The Norwegian Bar Association’s law committees are appointed by the association’s executive board. The committees consist of members with particular expertise within the selected field. The committees follow legislation developments closely and advise within their special field of expertise. With a focus on the rule of law and quality in legislation the Bar Association’s law committees deliver around 80 statements every year ...
New biodiversity net gain (BNG) requirements are set to be enforced in November 2023, giving developers and the wider real estate industry less than 12 months to prepare. The legislation will require all new developments in England, bar a few exceptions, to deliver at least 10 per cent BNG – impacting commercial and residential developers. The requirements form part of the Environment Act 2021, which received Royal Assent in November 2021 ...
With office attendance down and face to face events less frequent, the ability to meet and network with industry peers has been somewhat stymied in recent years. This is particularly true for the in-house lawyer community who, having worked through a period of sustained legislative, societal, economic and regulatory change, have arguably been one of the groups to have suffered the most from the inability hear how other IHLs across the industry have managed these challenges ...
On the twelfth day of Christmas, HR asked with heavy hearts “should we delay dismissing an employee until the New Year starts?" After much deliberation, they decided … no Dealing with redundancies or other dismissals is challenging at any time of the year, never mind in the run up to Christmas when everyone is already feeling the pinch of their purse strings whilst trying to stay afloat with festive joy ...
As we take stock on 2022, and look forward to 2023, let’s briefly reflect on some of the topics that are current with our Living sector teams and clients ...
The EU’s Digital Markets Act (DMA) [1] entered into force on 1 November 2022. A business that considers the platform it uses will likely be designated as a ‘gatekeeper’ and that the platform’s rules/behaviour are unfair can take certain steps now [2]. Q1 2023 to Q2 2023 - Engage with the platform to change its rules/behaviour ...
The UK’s purpose-built student accommodation (PBSA) sector remains resilient despite months of economic and political uncertainty. “The fundamentals of the operational market in PBSA are very strong. I don’t think anyone is sat there saying that we don’t have great universities, we’ve got great occupancy and we’ve got growing demand,” outlined Alex Pease, executive director at Watkin Jones Group, at a recent Shoosmiths’ roundtable ...
On the 11th day of Christmas, HR heard management say…“if they all work at Christmas, how much must we pay”? A weary HR team replied - whatever the contract says! Once again employers should initially turn to the contract of employment for the answer, which will vary from employer to employer and could include any of the following: You will receive normal salary for any time worked on a public holiday but will be rewarded with an equivalent day off in lieu to be taken at a
Jeremy Hunt’s speech on 9th December heralds the (delayed) arrival of the anticipated reform of consumer credit in the UK…and much more. But will the fanfare live up to the industry’s expectations? The financial services sector have faced unprecedented challenges over the last few years, particularly those involved in the provision of consumer credit ...
The Mayhew Review - Future-Proofing Retirement Living, issued in November 2022, has the premise that the UK is failing to adapt to the impacts of an ageing population. Mayhew bills this as both a housing issue (in the wider Living sector sense) and a care issue ...
From gyms, pools, gardens and co-working spaces to group litter picking, charity fund raising and book clubs, the build to rent (BTR) sector is founded on the provision of social value and community. The over-arching purpose of BTR is to create thriving communities of tenants whose willingness to utilise space and engage with neighbours goes beyond the mere occupation of a building ...
The ICO Children’s Code was introduced in September 2020 by the UK data regulator. One year on from the 12-month implementation period, we are asking what is the Code's impact, and does it go far enough to protect children's privacy online? Why a Children’s Code One critical concern is that the internet was not designed with children in mind: yet UNICEF estimates that one in three internet users are children ...
The UK data regulator, the Information Commissioner’s Office (“ICO”), has released a statement warning organisations to assess the public risks of using emotion analysis technologies, with those failing to do so risking investigation and enforcement action ...
With preliminary hearings now underway for Modules 1 and 2 of the COVID-19 Public Inquiry (‘the Inquiry’), its approach to expert evidence is emerging as an important issue for Core Participants (‘CPs’) ...
The Building Safety Act 2022 (BSA) received Royal Assent in April 2022. Its aim is to improve building safety across the built environment, with a focus on the residential sector. The BSA is being implemented in stages and a number of areas within the living sector fall under its regulatory umbrella. The government recently confirmed its intention for purpose-built student accommodation to be subject to the new regulatory regime ...
On 23 September 2021, the government published a consultation paper on ‘making flexible working the default’. The response to this consultation has now been published (on 5 December 2022). Overall, the responses to the consultation were broadly in favour of the proposed change ...
With an estimated 3.5 million people suffering from fertility issues in the UK, and with fertility treatment involving an emotionally draining not to mention a long, costly and risky process, it is unsurprising that Nickie Aiken MP has begun a campaign for change and better employment rights for individuals and couples undergoing fertility treatment ...
Meta continues to make headlines for the wrong reasons in the data protection field as this week the Irish data regulator, the DPC fined the tech company €265 million ($275 million) for infringements of Articles 25(1) and 25(2) GDPR. It is nothing new that Meta pushes data protection boundaries ...
As the Procurement Bill has made its way through Parliament, there has been much talk of giving 'smaller companies a bigger slice of the procurement pie'. It remains to be seen if, and to what extent, the relevant proposed amendments to the Bill are retained in the final version of the legislation. However, what is striking is the significant challenges many SMEs would continue to face in the event of a breach (or suspected breach) of the procurement rules ...
On the tenth day of Christmas, HR were again dismayed… ”Can we make everyone work the Christmas bank holidays? In response to this question most employers will be able to turn to the contract of employment to find the answer. The contract will typically state whether or not the annual leave allowance is in addition to the usual statutory bank holidays ...
Since the introduction of the second Payment Services Directive, Open Banking has continued to grow in the UK. Estimates put the number of users at 5 million[1] and, more so than ever, there is confidence that Open Banking initiatives are finally making inroads into becoming embedded within the way in which UK consumers use financial services in the UK ...
The EU revenue cap which limits certain electricity generators' revenues has raised many questions within the energy sector. In Finland, the revenue cap will likely be implemented in the form of a temporary windfall tax which would apply to profits made in 2023. Our energy team's associate Nelli Rönkkö has summarised the key points regarding the implementation of the EU revenue cap in Finland ...
The Supreme Court will decide if historic holiday pay claims can be brought where there are gaps of three months or more between a series of underpayments. The outcome could have significant implications for employers across the UK ...
On the ninth day of Christmas, HR was asked with fear, “Do we have to say yes to all holiday requests during this festive time of year?” And HR replied….No! A common problem around the festive period is that many employees want to take the same days as annual leave so that they can enjoy time off with their loved ones ...
Dr Ingrid Fenech participated in the Society Education Annual Conference on Aspects of Maltese Company Law held on 29th November, where she delved into the recent amendments to the Companies Act introducing the notion of cell companies carrying on or engaged in shipping or aviation business ...
