I have recently been advising a farmer in relation to an appeal against a department penalty imposed for an alleged breach of GAEC (Good Agricultural Environmental Conditions). These are the conditions farmers claiming agricultural support payments must comply with, and which are designed to safeguard soils, habitats and landscape features on agricultural land. A breach of GAEC can lead to financial penalties being imposed on the farmer ...
The Court of Session has considered whether court proceedings can be raised to interrupt time bar, despite a contractual provision requiring adjudication before litigation. The issue Construction contracts often provide a hierarchy of dispute resolution processes. Before a party is permitted to litigate (or arbitrate), it is often required to attempt to resolve the dispute through another method (or methods) of dispute resolution ...
The recent case of John Doyle Construction (JDC) v Erith Contractors Limited provides two lessons for the construction sector concerning the enforcement of adjudicators’ decisions by companies in liquidation. First, “clear, evidenced, and unequivocal security” is necessary before enforcement is possible. Second, where a solvent and paying party asserts set-off and counter-claims, enforcement is prohibited in most circumstances ...
Certain claims in contentious executry matters, such as challenging a will, must be made within a specific time period. Where a dispute arises, seeking legal advice about the relevant time period at the earliest opportunity is of fundamental importance. In Scots law, the loss of a claim due to the passage of time is known as prescription and is presently governed by the Prescription and Limitation (Scotland) Act 1973 ...
The Rating (Coronavirus) and Directors Disqualification (Dissolved Companies) Act 2021 received Royal Assent on 15 December 2021. The Act implements changes to the Company Directors Disqualification Act 1986 (the CDDA). Importantly, it will allow the Insolvency Service to investigate the conduct of directors of dissolved companies. What is the current position? The CDDA allows the Insolvency Service to investigate the conduct of directors of insolvent companies ...
How will the UK become a Net Zero-aligned Financial Centre? Last month, the UK Government announced that the UK was to be the world’s first Net Zero-aligned Financial Centre. The Institute for Government defines “net zero” as “a balance between the amount of greenhouse gas emissions produced and the amount removed from the atmosphere” ...
It makes for great entertainment if a competition comes down to the last few minutes. So a dramatic final race in Abu Dhabi should have been the finishing flourish for a Formula One season that has been one of the closest in years, with Sir Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen fighting it out for the championship. Instead, the last lap generated huge controversy after a decision by the Race Director to allow some cars to unlap themselves, and order the safety car in immediately ...
Law 9/2022 was published in Diário da República, the Portuguese official gazette, on 11 January 2022. This new law establishes measures to support and speed up corporate restructuring processes and payment agreements. It is the result of the incorporation into Portuguese law of Directive (EU) 2019/1023 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 20 June 2019 (“Directive (EU) 2019/1023”) ...
The Land Registry is the gatekeeper of legal ownership of land in England and Wales. A prompt and successful application for registration is an essential step at the end of most property transactions. In this article we will look at why registration of property transactions is important and the consequences of delays in the process. We will highlight common difficulties and barriers to registration and provide practical advice to overcome them ...
This is a reminder that as of January 6, 2022, the Small Business Administration is requiring all small businesses to use a five-year period of measurement in determining their size under a revenue-based size standard. On January 6, 2020, the SBA published its final rule providing for a five-year period of measurement for determining a small business’s size under revenue-based size standards ...
This is a reminder that as of January 6, 2022, the Small Business Administration is requiring all small businesses to use a five-year period of measurement in determining their size under a revenue-based size standard. On January 6, 2020, the SBA published its final rule providing for a five-year period of measurement for determining a small business’s size under revenue-based size standards ...
Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corporation v. Accord Healthcare, Inc., Appeal No. 2021-1070 (Fed. Cir. Jan. 3, 2022) In this week’s Case of the Week, the Federal Circuit affirmed a district court’s bench trial finding that claims of a pharmaceutical patent were supported by adequate written description under 35 U.S.C. § 112(a) ...
A hot topic on many local authority agendas for this year will be the regeneration of their town centres. The way we shop, eat and work is ever changing, and our town centres need to be ready to accommodate a more diverse and flexible way of life. A lifestyle not necessarily brought on by, but certainly expedited by the COVID-19 pandemic ...
Law 8/2022 (the “Law”) was published on 10 January. This Law introduces important changes to the rules on horizontal property and to the mandatory documents that must accompany the deed or the certified private document for the sale of self-contained units. A. MAIN CHANGES TO THE CIVIL CODE 1 ...
Dear valued clients, colleagues and friends, We are pleased to bring you the latest legal updates for December 2021 ...
Introduction The Joint Committee of Parliament (“Committee”) appointed to review the draft Personal Data Protection Bill submitted its report to Parliament on December 16, 2021. The report also includes a revised draft Bill which has now been renamed as the Data Protection Bill, 2021 (“Bill”). As there is less than a week left of the winter session of Parliament, it is very unlikely the Bill will be passed by Parliament in 2021 ...
Whither Advance Ruling under Income tax law? ‘Prevention is better than cure’ is an adage that applies equally to litigation - specially to tax litigation. Towards this end and based on several committee reports starting from Wanchoo Committee (1971) to Choksi Committee (1978) and Raja Chelliah Committee (1993), the Government eventually introduced a mechanism for advance rulings by inserting a new Chapter XIX-B in Income Tax Act 1961 (the Act) ...
If 2020 marked the beginning of the pandemic, 2021 was the year it became fully imbedded in our personal and working lives. What does 2022 have in store? For the pandemic, only time will tell, but when it comes to employment law things are a little clearer. Employment Bill Perhaps unsurprisingly, the long-awaited Employment Bill did not progress in 2021 ...
If 2020 marked the beginning of the pandemic, 2021 was the year it became fully imbedded in our personal and working lives. What does 2022 have in store? For the pandemic, only time will tell, but when it comes to employment law things are a little clearer. Employment Bill Perhaps unsurprisingly, the long-awaited Employment Bill did not progress in 2021 ...
Almost one year into the new funding round for English affordable housing, we consider how the new Homes England shared ownership lease may affect living sector stakeholders. What’s happened to shared ownership leases? April 2021 heralded a major change to shared ownership (‘SO’) leases in England. Following a consultation process, Homes England released a new suite of model SO leases ...
The Oregon Supreme Court recently reversed a decision of the Oregon Court of Appeals and determined that the lease of a vested hydroelectric water right to the state for instream uses did not qualify as the “use of water under a hydroelectric water right” under Oregon Revised Statute 543A.305(3). WaterWatch v. Oregon Water Resources Department, 369 Or. 71 (2021) (hereafter referred to as Warm Springs Hydro, after intervenor respondent Warm Springs Hydro LLC) ...
The Oregon Supreme Court recently reversed a decision of the Oregon Court of Appeals and determined that the lease of a vested hydroelectric water right to the state for instream uses did not qualify as the “use of water under a hydroelectric water right” under Oregon Revised Statute 543A.305(3). WaterWatch v. Oregon Water Resources Department, 369 Or. 71 (2021) (hereafter referred to as Warm Springs Hydro, after intervenor respondent Warm Springs Hydro LLC) ...
The Oregon Supreme Court recently reversed a decision of the Oregon Court of Appeals and determined that the lease of a vested hydroelectric water right to the state for instream uses did not qualify as the “use of water under a hydroelectric water right” under Oregon Revised Statute 543A.305(3). WaterWatch v. Oregon Water Resources Department, 369 Or. 71 (2021) (hereafter referred to as Warm Springs Hydro, after intervenor respondent Warm Springs Hydro LLC) ...
