Two weeks before the 2021 Scottish Parliament elections, Fraser Mitchell, partner at Shoosmiths sat down with political analyst, strategist, and commentator, Andy Maciver to discuss his views the current state of Scottish politics, the economy in the face of COVID, Brexit and the growing support for independence as well as key issues in the context of Scotland’s future. We have captured the key takeaways from the discussion below: Andy Maciver: AM Fraser Mitchell: FM 1 ...
The Financial Services industry has been quick to respond to the struggles facing individuals and businesses during the current coronavirus pandemic, but there are issues they need to consider when implementing their forbearance measures ...
To support our IHL community, on 21 April we hosted our latest webinar on “Fraud” where we discussed the recent upsurge in fraud due to home working, general awareness of fraudulent activity and what businesses can do to protect themselves. Here are the key takeaways: What types of fraud are you seeing at the moment? The world is a turbulent place right now, and therefore the perfect time for fraud and illicit activity to thrive ...
On 16 December we held a webinar as part of the IHL series looking at the preparatory steps you need to have in place within your organisation as well as outline the new Immigration routes from January 2021 and onwards. We have briefly summarised the key points discussed and further sources of guidance below. The information contained in it is for educational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice ...
Thousands of disputes are dealt with by way of international arbitration every year and it is inevitable that when most countries started introducing social distancing measures, a number of arbitrations were either part heard or just about to start and will have been derailed, at least to some extent ...
With COVID-19 taking its toll on some businesses, employees may find themselves placed at risk of redundancy. This article looks at the practical steps an employer should take when carrying out an individual redundancy consultation. Individual consultation is fundamental to the fairness of any dismissal for redundancy ...
COVID-19 has definitely changed the way in which we work. When many people started working from home back in March 2020, it was seen as a short-term, temporary arrangement to help combat the effects of COVID-19. Fast forward 12 months and homeworking is widely considered to be here to stay. In our webinar (kindly hosted by Macmillan Davies), our employment law and health and safety experts talked through the key issues for businesses to be aware of ...
This article forms part of our ‘New How: Perspectives’ report: ‘Home Working not the Panacea’. To access this free report, please click on the download link to the right of this page. Home. Noun. Meaning: “The place where one lives permanently, especially as a member of a family or household.” Not any longer. Home is now also where many of us work ...
It seems that business disruption due to coronavirus is pretty inevitable. What should you as a company director be doing if the disruption means your business starts to suffer? What changes for me as a director? As a director, you know that you owe duties to the company ...
The requirement for businesses to publish gender pay gap reports was cancelled in 2020 as a result of COVID-19. Gender pay reporting is, however, back on the agenda for 2021 so is there anything new that you need to know? In short, yes. There has been a lot of commentary over the last nine months about the impact of Covid-19, and particularly furlough, on gender pay statistics (see our previous article here https://www.shoosmiths.co ...
Our latest Brexit Insight: Immigration series of webinars focusses on the impact of Brexit on workers and businesses since 31 December 2020. Our Immigration expert, Rachel Harvey, kicked off the first session by discussing the issues surrounding the new frontier worker permit and eligibility, including what a frontier worker is, what a frontier worker permit provides and what your obligations are as an employer for the next 6 months and beyond ...
In what has been a period of unprecedented upheaval, employers have learnt a lot about their working practices and staff. As we enter the new world, employers have a unique opportunity to build back better including normalising flexible working for all ...
This is the final article in a series reflecting on employee mental health and wellbeing challenges that employers are currently facing. It focuses on how employers can support employee mental health going forwards. Flexible future? If COVID-19 has done one thing at the very least, it is to open employers’ eyes to different and more creative ways of working ...
Following the Chancellor’s announcement on 29 May 2020 regarding further changes to the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme, we now have more detailed guidance about how the new flexibility under the scheme will work from 1 July. Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (CJRS) Flexibility As we know, from 1 July 2020, employers will be able to bring furloughed workers back to work on a part time basis if appropriate while still being able to claim under the CJRS for hours not worked ...
Reid Hoffman is an American-based venture capitalist, author and entrepreneur at Greylock Partners who is best known for being the co-creator of the social network, LinkedIn ...
Recent statistics from London’s Commercial Court and major arbitration institutions confirm London’s reputation as an international hub for dispute resolution, with English law remaining the most popular choice for the resolution of international disputes ...
Under English law, unlike civil law systems, a force majeure is neither defined nor automatically applicable to commercial contracts ...
Does the COVID-19 pandemic (or actions taken to counter the spread of COVID-19) constitute Force Majeure and is there any implied remedy (e.g. implied force majeure relief) arising as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic? Under English law, unlike civil law systems, force majeure is neither defined nor automatically applicable to commercial contracts ...
Does the Covid-19 pandemic (or actions taken to counter the spread of Covid-19) constitute a Force Majeure in a refit/ repair contract? Is there any implied right of relief for the contractor or the owner? Under English law, unlike civil law systems, a force majeure is neither defined nor automatically applicable to commercial contracts ...
Employers can face a civil penalty under the Immigration, Asylum and Nationality Act 2006 (“the Act”) of up to £20,000 per illegal worker for failing to carry out the prescribed right to work document checks. It is a criminal offence to knowingly employ anyone who does not have the right to work in the UK or where an employer had ‘reasonable cause to believe’ they did not have the right to work in the UK ...
As many of us continue to work from home and/or have opportunities for travel and meeting up restricted, we are continuing to run our essential webinar series for employers to ensure that our clients and contacts remain up to date and equipped to deal with all eventualities! Our latest seminar focused on the return to places of work ...
As the saying goes “when the wind blows, some people build walls, while others build windmills". We know that we’re facing a crisis unlike any other, but what’s been illustrated clearly is that a lot of our old assumptions on how we work can be challenged. We can be working smarter, faster, better. We want to emerge from lockdown with something positive to show for it: a new normal better than the old one. We need a new how ...
Incorporating climate reporting into new, post-COVID-19, strategies will not only help achieve net zero targets but early adopters will be at the forefront of gaining valuable expertise, market resilience and better returns. There has been much discussion about the economic model for the global effects of COVID-19 and for our transition out the other side ...
In the shadow of COVID-19, company directors are having to take decisions at speed across a range of issues. The government is encouraging companies to help re-open the economy by bringing staff back to their work places. This challenge, alongside others that directors face, must be met against a backdrop of economic uncertainty, the end of the furlough scheme and planning for the repayment of government loans ...
This article forms part of our ‘New How: Perspectives’ report: ‘Can real estate help solve the productivity puzzle?. To access this free report, please click on the download link to the right of this page. The Covid pandemic has clearly had a significant impact on our society, the economy and everyday life, with numerous sectors having found life in lockdown incredibly challenging ...
