, method and recipient of any payments are decided case by case. Why discretionary Will trusts are used There are times when passing assets straight to a beneficiary under a Will is not advisable. For instance: the beneficiary is, or in the future might become, bankrupt the beneficiary is, or in the future might be, going through divorce the beneficiary is disabled, needs help with managing money, or receives state benefits, where any money received directly from the estate might...
FORTHCOMING CHANGE : In the 30 October 2024 Budget ( Autumn Budget 2024), the Chancellor of the Exchequer revealed that the existing 100% inheritance tax relief available for qualifying agricultural property will be capped at the first £1m of value, with anything above that level benefiting from only 50% relief. On 23 December 2025, the government unexpectedly confirmed that the 100% relief ceiling would instead be set at £2.5m in total, replacing the earlier £1m proposal. Where the taxpayer, or their estate, also holds assets that qualify for business property relief, the value of those assets will be aggregated when determining whether the £2.5m limit has been surpassed for the purposes of the relief calculation overall. These measures will apply to deaths occurring on or after 6 April 2026, and to lifetime gifts made on or after 30 October 2024 if the donor dies on or...
STOP PRESS : Further to the Autumn Budget 2024 announcement on 30 October 2024, the 100% relief for APR and BPR on qualifying property will be curtailed by a combined allowance of £2.5m with effect from 6 April 2026. Refer to section 65 and Schedule 12 of the Finance Act 2026, which amend sections 104 and 116 onwards of the Inheritance Tax Act 1984. See also Practice Notes: IHT—agricultural property relief and IHT—business property relief. On death, an individual is regarded as having made a transfer of value equal to the value of their estate immediately before death. Exemptions from UK inheritance tax fall into three categories: those applying only during lifetime those available either during lifetime or on death those applying solely on death Most IHT exemptions can apply to both lifetime dispositions and transfers on death, including the exemption for...
This Practice Note is archived and no longer maintained. STOP PRESS: Abolition of non-dom regime and introduction of residence-based IHT regime The Finance Act 2025 ( FA 2025), which obtained Royal Assent on 20 March 2025, ends the remittance basis of taxation and brings in a residence-based system from 6 April 2025. FA 2025 also makes domicile no longer the decisive factor when assessing inheritance tax liability. Amendments to the rules defining excluded property status Abolition of protected settlements status for offshore trusts Revisions to overseas workday relief For details on these changes, see Practice Notes: The abolition of the remittance basis of taxation from 2025–26 and A new residence-based regime for IHT from 2025–26. See also: Finance Bill Tracking Service: Key dates ( Finance Bill 2025) and Finance Act 2025. This Practice Note reflects the law as it stands up to 6 April 2025. From 6...
ARCHIVED : This Practice Note has been archived and is not maintained. The application of inheritance tax ( IHT) turns on an individual’s domicile. A person can be domiciled in the UK either under common law (private international law) or, for IHT alone, by the statutory deemed domicile regime. This Practice Note addresses only the deemed domicile regime and does not deal with the common law. For commentary on the common law position, refer to the Domicile for UK tax purposes before 6 April 2025 [ Archived] Practice Note. At the Summer Budget 2015, the government unveiled extensive reforms to the taxation of foreign domiciliaries (non-doms), altering the deemed domicile framework set out here. In broad terms, the earlier 17-year condition was substituted with a 15-year condition for IHT. A corresponding 15-year test was also brought in for exposure to income tax and capital gains tax ( CGT)....
FORTHCOMING CHANGES: At the Budget on 26 November 2025, the government set out minor corrective adjustments to the residence-based tax regime introduced by Finance Act 2025. Key points are: new residents wishing to use the foreign income and gains ( FIG) regime must be at least 10 years old at the start of the tax year relief claims under the FIG regime can be offset only against the specific foreign income, foreign employment income or foreign gains to which they relate alignment of the qualifying asset holding company ( QAHC) rules so that carried-interest-style returns connected with services to a QAHC qualify for relief under the FIG regime a correction to the capital gains tax ( CGT) residence test for personal representatives to ensure they are not UK resident where the deceased was UK non-resident but was a...
IHT—residence nil rate band Q& As This Practice Note is designed to direct practitioners to Q& As and worked examples explaining the rules by which the inheritance tax ( IHT) residence nil rate band ( RNRB)—also called the additional threshold—and the transferable RNRB (brought-forward allowance) are worked out and applied on deaths occurring on or after 6 April 2017. For an overview of the RNRB, see Practice Note: IHT—residence nil rate band. Note that while new Q& As are added as they arise, individual Q& As are not updated and reflect the law as at the date shown in each instance. In particular, Q& As dated before 6 April 2025 are likely to discuss the domicile-based IHT regime, rather than the residence-based regime in force from that date. For details on the basic nil rate band ( NRB) and the...
STOP PRESS: At the 2025 Budget, the government confirmed plans to legislate against IHT avoidance that exploits the situs of personal assets and trust property. A key proposal expands rules on indirect holdings of UK residential property to capture UK agricultural property. For further detail, see: Budget 2025— Private Client analysis — International and Policy Paper: Inheritance Tax: anti-avoidance measures for non-long-term UK residents and trusts. This Practice Note outlines amendments to the excluded property rules from 6 April 2017 introduced by the Finance ( No 2) Act 2017 ( F( No 2) A 2017). As a result, UK inheritance tax ( IHT) is charged on UK residential property owned by (or on behalf of) a long-term UK resident ( LTR), whether held directly or via intermediate structures, unless the interest is through a diversely held vehicle. Before 6 April 2025, when domicile stopped being a...
This Practice Note outlines compliance and accountability for Inheritance Tax ( IHT) on a deceased individual’s estate, addressing: Accountability—the obligation on personal representatives ( PRs) to submit an IHT account to HMRC PRs’ duty to make enquiries and provide accurate information to HMRC Form IHT400 The reduced IHT400 Form IHT205 for excepted estates (for deaths before 1 January 2022) Form IHT207 for excepted estates of those domiciled overseas Other circumstances where an IHT account does not need to be filed PRs’ responsibility to lodge corrective accounts when valuations change or when further assets or liabilities are discovered Form IHT30 for an optional clearance application (statutory certificate of discharge) once satisfied there will be no further changes to the IHT position Penalties and interest For guidance on IHT compliance relating to trusts, see Practice Note:...
ARCHIVED: This Practice Note is archived and no longer being updated... This Practice Note addresses UK inheritance tax ( IHT) matters arising in cross border contexts and considers: actual and deemed domicile; double tax agreements and unilateral relief; and the exposure of personal representatives ( PRs) to IHT and to overseas inheritance or estate taxes. It also notes, briefly, the effect of the changes to the taxation of non-domiciled individuals that came into force on 6 April 2017 on estate planning, including the use of excluded property trusts... For the fundamentals of IHT, consult the Inheritance tax ( IHT) subtopic... For details on IHT for estates, see the Estates—inheritance tax subtopic... The International Comparator tool is likewise a helpful resource for comparing the tax and estate planning rules of various jurisdictions... A new residence-based regime for IHT from 2025–26 Before 6 April 2025, domicile status...
FORTHCOMING CHANGES: During the 26 November 2025 Budget, the government stated it plans to implement small remedial changes to the residence-based tax system brought in by Finance Act 2025......
STOP PRESS: Abolition of non-dom regime and introduction of residence-based IHT regime Finance Act 2025 ( FA 2025), which was granted Royal Assent on 20 March 2025, enacts the removal of the remittance basis of taxation and brings in a comprehensive residence-based system with effect from 6 April 2025. FA 2025 likewise substitutes residence for domicile as the principal determinant of liability to inheritance tax. Additional reforms include targeted revisions to the criteria for excluded property, the scrapping of the protected settlements status for offshore trusts, and consequential alterations to overseas workday relief. For details on these updates, refer to Practice Notes: The abolition of the remittance basis of taxation from 2025–26 and A new residence-based regime for IHT from 2025–26. See also: Finance Bill Tracking Service: Key dates ( Finance Bill 2025) and Finance Act 2025. Who are ‘overseas...
This Practice Note is intended to be read alongside the following flowchart. For an introduction to the relevant property regime for trusts, see Practice Notes: Trusts—inheritance tax—overview and The meaning of relevant property. The inheritance tax ( IHT) charge on relevant property arises on two occasions: the periodic ten-year anniversary of the settlement’s creation (the principal (ten-year) charge), and when property (or value) ceases to be relevant property other than on excepted occasions (the exit charge) For further guidance on the exit charge as it applied prior to 18 November 2015, see Practice Note: before 18 November 2015. This Practice Note examines the calculation of the exit charge on relevant property on or after 18 November 2015 in more detail. The principal emphasis is on inter vivos trusts. The exit charge—what constitutes an 'exit' subject to...
Information Law consultations tracker This Information Law consultations tracker sets out the latest position and updates on significant consultations run by the Information Commissioner’s Office ( ICO) with effect from 1 January 2025. The ICO periodically seeks views on matters including how effective and clear its draft guidance that it is due to publish is, where that guidance concerns the laws within its scope, including the United Kingdom General Data Protection Regulation, Assimilated Regulation ( EU) 2016/679 ( UK GDPR). Further legislation within the ICO’s remit includes the following: Data Protection Act 2018 ( DPA 2018) Privacy and Electronic Communications Regulations 2003 ( PECR 2003), SI 2003/2426 Freedom of Information Act 2000 ( FIA 2000) Environmental Information Regulations 2004 ( EIR 2004), SI 2004/3391 INSPIRE Regulations 2009, SI 2009/3157 UK e IDAS Regulation, Retained Regulation ( EU) 910/2014 Re-use of...
What is fracking? Shale gas extraction, also called hydraulic fracturing (fracking), is the practice of injecting water and chemical additives into shale rock at very high pressure to release the natural gas trapped inside. Operators drill vertical wellbores thousands of feet into the ground, passing through sedimentary layers, the water table, and shale formations to reach the target gas deposits. The well is then steered horizontally, and a cement casing is installed, acting as a conduit for the enormous volumes of water, fracking fluid, chemicals, and sand required to fracture the rock and shale strata. Sometimes, before the fluids are pumped, small explosive charges are used to open the bedrock. The resulting fractures create pathways that let the gas be removed from the rock formations. Shale gas is largely methane, a natural gas used to generate electricity and for domestic heating and cooking....
The UK’s rules on hybrid and other mismatches Known in this Practice Note as the hybrid rules, the UK regime has been in force since 1 January 2017, designed to neutralise tax mismatches arising from the tax treatment of a hybrid instrument or a hybrid entity. While typically aimed at cross-border transactions involving two or more jurisdictions, the rules may equally bite on arrangements that are entirely domestic in the UK as well. In particular, they address the following: deduction/non-inclusion mismatches ( D/ NI mismatches), ie situations where a payment within a hybrid mismatch arrangement is deductible for the payer for tax purposes but is not brought into taxable income by the recipient or a related party investor; and double deduction cases ( DD cases), ie scenarios where a payment within a hybrid mismatch arrangement yields more than one tax deduction for tax...
Since 1 January 2017, the UK’s regime tackling hybrid and other mismatches (called the hybrid rules in this Practice Note) has been in force, designed to neutralise tax asymmetries caused by the tax treatment of a hybrid instrument or hybrid entity. While the hybrid rules are generally aimed at cross‑border dealings spanning two or more jurisdictions, they may equally bite on arrangements that are entirely domestic to the UK. In particular, the rules focus on: deduction/non‑inclusion mismatches ( D/ NI mismatches), ie where an amount under a hybrid mismatch arrangement is deductible for tax in the payer’s territory but is not brought into the taxable income of a payee or a related party investor, and double deduction scenarios ( DD cases), ie where an amount under a hybrid mismatch arrangement results in more than one tax...
The UK’s rules on hybrid and other mismatches The hybrid and other mismatch regime (called the hybrid rules in this Practice Note) has been in force since 1 January 2017, designed to neutralise tax asymmetries arising from the tax treatment of a hybrid instrument or hybrid entity. While they typically address cross-border arrangements spanning at least two jurisdictions, they can also apply to transactions undertaken entirely within the UK. deduction/non-inclusion mismatches ( D/ NI mismatches), i.e. where a payment under a hybrid mismatch arrangement is deductible for the payer for tax purposes but is not brought into the taxable income of a payee or a related party investor double deduction cases ( DD cases), i.e. where a payment under a hybrid mismatch arrangement gives rise to more than one tax deduction The legislation addresses discrete categories of D/ NI mismatches and DD cases in...
The UK’s rules on hybrid and other mismatches Since 1 January 2017, the UK has operated legislation on hybrid and other mismatches (referred to in this Practice Note as the hybrid rules) designed to counter tax mismatches arising from how a hybrid instrument or hybrid entity is treated for tax purposes. Although the hybrid rules typically address cross-border arrangements spanning two or more jurisdictions, they can also bite on transactions undertaken wholly within the UK. Specifically, the hybrid rules are aimed at: deduction/non-inclusion mismatches ( D/ NI mismatches), ie where a payment made under a hybrid mismatch arrangement is deductible for tax in the payer’s jurisdiction but is not brought into the taxable income of a payee or a related party investor, and double deduction cases ( DD cases), ie where a payment under a hybrid mismatch arrangement results in more than one tax...
The UK’s rules on hybrid and other mismatches Known in this Practice Note as the hybrid rules, the UK’s regime has been in force since 1 January 2017 and is intended to neutralise tax mismatches arising from the tax treatment of a hybrid instrument or hybrid entity. Although the hybrid rules are generally engaged in cross-border dealings involving two or more jurisdictions, they can also extend to arrangements that are entirely UK domestic. Specifically, the rules target: deduction/non-inclusion mismatches ( D/ NI mismatches), ie where a payment under a hybrid mismatch arrangement is deductible in the payer jurisdiction for tax purposes but is not brought into the taxable income of a payee or a related party investor, and double deduction cases ( DD cases), ie where a payment under a hybrid mismatch arrangement produces more than one tax...
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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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