Practical Law

• by Jennifer Phillips
• Senior Editor

Practical Law Global Intellectual Property & Technology has published 34 Quick Compare charts, which allow you to review and compare information about IP law and practice across different jurisdictions. The charts provide multi-layered content, allowing you to view “at a glance” summaries, together with more detailed explanations, citations and links to other relevant resources.

• by Robert Crossley
• Senior Editor, Commercial

Keeping up with developments in digital technology is essential for an organisation or business to stay relevant. However, a key challenge is the rapidly expanding breadth and depth of regulation and legislation applicable to the use of digital technology. As organisations embrace digital transformation, they may be exposed to unfamiliar regulatory environments. Practical Law has … Continue reading Demystifying digital transformation: identifying the key legal and regulatory issues →

• by Lisa Millar
• Director

Businesses are increasingly seeking to impose specific contractual requirements on their suppliers in relation to climate change and other environmental, social and governance (ESG) matters. Practical Law has published an article outlining possible steps to help suppliers review, assess and respond to customer requests for bespoke climate change and other ESG clauses in contract negotiations. … Continue reading Reviewing and negotiating climate change and other ESG clauses in commercial contracts →

• by Shelley Malhotra
• Senior Editor

Navigating data protection can be unremittingly complex and challenging for subscribers. Data protection compliance frequently relies on interpreting non-explicit rules with limited detailed guidance available. The ambiguity on how to interpret the law can be the cause of much frustration for practitioners and lawyers alike. Certain themes regularly feature across subscriber questions; applying exemptions, the … Continue reading Ask Data protection trends →

• by Merhala Selvarajah
• Editor

The first half of this year saw a rising number of company insolvencies in England and Wales, which reached their highest quarterly level since 2009 between April and June. Businesses are facing significant volatility as they negotiate mounting energy costs, interest rate hikes, supply chain strains and the withdrawal of pandemic-related government support.

• by Miriam Patterson
• Senior Editor

Earlier this year, Practical Law published my article, Non-executive directors: my journey to my first NED position. It includes some background on my career and provides tips on what I  learned when I was working towards my first NED role. For example: Join a NED support organisation to help you on the journey. Prepare your … Continue reading My journey to my first non-executive director position →

• by Michelle Rousell
• Head of Construction

Episode 12 of The Construction Briefing podcast is now available. This month the Practical Law Construction team discuss the Court of Appeal’s judgment in Abbey Healthcare (Mill Hill) Ltd v Simply Construct (UK) LLP [2022] EWCA Civ 823, and are joined by Barry Hembling, partner at Watson Farley and Williams, who has represented Abbey Healthcare … Continue reading Episode 12 of The Construction Briefing podcast →

• by Jon Tilley
• Senior Editor, Corporate

The arrival of new legislative initiatives always attracts interesting and challenging questions, from both in-house and private practitioners. In recent months, the Practical Law Corporate team has addressed questions around the intricacies of the national security and investment regime, corporate transparency and register reform, and the new trust registration service, among others, as those in … Continue reading Ask Corporate trends →

• by Michelle Rousell
• Head of Construction

Episode 11 of The Construction Briefing podcast is now available. This month, the Practical Law Construction team discuss further building safety developments, the draft Construction Contracts (England) Exclusion Order 2022, and the judgments in Nicholas James Care Homes Ltd v Liberty Homes (Kent) Ltd [2022] EWHC 1203 (TCC) and Rugby Football Union v Clark Smith … Continue reading Episode 11 of The Construction Briefing podcast →

• by Warsha Kale
• Senior Editor, Competition

We are delighted to invite you to attend a webinar, co-hosted by The Legal 500, Thomson Reuters and Mayer Brown on 7 June 2022 at 3PM BST, “The new legal frameworks for vertical agreements in the EU and UK – spotlight on key topics”. The main legal framework in the European Union governing distribution and … Continue reading Webinar: The new legal frameworks for vertical agreements in the EU and UK →

• by James Davies

On 27 April 2022, Practical Law presented a webinar, Recent Russia Sanctions and Related Considerations: How Practical Law Supports In-House Counsel. The panelists provided a summary of the key economic and trade sanctions and export controls imposed on Russia and Belarus by the US and the UK in response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and … Continue reading Webinar: Recent Russia Sanctions and Related Considerations →

• by Michelle Rousell
• Head of Construction

Episode 10 of The Construction Briefing podcast is now available. The Building Safety Bill received Royal Assent and is now known as the Building Safety Act 2022. We discuss when we expect its provisions to come into force (starts at 1:12). We also look at two adjudication enforcement judgments: Bexheat Ltd v Essex Services Group Ltd … Continue reading Episode 10 of The Construction Briefing podcast →

• by Michelle Rousell
• Head of Construction

Episode 9 of The Construction Briefing podcast is now available. This month we look at the Building Safety Bill, which has now concluded its passage through the House of Lords. The latest building safety developments include removal of the role of Building Safety Manager, a further update to Form EWS1 and agreements reached on who … Continue reading Episode 9 of The Construction Briefing podcast →

• by Robert Crossley
• Senior Editor, Commercial

In-house lawyers have had a lot to grapple with in recent years: from advising on the implications of Brexit, through the challenges and opportunities arising from developments in digital technology, to the diverse range of legal problems presented by the COVID-19 pandemic. Generally, the questions Practical Law Commercial receive through our Ask service reflect these … Continue reading Ask Commercial trends: evergreen contract issues →

• by Daphne Perry
• Senior Editor, Commercial

Blog post, Permissive language in contracts: can, may, or is entitled to?, which I wrote for ClarifyNow, discusses the meaning and use of “can” and “may” in contract drafting and in everyday language. I find that there is a clear difference in tone and an arguable difference in meaning. Although “may” is still dominant in … Continue reading “Can” and “may” in contracts: is there a difference? →

• by Michelle Rousell
• Head of Construction

Episode 8 of The Construction Briefing podcast is now available. This month, we highlight the latest building safety developments, looking at wide-ranging amendments to the Building Safety Bill, which is currently proceeding through the House of Lords (starts at 0.54 minutes). We also discuss Power and another v Shah [2022] EWHC 209 (QB), where the … Continue reading Episode 8 of The Construction Briefing podcast →

• by Michelle Rousell
• Head of Construction

Episode 7 of the Construction Briefing podcast is now available. This month we are joined by Matt Molloy of MCMS Ltd to discuss a number of developments referred to in January’s monthly bulletin. These include the latest building safety developments, with more government guidance on EWS1 forms, developers being told to pay to replace unsafe … Continue reading The Construction Briefing podcast, ep.7: building safety and adjudication →

• by Louise Townsend
• Senior Editor

As we approach the end of 2021, and after yet another rollercoaster year for data privacy, it seems a good time to reflect on what is currently on the plates of data privacy professionals and areas on which to keep a watching brief, notably the recent DCMS and ICO consultations. (For our summary of the … Continue reading What’s keeping data privacy professionals busy? →

• by Sylvie Motz
• Director of Product Management

The COVID-19 pandemic era has demanded new and evolving ways of working. But as working practices change, especially with the adoption of remote and hybrid working, some elements of an in-house counsel’s work have become even more important. Having clear and consistent guidelines and approaches has always been important to the delivery of effective outcomes, … Continue reading Are legal playbooks right for your business? →

• by Daphne Perry
• Senior Editor, Commercial

As usual around this time of year, the Practical Law Commercial team have been looking back and asking ourselves what has changed in contract law and drafting? Specifically, what developments in 2020 affect commercial lawyers as they manage existing contracts or draft new ones? We agreed that 2020 was full of changes in practice, even … Continue reading Lessons from 2020 for contract drafting and management →

• by Laura Marianello
• Senior Editor

Clyde & Co recently hosted a NEDonBoard panel discussion on the legal duties and liabilities that apply to non-executive directors (NEDs). Laura Cooke, a partner at Clyde & Co, kicked off the discussion by reminding the audience that the Companies Act 2006 (CA 2006) does not differentiate between executive and non-executive directors: they must all … Continue reading Directors’ duties and liabilities: key issues for NEDs →

• by Daphne Perry
• Senior Editor, Commercial

When the business calls for shorter and more user-friendly contracts, how many lawyers think “I’ve always used this clause” and “Who knows what may happen if I stop using it”? But, where there’s a business need to reduce contract terms, we need a good business reason to include each clause, not just fear of an … Continue reading Do I really need that boilerplate clause? Why? →

An in-house lawyer’s edict when negotiating a contract is simple: “make sure our risk exposure is as low as possible” and of course, “let’s sign this as soon as possible!” How can a business translate its risk exposure into its contracts and how can the in-house lawyer facilitate the business with this?  Practical Law Commercial’s … Continue reading Allocating and controlling risks in commercial contracts →

• by Sara Catley
• Senior Director, Practical Law Editorial

The final report of the Parker Review Committee was published on 12 October 2017. Although the report does not make any concrete proposals in relation to extending its recommendations beyond listed companies, it does contain some practical tools for thinking about diversity that will be of interest to all organisations, not just those directly touched … Continue reading Parker Review on ethnic diversity: thinking points for unlisted companies and other organisations →

• by David Bacon
• Senior Editor (Business Crime & Investigations)

On 17 January 2017, the Serious Fraud Office (SFO) confirmed that a Deferred Prosecution Agreement (DPA) had been reached with Rolls-Royce, the British aero-engineering company. Approval was given at a hearing before Sir Brian Leveson QC, President of the Queen’s Bench Division. The agreement will result in the payment of approximately £500 million plus interest … Continue reading Rolls–Royce: what can in-house lawyers learn from the DPA? →

• by Kristy Cooper
• Senior Editor (Tax)

Practical Law has published expert commentary on the 2016 Autumn Statement. Leading tax experts gave us their views about the extension of corporation tax to non-resident companies, penalties for enablers of tax avoidance, reform of interest deductibility, modernisation of the substantial shareholding exemption, abolition of tax reliefs associated with employee shareholder status, the insurance premium tax rate … Continue reading 2016 Autumn Statement: expert commentary →

• by Emma Nendick
• Head of Tax

Practical Law has published an analysis of the key business tax announcements in the 23 November 2016 Autumn Statement. Key new measures announced include a proposal to extend the corporation tax regime to all non-resident companies receiving income from the UK, the alignment of the employer and employee NICs thresholds from April 2017, the removal … Continue reading 2016 Autumn Statement →

• by Caroline Pearce
• Senior Editor (Corporate)

Much has been written in the press about the Prime Minister’s statements on corporate governance and, in particular, on plans to have worker and consumer representatives on boards, which she referred to in her speech at the Conservative party conference on 5 October and during a press conference on 5 September at the G20 summit … Continue reading Employees in the boardroom: paper published by Tomorrow’s Company considers some flexible options for companies →

• by Caroline Pearce
• Senior Editor (Corporate)

The issue of executive pay has increasingly been the subject of press coverage in 2016, particularly since the speech made by Theresa May before becoming Prime Minister and leader of the Conservative party in which she outlined her proposals to make changes to corporate governance, including executive pay.

• by Joanna Morris

On 24 June 2016, the EU referendum result was announced, with a majority of voters deciding that the UK should leave the EU. Once the government notifies the European Council that the UK has decided to leave the EU, the two-year period for the negotiation for exit under Article 50 of the Treaty of the … Continue reading UK votes out: après nous, le déluge →

• by Suzanne Dray
• Editor, Practical Law Property

In a recent case coming out of the administration of high street retailer HMV, the High Court has held that a tenant may not assign its lease to its guarantor. The decision, if followed, will reduce the options for organisations carrying out intra-group reorganisations of their property portfolios, making it critical that a lease is granted … Continue reading Three key issues to consider if your lease assignment is now void →

• by Peter Harvey
• Editor, Practical Law Environment

The recent Solar Century case gives an important warning to in-house lawyers about the government’s ability to change policy at short notice, despite potentially devastating effects on a particular sector.

• by Morag Rea

Last week Thomson Reuters hosted a seminar entitled Modern Slavery, Bribery and Corruption: Corporate Compliance with Legal Frameworks which coincided with the publication of two reports on the connection between modern Slavery and corruption from Verité and Liberty Asia. An eminent panel including Nick Grono, CEO of the Freedom Fund, Dan Viederman, CEO of Verité, Duncan Jepson … Continue reading Modern slavery, bribery and corruption: corporate compliance with legal frameworks →

• by Neha Bajpaee
• Assistant Editor, Practical Law Global

The Indian government, in consultation with the Bar Council of India (BCI) and the Society of Indian Lawyers (SILF) has given its go-ahead to a proposal allowing foreign law firms to enter India on a reciprocal basis. This marks a significant shift in the government’s policy towards the issue of liberalisation of the legal services … Continue reading Country focus : India – finally embracing foreign lawyers? →

• by Peter Harvey
• Editor, Practical Law Environment

The REACH (Registration, Evaluation, Authorisation and Restriction of Chemicals) regime regulates chemicals in the EU. Under REACH, the burden of proof is on industry to demonstrate that the use of a chemical on its own, in preparations or in articles, does not pose unacceptable risks to human health or the environment. As a result, compliance … Continue reading Focus on Environmental Law compliance: substances of very high concern (SVHC) →

• by Judith Rauhofer
• Editor, Practical Law Data Protection

The long awaited ECJ’s judgment in Maximillian Schrems v Data Protection Commissioner (Case C‑362/14) declared the EU-US Safe Harbor framework (set out in Decision 2000/520 on the adequacy of the protection provided by the safe harbor privacy principles and related frequently asked questions issued by the US Department of Commerce  invalid for failing to ensure … Continue reading ECJ rules Safe Harbor decision invalid →