The Coronavirus pandemic is presenting companies and their directors with many challenges. Simply planning for “business as usual” requires change to usual practices, involving a balance between compliance obligations and official public health advice. Holding general meetings, particularly as we enter AGM season for listed companies with a 31 December year-end, is one such challenge ...
How successfully a business emerges following this pandemic will depend to a great extent on how quickly it identifies and implements long term necessary changes. Nobody is yet clear what the post-Covid-19 world will look like. It is possible that things revert back to the way they were quicker than anyone imagines. That said, it is very difficult to imagine no lasting or consequential changes to the way we work or live ...
On 12 January 2021, David Mathias, Tim Willis, Sam Grange and Matthew Stimson from our Planning & Environmental team hosted a webinar to discuss the main changes introduced to the existing ‘Standard Method’ used for assessing housing need in England and Wales ...
In light of COVID-19 we review the steps a company’s board of directors may now take to adapt the process for approving year end accounts. Preparing and filing accounts are amongst the operational challenges facing companies as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. Practical difficulties include physically preparing the accounts and conduct of the audit, as well as the accounts approval process and subsequent sign-off by directors ...
During the COVID-19 pandemic, the rules surrounding weddings regularly changed to reflect government guidelines and the world’s growing understanding of the virus. The rules ranged from a complete ban on weddings in March 2020, to a limit of 30 people (including the engaged couple) without any singing or dancing in June 2020, to a guest limit depending on the venue in June 2021, with various stages in between ...
The Court of Protection is a specialist Court, focussing solely on supporting vulnerable individuals. This past year has acutely highlighted the needs of those most vulnerable in our society and their dependency on others to help manage their affairs. The Court has had to adjust its practices in order to ensure that help and solutions are found for those lacking capacity with minimal delay ...
The Supreme Court has handed down its much anticipated decision relating to the coverage of business interruption insurance claims made following the COVID-19 pandemic. A key question was whether the Supreme Court ruling would finally provide the clarity that the expedited test case sought to achieve for both policyholders and insurers. The good news for all is that the Supreme Court has indeed provided much more clarity in relation to most issues ...
Rishi Sunak has announced the much-awaited budget for 2021 hailing protection for the “jobs and livelihoods of the British people”. We outline below the key elements impacting employers and their wider workforce. Budget 2021: The Employment Implications Rishi Sunak has announced the much-awaited budget for 2021 hailing protection for the “jobs and livelihoods of the British people” ...
There has been a growing expectation that in order to fill the COVID sized hole in the Treasury's finances focus and ultimately action would be brought to bear on pension tax relief across defined benefit and defined contribution pension schemes. However, "Tax Day" has seen cuts to higher rate tax relief fail to materialise ...
The with backdrop of a global pandemic, John Hartley looks at the modern structure of global corporate investigations. It is a small world and getting smaller. The speed at which COVID-19 spread across the world when most easily transmitted by being within two meters of each other is a clear indication of just how small the world is getting ...
The outlook for the year ahead is uncertain with the effects of post-Brexit rules to contend with and COVID-19 continuing to restrict the way we live and work. We look at what the year may have in store for the construction industry. COVID-19 There is no doubt that the pandemic has caused challenges for the construction industry and is likely to have a significant impact into 2021 ...
After what can only be described as a difficult year (an annus horribilis!) for employers and employees alike, we turn our attention to 2021 and look at some of the more significant legislative changes coming into force this year. Furlough continues The Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme has been extended until 30 April 2021 ...
