Last week, Shoosmiths hosted an event with leading industry body, Regen on REMA, The UK’s Review of Electricity Market Arrangements. During this event we heard directly from representatives from the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero, debating the most important issues for the clean energy sector to consider and discuss the key options for reform with leading developers and investors ...
This article looks at current trends in UK mid-market debt finance and what we anticipate for 2024. Businesses have faced a perfect storm of challenges in the last twelve months: slow economic growth, rising interest rates, geopolitical unrest and struggles to curb inflation. Despite all that, Q4 of 2023 was a busy one, with a definite uptick in new deals off the back of more positive economic news towards the end of the year ...
In August 2023, we reported on the government’s announcement of an increase to civil penalty fines for employers and landlords who employ or let properties to foreign nationals who do not have the right to work or reside in the UK. The Home Office has now communicated that the increase to civil penalty fines for employers and landlords will come into force on 13 February 2024 ...
If you have checked your licences overnight you may have seen the unexpected news from UK Visas and Immigration. They have published a notification on the landing page of the Sponsor Management System (on 24 January 2024) informing sponsors that they are removing the requirement to renew a sponsor licence. This impacts sponsors whose licence was due to expire on or after 6 April 2024. Those whose licence expires before this date will need to renew as usual ...
As employees start to push the boundaries and consider travelling abroad to profit from a ‘working vacation’, it is essential that UK employers are aware of their obligations and the checks that must be carried out. Visa requirements should not prove an issue if the employee is remaining within the UK, but there are numerous visa considerations and contractual terms that should be reviewed before approval is given to work overseas ...
On 31 January 2024, the UK government will bring into force HM Treasury’s proposed reforms to the financial promotion rules. The Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 (Financial Promotion) Order 2005 (FPO) contains restrictions on the issue of communications which amount to “promotions” of investments in securities ...
Employees have a statutory right not to suffer discrimination in the workplace; religion and belief is one of nine characteristics that are protected by discrimination legislation. We focus on this characteristic and the key issues employers face. What the law says Direct and indirect discrimination, harassment and victimisation are collectively referred to as prohibited conduct under the Equality Act 2010 (the Act) ...
As we enter each new year, we see more and more Awareness/National Days populating our calendars. Though some may seem rather obscure, the majority can be inspiring and put much needed emphasis on a lot of health, social and cultural topics ...
The launch of our annual conference, Data Insights x Shoosmiths, took place on Wednesday, 24 January 2024 at our offices in London and virtually via live-stream. We were delighted to see a conversation between the titans of data transfer: Privacy Lawyer and Activist at NOYB Max Schrems and French MP Philippe Latombe, followed by a keynote from Barrister, Author and AI visionary Jamie Susskind ...
Shoosmiths’ legal experts outline the key legal changes set to impact the UK’s real estate industry in 2024 and beyond. Introduction of biodiversity net gain in England New biodiversity net gain requirements will be introduced for large development sites from 12 February 2024 and are set to also apply to smaller sites from 2 April 2024. Biodiversity net gain aims to create and improve natural habitats by measuring the impact of a development on biodiversity ...
The Home Office has published a timeline for the implementation of measures to reduce net migration over the next 2 months. 6 February 2024 Immigration Health Surcharge will increase by 66% to £1,035 per year: Update: Confirmed date for increase to Immigration Health Surcharge (shoosmiths.com). 11 March 2024 Care workers and senior care workers will no longer be able to bring dependants ...
In the latest contribution to the debate on the UK's approach to AI regulation, the Lords Communications and Digital Committee has published a report urging the government to adopt a 'more positive' vision for AI, rather than concentrating on its "far-off and improbable" risks ...
In December, the Government published MSL Regulations, together with guidance, specifying the minimum number of workers needed to operate public services in times of strike action; for more detail, please see our recent article. With the dispute between the ASLEF train drivers’ union and UK train operators still ongoing, industrial action has now been announced to take place between 30 January and 5 February, with significant disruption expected ...
In the third instalment of our series, we consider the practical elements of the ‘workcation’ concept. As we have seen, working elsewhere may seem like an attractive proposition to employees. They will undoubtedly be keen to take advantage of the opportunity to save precious annual leave entitlement, but it is important an employer sets some ground rules ...
Last year, the UK Government announced increases in fees for immigration and nationality applications as well as priority processing services which took effect from 4 October 2023. As mentioned in our previous article, these increases are substantial and likely to have a significant financial impact for applicants and their sponsors. In addition, the UK Government are increasing the Immigration Health Surcharge shortly on 6 February 2024 ...
The recent publication of the 2024 UK Corporate Governance Code introduces several targeted changes in a move to build on the transparency and accountability requirements for corporate practices brought in by the current version of the Code ...
Last week, Shoosmiths hosted an event with leading industry body, techUK, labelled ‘Redefining web 3.0: Emerging economies, metaverse technologies and the new age of the internet’. During this event we heard directly from representatives from the sector, who delve into the business potential created by the merging of web 3.0 and Metaverse technologies ...
A report published on 25 January 2024 by the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) reaches the conclusion that contrary to the situation in the USA, aggregate employer market power has not increased in the UK in recent decades. Economic theory identifies that where employer market power is high (typically because in an area there are only a few major employers and limited other choices for workers), the workers are paid less, employers employ fewer workers and production output is lower ...
A podcast series that explores privacy themes within some of the most well-known movies. Whether you are a film buff, a privacy advocate, or simply curious about the intersection of storytelling and privacy, take a journey with us as we explore how the big screen tackles privacy. In this episode, William Moore and Mike Vallance discuss the “Marvel Cinematic Universe” ...
In another step forwards for consumer protection regulation, the UK’s Department for Business and Trade has confirmed further amendments to the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Bill to tackle deceptive trading practices in the digital realm. Following a comprehensive consultation into consumer transparency, the proposed laws will target ‘drip pricing’ by banning unavoidable hidden charges and make fake reviews illegal ...
Shoosmiths' Natalie Aldread explores two recent cases and their implications for break options and the renewal of a business tenancy under the Landlord and Tenant Act 1954 It is often assumed that where renewal of a business tenancy under the Landlord and Tenant Act 1954 has not been opposed, the bar is reasonably low to include a landlord’s break option in the new lease. Two recent cases do, however, indicate that this is not always the case ...
A core aim of the Building Safety Act 2022 (BSA) is to ensure the real estate industry - rather than leaseholders or the taxpayer - meets building safety expenditure. One way this is to be achieved is by introducing the Building Safety Levy under s.58 of the BSA. The government has now moved one step closer to the implementation of the levy with the recent publication of a consultation outcome and the publication of a third consultation - closing on 20 February 2024 ...
In this follow up article we will explore how the crypto sphere has advanced since the previous article, revisit some of the predictions we made and identify key legal updates in the crypto market and what those updates mean for the insolvency world ...
Shoosmiths' real estate experts explore commonly encountered issues and also tips and traps for providing and receiving replies to Commercial Property Standard Enquiries. Replies to Commercial Property Standard Enquiries (“CPSEs”) are designed to provide practical information about the property to assist buyers and tenants with their due diligence ...
The use of cryptocurrency or crypto assets in employee incentive arrangements is a relatively new and evolving area and it is therefore important to carefully consider the potential advantages and disadvantages of their use in incentive arrangements. Different types of crypto assets Crypto assets can take many forms including digital currency such as Bitcoin and Litecoin and NFTs (non-fungible tokens) such as art NFTs and collectible real estate NFTs ...
