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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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ARCHIVED This Practice Note is archived and no longer maintained. In addition to using postponement, employers running defined benefit or hybrid schemes may defer auto-enrolment for eligible jobholders until 30 September 2017 (the transitional period), provided specific conditions are met. Where an employer defers auto-enrolment for that transitional period for eligible jobholders and does not apply a further postponement of up to three months after it ends, the auto-enrolment duties take effect: on the day following the end of the transitional period (ie 1 October 2017), or earlier, on the day after the date the transitional period stops applying (for example, because a condition is no longer met) If a postponement period is applied after the transitional period ends, the duties start on the deferral date. Note that any eligible jobholder who is not already actively participating in the scheme may opt in to active...
THIS PRACTICE NOTE APPLIES ONLY TO PENSION SCHEMES IN ENGLAND AND WALES Under the statutory auto-enrolment framework, employers must: automatically enrol any eligible jobholders into an 'automatic enrolment scheme', unless they are already an active member of a 'qualifying scheme' with that employer enrol any non-eligible jobholders who submit an opt-in notice into an 'automatic enrolment scheme', unless they are already an active member of a 'qualifying scheme' with that employer Qualifying schemes must at least satisfy minimum standards. For a defined contribution ( DC) arrangement, this includes compulsory employer and worker contributions at no less than the minimum rates. An automatic enrolment scheme is a qualifying scheme that also fulfils additional conditions. This is outlined further below. Employers should confirm that any scheme selected to meet auto-enrolment duties achieves the minimum standards. The Pensions Regulator has issued comprehensive guidance to support employers in...
This Practice Note forms part of a cross-border guide that examines essential aspects of creating specific business entities in global jurisdictions. Leading law firms within the Multilaw network respond to key questions on this subject. The guide outlines principal considerations when establishing a privately owned company in Australia. Current as at 13 January 2023. Author: Paul Kirton, Macpherson Kelley, a Multilaw member firm. Common entities Which form of entity is addressed in this questionnaire, and which other forms commonly used in this jurisdiction are covered elsewhere? This response concerns the privately owned company ( Pty Ltd Company). The trading trust is considered in a separate response. Identify other entity types that exist in your jurisdiction but are not addressed here at this time: Public...
Loan market and developments Lending to Australian corporates continues to rise, while borrowing costs have broadly steadied and most economists expect the easing cycle to begin in 2025. Syndicated lending to Australian companies expanded markedly in 2024 compared with the prior year, as borrowers pursued refinancings to secure improved pricing or extend maturities. Domestic debt capital markets were notably active, recording the busiest issuance levels of this tightening phase. A widening field of bank and non-bank lenders has also underpinned deeper liquidity, providing borrowers with a broader mix of funding options to optimise loan durations. Project finance remains buoyant, with renewables still the main engine of deal flow. Given the scale of investment needed for the energy transition and grid upgrades, momentum is expected to persist through 2030 and 2050. Meanwhile, private credit’s share of overall business borrowing is increasing rapidly......
What reliefs and exemptions are available? The core charge to the annual tax on enveloped dwellings ( ATED) is set out in Practice Note: ATED—the basics. A selection of ATED reliefs and exemptions is available; these are highlighted below and explored in greater detail in this Practice Note. The reliefs most frequently encountered in practice cover: property rental businesses property developers property traders financial institutions acquiring dwellings in the course of lending Additional ATED reliefs arise in defined situations and are likewise summarised below. There is also an interim relief intended to ease taxpayers’ cash flow. Interim relief operates as a process for claiming ATED reliefs, rather than constituting a relief from ATED in its own right......
Practice Note This Practice Note explains the exposure of an incoming tenant, on assignment of a lease, to historic breaches of that lease committed by its predecessor. It considers what this means for the assignee in relation to both continuing breaches and those that are once-and-for-all. For guidance on the responsibilities of an incoming landlord, on assignment of the reversion, for prior breaches of an occupational lease by its predecessor—and the position on recovering accrued rent arrears—see Practice Note: Incoming landlord’s liability for pre-existing breaches; and for a concise overview of how the benefit and burden of covenants transfer on assignment generally, see Practice Note: Quick guide to benefit and burden of covenants on assignment. The Landlord and Tenant ( Covenants) Act 1995 ( LT( C) A 1995) provides that, as a general rule, any lease granted on or after 1 January 1996...
This Practice Note offers practical guidance on assessing serious injury in safeguard investigations. Introduction Under the World Trade Organisation’s ( WTO) Agreement on Safeguards, a Member State may impose safeguard measures only where: imports have increased as a result of unforeseen circumstances in conditions that cause or threaten to cause serious injury, and to domestic producers of like or directly competitive products All four criteria must be satisfied before an investigating authority can recommend the imposition of safeguard measures. For guidance on these requirements and the Agreement on Safeguards, see Practice Note: An introduction to the Agreement on Safeguards. For advice on the application procedure, see Practice Note: How to apply for a safeguard investigation. The most difficult element to demonstrate is often whether the increased imports are causing, or threatening to cause, serious injury to the domestic...
This Practice Note reviews the common law duty of care in asbestos-related personal injury claims. It sets out the legal principles on duty and breach, highlights key authorities concerning low-level exposure, and considers whether the risk of injury was reasonably foreseeable. It also clarifies disclosure obligations. Frequently, the most challenging issues are demonstrating that a claimant was exposed to asbestos and by whom. The duty of care In most instances, establishing a duty of care will not be problematic. Employers plainly owe a common law duty of care to their employees. That duty includes an obligation not to negligently expose employees to the risk of developing an asbestos-related disease. Since 1931, an ever-increasing range of statutory duties has been imposed on employers in relation to the risks created by asbestos exposure. These are addressed in...
CASE HUB ARCHIVED This archived hub sets out the position as at the decision date of 20 July 2017 and is no longer updated. See the timeline and related cases. Case facts Outline of the European Commission’s Article 101 TFEU investigation into restrictive agreements in the credit default swaps ( CDS) market (case reference AT.39745). Latest developments On 20 July 2016, following market testing, the Commission approved commitments proposed by ISDA and Markit. These undertakings are designed to ease access to their respective intellectual property and data for exchange trading purposes, thereby making it easier to trade CDS on exchanges......
Lawful arrest—human rights Liberty is a core guarantee under the Human Rights Act 1998 ( HRA 1998), which incorporates the rights set out in the European Convention on Human Rights ( ECHR) (refer to Practice Note: An introduction to the Human Rights Act 1998). Exercising the power to arrest constitutes a serious encroachment upon that liberty. Where a person is detained unlawfully, it is a trespass to the person and constitutes false imprisonment. Whether an arrest is lawful depends on stringent statutory requirements. Lawful arrest—the test The governing test is one of necessity and has two limbs: involvement, or suspected involvement, of the person in the commission of a criminal offence, and reasonable grounds to believe that arrest is necessary Reasonable belief Under section 24(1)(c) and (d) of the Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984 ( PACE 1984), a constable may arrest, without a warrant, any individual whom they have...
At a convening hearing in November 2025, Argo Blockchain plc sought approval for a Part 26A restructuring plan ( RP), which received the court’s sanction in December 2025. Headline points are set out below (capitalised terms not defined here bear the meanings given in the convening and sanction judgments). This Deal Debrief sits within our Restructuring plans toolkit. For deeper insights into 2024 RP filings—covering key metrics and commentary from leading figures in restructuring—see News Analysis: Market Insights Trend Report—trends in Part 26A restructuring plans in 2024. Name of plan company Argo Blockchain plc (the Company) Industry sector Cryptocurrency mining Place of debtor’s incorporation and jurisdictional factors The Company was incorporated in England and Wales. Legal counsel involved The Company: Mr Matthew Abraham and Mr Rabin Kok (instructed by Fladgate LLP). Supporting Creditor ( Growler Mining Tuscaloosa, LLC ( Growler)): Mr Joseph Curl KC...
ARCHIVED : This Practice Note is archived and no longer maintained. It previously set out how the US Department of Justice ( DOJ) and the Securities and Exchange Commission ( SEC) approached enforcement of bribery and corruption offences under the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act 1977 ( FCPA 1977). Its coverage pertained to the period before the February 2025 Executive Order pausing all investigations and prosecutions under the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act ( FCPA), and prior to the subsequent publication of revised DOJ guidelines for FCPA investigations and enforcement. For further information, see: DOJ FCPA Guidelines News Analyses: Foreign countries have strong foundation to fill FCPA void DOJ signals major shift in white collar enforcement priorities Feds reboot FCPA agenda with narrower enforcement focus The US Foreign Corrupt Practices Act of 1977 ( FCPA) is part of US federal law and...
ARCHIVED: This Practice Note has been archived and is now unmaintained. NOTE: With effect from 19 January 2026, the UK Prospectus Regulation was revoked, and a replacement framework for public offers of securities and the admission of securities to trading in the UK entered into force in its place nationwide with effect. Accordingly, this Practice Note is no longer maintained from 19 January 2026 with effect. For information on how the successor regime applies to employee share schemes, refer to Practice Note: The public offers of securities and prospectus regimes in the context of employee share plans. Introduction and legal framework As in many jurisdictions, the UK controls public offers of securities via a range of investor-protection measures, including requiring securities issuers to meet specified minimum disclosure standards set out in applicable rules therein. Unless an offer benefits from an exemption or otherwise sits beyond the public offer regime, the...
ARCHIVED: This Practice Note is archived and is not maintained. What does the Market Standards trend report cover? Trends in Equity Capital Markets 2021–2022 The Lexis+ UK Market Standards trend report explores the current dynamics of UK equity capital market activity in 2021. It reviews 124 IPOs (58 on the Main Market and 66 on AIM) and 192 secondary offers (84 on the Main Market and 108 on AIM) completed in 2021, setting these against transactions from 2018, 2019 and 2020 for context. The report delivers analysis and commentary on both established and developing trends, alongside insight into what we might see in 2022. Topics covered include: a four-year comparison of Main Market and AIM transaction volumes, market capitalisations and gross proceeds spotlights on standout 2021 deals, including Deliveroo’s £4.9bn dual-class share structure IPO, Wise’s pioneering direct listing, and the first SPAC to list under the new listing rules,...
ARCHIVED: This Practice Note is archived and no longer maintained. Social impact bonds are a type of public–private contracting launched by the Coalition Government that entered office in 2010. To encourage participation in the social impact bond market, the UK government created a series of funds, the latest being the £80m Life Chances Fund. This is now fully committed, with linked projects continuing until 2025. It is understood that further social impact bond projects are unlikely before then, and that the model is under review to decide whether future projects will proceed in their current guise, in an adapted form, or via a different approach. Pending greater clarity on the future of social impact bonds in the United Kingdom, this page has been placed in the Archive. What is a social impact bond? Social impact bonds ( SIBs) were brought forward as part of the Big...
ARCHIVED : This Practice Note is archived and no longer updated or maintained. It supplies background reading on pre-qualification questionnaires in public procurement before the advent of new statutory guidance and the revised standard form Selection Questionnaire ( SQ) for above-threshold public procurement exercises under the Public Contracts Regulations 2015, SI 2015/102. It sets out the law as it stood prior to 9 September 2016 and is not maintained; it is provided for background information only. For more information on the current regime, see Practice Note: Pre-qualification and selection questionnaires. How pre-qualification questionnaires are used In UK practice, the information required to assess bidders’ credentials for public contracts is conventionally collected by means of a pre-qualification questionnaire ( PQQ). In procedures governed by the EU public procurement rules (see Practice Note: Introduction to public contracts procurement), the information gathered through the PQQ is used to confirm...
Archived This Practice Note is archived and retained solely for historical reference purposes. Lord Rupert Jackson and Lord Neuberger are delivering a series of lectures titled the Civil Litigation Costs Review Implementation Programme......
ARCHIVED: This Practice Note has been archived and is not being maintained. Following the conclusion of the EU transition period, the UK no longer participates in the European Investigation Order ( EIO) regime. In its place, mutual legal assistance requests from EU Member States now rely on the Council of Europe’s 1959 European Convention on Mutual Assistance in Criminal Matters and its additional protocols, as supplemented by the EU- UK Trade and Cooperation Agreement ( TCA). EIOs received before the end of IP completion day (11 pm 31 December 2020) continue to be handled as EIOs, with the relevant procedures and processes remaining applicable to these transitional EIOs. Any EIOs arriving after IP completion day are treated as requests under the 1959 convention. See Practice Note: Mutual legal assistance ( MLA). This Practice Note is retained to support those managing EIOs issued prior to IP...
ARCHIVED: This archived Practice Note outlines the data protection framework prior to 25 May 2018 and reflects the position under the Data Protection Act 1998 ( DPA 1998). It is provided for background reference only and is not maintained. Information Commissioner Under the DPA 1998, the Information Commissioner and officials at the Information Commissioner’s Office ( ICO) are responsible for enforcement. The Commissioner reports directly to Parliament. promote sound practice and compliance with the DPA 1998 by data controllers publish information and provide advice produce codes of practice international co-operation: with the European Commission and supervisory authorities in other European Economic Area ( EEA) states in respect of the United Kingdom’s international obligations concerning the Council of Convention for the...
ARCHIVED This Practice Note is archived, not updated, and offered purely for background information only...
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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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