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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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This analysis covers the main changes to the Immigration Rules (the Rules) set out in HC 693 that are likely to be of most interest to business immigration advisers. Readers can move swiftly to particular subjects via the Contents bar located at the foot of the page. Issued on 16 October 2014, HC 693 brings in a broad set of measures, including: new procedural provisions and Appendix AR, setting out the administrative review ( AR) process that replaces appeal rights for Tier 4 students and their family members who have not made a human rights or protection claim substantive changes to the Tier 1 ( Investor) category, following the government’s consideration of a related Migration Advisory Committee report published earlier in the year what many commentators describe as the ‘final death knell’ of the Points- Based System ( PBS), with...
This Practice Note explores bringing proceedings for sums expressed in a foreign currency. It sets out the key case law on whether such claims are permissible and the method for advancing them, and also indicates how a defendant may contest a claim framed in a foreign currency. For guidance on: interest in foreign currency claims, see Practice Note—interest on damages claims and judgment debts costs in a foreign currency, see Practice Note: Cross-border disputes—costs considerations Why bring a claim in a foreign currency? Issuing a claim in a foreign currency can be advantageous to claimants, particularly where disputes involve complex international financial arrangements. Nevertheless, there are drawbacks to this approach, especially during periods of significant exchange-rate movement. The decision should therefore be weighed carefully in consultation with the client. in contractual claims where the contract denominates payments or accounts in a foreign...
Mergers assessment guidelines The Competition and Markets Authority ( CMA) may prohibit mergers that qualify for investigation under UK merger control where they are expected to bring about a substantial lessening of competition ( SLC). Broadly, there are two categories of merger: horizontal mergers — deals between businesses supplying competing products/services non-horizontal mergers — deals either between firms at different points in the supply chain (vertical mergers), or firms at the same level that do not compete (conglomerate mergers) On 18 March 2021, the CMA updated the way it assesses mergers (the Mergers assessment guidelines) to reflect major economic shifts since its 2010 guidance. In summary, the CMA has: addressed developments in digital markets and responded to recommendations in reports such as the March 2019 Furman Report and the May 2019 Lear Report incorporated case law and the CMA’s experience over the last...
This Practice Note explores agreements made under sections 38 and 278 of the Highways Act 1980, assessing the duties they create and, in particular, the contractor’s stance in respect of them. Providing new roads and footpaths (together called ‘highways’ in this Practice Note) is a routine element of many schemes. Equally, numerous schemes call for alterations or upgrades to existing roads and footpaths. In some instances, a planning permission may even stipulate that fresh highways are constructed or that modifications to current highways infrastructure are delivered. See Practice Note: Planning conditions—key points. Ordinarily, the developer envisages that, once those works are finished, the new and/or modified highways will be taken over and maintained by the local highway authority ( LHA). Consequently, agreements under the Highways Act 1980—particularly, here, Highways Act 1980, ss 38 and 278—are frequently concluded between the LHA and the...
Note—to check whether notification thresholds in the Faroe Islands and across the world are satisfied, see: Where to Notify. 1. Have there been any recent developments regarding the Faroese merger control regime and are any updates/developments expected in the coming year? Are there any other ‘hot’ merger control issues in the Faroe Islands? The latest amendment to the Faroese Competition Act (the Act) took effect on 26 March 2024, introducing filing fees. The Faroese Competition Authority ( FCA) generally applies the competition rules with reference to EU competition law and in alignment with EU merger control. The Faroe Islands have issued guidelines covering merger-related topics; at present, these guidelines are only available in Faroese and can be accessed via the FCA’s website. An English version of the Act exists, although it is outdated. To our knowledge, there are currently no specific ‘hot’...
Under the Human Rights Act 1998 ( HRA 1998), all public authorities in the UK are required to act consistently with the European Convention on Human Rights ( ECHR), namely the ‘ Convention rights’. For further reading, see Practice Note: Convention rights. If this obligation is breached, the HRA 1998 allows any victim to bring proceedings against the public authority at fault ( HRA 1998, s 7(1)(a)). Additionally, a victim may rely on their Convention rights in any legal proceedings ( HRA 1998, s 7(1)(b)). Background—the relationship between the ECHR and the HRA 1998 The ECHR (the ‘ Convention’, as set out in HRA 1998, Sch 1 Pt 1) is an international treaty concluded by the member states of the Council of Europe. Under Article 1, each contracting state must secure the Convention rights for everyone within its jurisdiction. The Convention also...
This Practice Note outlines and provides access to the standard orders prepared by the standard orders group, acting with the authority of the President of the Family Division and endorsed by the President. It offers links to the most up-to-date versions of the standard orders and describes the history of the standard orders project... On 17 May 2023, Mr Justice Peel, the judge responsible for standard orders, announced—under the authority of the President of the Family Division and following a review and consultation—that the standard orders had been revised to reflect changes in law, practice and procedure and to promote consistency. See: LNB News 17/05/2023 88. On 21 May 2024, Mr Justice Peel, judge in charge of standard orders, further confirmed, with the President’s authority, that some standard orders were updated to reflect developments in law and practice since May 2023. The house...
NOTE—to check whether the notification thresholds in Georgia and across the world are satisfied, see Where to Notify. 1. Have there been any recent developments regarding the regime and are any updates/developments expected in the coming year? Are there any other ‘hot’ merger control issues in Georgia? Merger control in Georgia is set out in the Law of Georgia on Competition ( Competition Act). In 2025, the Georgian merger control regime saw several changes, chiefly via amendments to Decree No. 39 of the Head of the Competition Agency on the Notification of Concentrations ( Decree 39). The key updates are: Article 3(1) of Decree 39 now sets out, with greater precision, the criteria for when a concentration must be notified to the Competition Agency; critically, the substantive notification thresholds are unchanged, with the intent being to clarify and streamline the drafting rather than to alter...
CASE HUB ARCHIVED This archived case hub reflects the position as at the decision date of 21 October 2014; it is no longer maintained. See further, timeline, commentary and related cases. Case facts Outline European Commission Article 101 TFEU investigation into cartels in the Swiss franc interest rate derivatives sector ( Case COMP/39.924). The Commission identified two distinct infringements—one concerning bid-ask spreads and another relating to influencing the Swiss franc LIBOR interest rate. Settlements and fines for both infringements were announced on 21/10/2014. Parties RBS (active in both the Swiss franc LIBOR cartel and the bid-ask spreads cartel) JPMorgan (active in both the Swiss franc LIBOR cartel and the bid-ask spreads cartel) UBS (active in the bid-ask spreads cartel) Crédit Suisse (active in the bid-ask spreads cartel) Market(s) Swiss franc interest rate derivatives in the EEA. Derivatives are contracts traded on financial markets. They manage the risk of...
Football Data Co ( FD) manages the data rights of the professional football leagues, granting licences to third parties to reproduce specified IP—such as fixture lists and statistics—owned by the UK’s three professional football leagues. FD, alongside the English and Scottish Football leagues, brought a series of actions against sports data, pools and betting companies that made fixture list details available to their users, including for betting services and online information services. The claims alleged copyright and database right infringement in the fixture lists. For the procedural history and further factual background, see the Football Dataco v Stan James case. This Practice Note highlights the key points arising from the different proceedings. The Stan James action 11 February 2009—the action commenced On 11 February 2009, the Stan James action was issued in the High Court. The initial claim advanced two distinct...
CASE HUB ( NOTE–appeals lodged) ARCHIVED –this archived case hub reflects the position at the date of the decision of 15 October 2014; it is no longer maintained. See further, timeline, commentary and related cases. Case facts Outline European Commission proceedings under Article 102 TFEU examined suspected abuse of a dominant position in Slovakia’s broadband market. On 15/10/2014, the Commission adopted an infringement decision and levied total fines of €69.9m. The unlawful conduct comprised a refusal to supply and the implementation of a margin squeeze. Latest developments On 15 October 2014, the Commission delivered its infringement decision. It imposed a €38,838,000 fine on Slovak Telekom and Deutsche Telekom for infringing Article 102 TFEU. Deutsche Telekom is jointly liable for this amount owing to its decisive influence over its subsidiary, Slovak Telekom. In addition, the Commission levied a further €31,070,000 penalty on Deutsche Telekom. This...
This Practice Note applies to the majority of applications to the Court of Protection. Do note, though, that applications to appoint a property and financial affairs deputy follow a separate route. Since January 2023, after a successful pilot, an upfront notification process has been adopted as the default for all property and affairs deputyship applications. As detailed in Practice Direction 9H— Property and Affairs Deputyship Applications, the applicant must notify the person concerned and three individuals who know the person affected, using the combined notification and acknowledgement forms, COP14PADep and COP15PADep, and obtain their replies before lodging the application. Responses and any records of the notifications must be filed with the court alongside the application, together with copies of any recordings of those notifications. If applying via the online portal, a COP1 application form is not required. For paper...
Financial abuse of the elderly by carers or members of their own family sadly seems to be on the increase. This may involve: individuals stealing cash or belongings from vulnerable people obtaining digital access to the person’s bank account and taking funds that do not benefit the person an older person sharing a PIN with someone they trust due to difficulty reaching a cash machine, and that trust being abused to take cash vulnerable adults being encouraged or pressurised to change their Wills people being pressurised to sign over land or property worth thousands of pounds to relatives driven by self-interest rather than the older person’s best interests losing money to telephone scammers who claim a bank account is compromised and must be moved urgently, or other calls where control of the person’s phone is taken to access...
Loan market and developments Activity in Finland’s corporate lending space has been broadly consistent over the past decade. That said, 2019 proved more animated, with a sustained rise in corporate loan values and a widening in the overall size of the market. Market sentiment is generally regarded as borrower‑friendly... Financing structures once mainly tied to English law documentation—such as SSRCF+senior notes deals—have been adopted with growing frequency in transactions governed by Finnish law. Proportionally, the most active areas have been industrial, scientific and technical sectors, together with real estate finance... Finland’s bond market was brisk in 2018, registering a 29% uplift in total value compared with the previous year. Nevertheless, the overall rate of expansion in the bond markets is easing... Regarding forthcoming matters that may affect the loan markets, an electronic register for housing......
Why are ISDA definitional booklets needed? The overwhelming bulk of derivatives trades are recorded under standard form documents created and issued by the International Swaps and Derivatives Association, Inc. ( ISDA). The principal ISDA paper setting out the commercial terms of an individual deal is the confirmation. For further detail, see Practice Note: ISDA confirmations. A confirmation can import defined terms by referring to ISDA-published booklets known as the ISDA definitions. Multiple definitions booklets exist and the appropriate set is chosen for inclusion in a confirmation according to the class of derivative being transacted (see Practice Note: ISDA definitions). Where a party is documenting a credit derivatives deal, the confirmation will typically incorporate the 2014 ISDA Credit Derivatives Definitions (the 2014 Definitions). Incorporation ensures that the key terms contained in the 2014 Definitions automatically apply to the transactions covered by the...
What does this Practice Note cover? This Practice Note summarises the main credit event types in the 2014 ISDA Credit Derivatives Definitions (the 2014 Definitions). It sets out how each event is triggered and applied in practice, and why they matter for credit derivative trades. What are credit events? A credit derivative aims to give the buyer protection against specified credit events affecting the underlying reference entity to the trade. These events are listed in the transaction confirmation. As the credit derivatives market is largely standardised, confirmations typically apply the same credit events to the same reference entities by incorporating the International Swaps and Derivatives Association ( ISDA) Credit Derivatives Physical Settlement Matrix (the Matrix). Reference entities are grouped into ‘transaction types’ by where the reference entity is located. For example: Sony Corporation would fall within the Standard Japan Corporate transaction type; and the Kingdom of Spain would be a...
This Practice Note This Practice Note reviews the standard form novation agreements issued by the City of London Law Society ( CLLS) and the Construction Industry Council ( CIC). Novation is now widespread on construction schemes. It arises in various contexts and has, in particular, become routine on design and build procurements. For more on novation generally, see Practice Note: Novation in construction projects. Parties often adopt their own bespoke novation agreements, so numerous versions circulate. In 2004, two standard forms appeared—one from the CLLS construction committee and one from the CIC. The CIC later released an ‘ab initio’ form in November 2018, and a second edition of the ‘switch’ form in July 2021. Each agreement is a brief, straightforward document that avoids unnecessary provisions, though they adopt different approaches to novating the consultant. They do, however, each tackle the key issues arising from Blyth &...
CASE HUB ARCHIVED This archived case hub reflects the position at the date of the decision of 30 March 2015; it is no longer maintained. See further, timeline and relevant/related cases. Case facts Outline European Commission merger investigation into Zimmer’s proposed acquisition of Biomet ( Case M.7265). Referred to phase II on 03/10/2014. The deal combines two leading designers and manufacturers of orthopaedic implants and related surgical products. Latest developments The Commission approved the transaction subject to commitments on 30 March 2015. The parties have committed to: Divest the Zimmer Unicondylar Knee implant and Biomet’s Discovery Elbow throughout the EEA Divest the Biomet Vanguard total knee system for primary and revision implants in Denmark and Sweden Grant the purchaser of the knee system an EEA-wide, non-exclusive licence to the rights and know-how currently used and needed to manufacture, market and sell an exact copy of the...
A- Z of striking off, dissolution and restoration This glossary provides concise explanations of commonly used terms and expressions in the context of a company’s striking off, dissolution and restoration... Administrative restoration — Introduced by the Companies Act 2006 ( CA 2006), this is a simpler method to return to the register a company removed by the Registrar of Companies, without needing a court application. It is available only when specific conditions are met. It took effect on 1 October 2009. For further information see Practice Note: Company restoration—administrative restoration. Compare with restoration by court order... Bona vacantia — A Latin term meaning ‘ownerless goods’. Where a company is dissolved while still owning, or holding an interest in, property, that property is treated as bona vacantia (that is, it is ‘vacant’ and without a legal owner) and passes to the Crown. In such a case the...
Most charities possess some level of liquid holdings and an ambition to optimise the return those funds can generate. In this setting, it is vital that trustees understand the boundaries of what is permitted and prohibited in relation to investing. The word ‘investment’ is commonly taken to mean any asset that yields income, yet it must be separated from the notion of ‘income’ in trust law, which excludes capital gains. For charities, however, the concept may embrace both income in the usual sense and capital gains. Definition of investment Curiously, the principal statute governing investment in a trust or charity setting, the Trustee Act 2000 ( Tr A 2000), offers no definition of investment. At present, the legal understanding of ‘investment’ is confined to the formulation in Harries v Church Commissioners: property held by trustees to generate money—whether income or capital growth—to advance the work of the...
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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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