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The story behind the headline...

Since the end of the transition period on 31 December 2020, there have been numerous reports of businesses struggling to deliver goods and even halting deliveries to customers in Northern Ireland. Why is Northern Ireland in this difficult position despite remaining a part of the UK following Brexit? Laura Hodgson, Knowledge Counsel, discusses the newly in force Northern Ireland Protocol, agreed as part of the Withdrawal Agreement in 2019, and the VAT and custom duty charges on goods entering Northern Ireland from other parts of the UK.

^{Clarification has recently been given by the High Court in Pallett v MGN Ltd [2021] EWHC 76, on the operation of the Part 36 regime in the context of an attempt by a defendant to avoid the usual costs consequences of accepting a claimant’s offer.} 

Part 36 of the Civil Procedure Rules (CPR) aims to encourage parties to try to settle their disputes and sets out the costs consequences of offers to settle made in accordance with Part 36. If a party fails to accept a realistic offer made by the other side, there is a risk of penalised costs and interest at the end of the case.

The story behind the headline...

Throughout January, papers and media websites were full of stories about people being asked to pay large and unexpected tax and custom duties charges on the arrival of goods from the EU. So, what is this so-called Brexit tax and why is it being charged when the UK and EU have agreed a zero tariff Brexit deal?

The Trade and Cooperation Agreement (TCA) signed by the UK and EU in December 2020 contains a number of provisions which may constrain the UK's scope to make changes to employment law. In practice, how significant could these constraints prove to be?

BNP Paribas, the largest bank in France, has announced today that it will no longer finance firms who produce, or buy, beef or soybeans from land in the Amazon that was cleared or converted after 2008 (and will encourage its clients not to produce or buy beef or soybeans from cleared or converted land in the Cerrado after 1 January 2020).

The sustainability agenda is inevitably resulting in a wave of new regulation for alternative asset managers as well as the wider business community, a trend which looks set to continue in the coming years.

Raising tax and the Triple Lock

With recent press reports that the Chancellor, Rishi Sunak, is going to stick with the Conservative manifesto 'triple lock' pledge you may be wondering how he might raise tax at next month's Budget without actually raising tax rates.

Travel restrictions and other measures imposed or recommended by governments in response to the COVID-19 pandemic (COVID-related restrictions) have now been in place in the UK and elsewhere for much longer than was perhaps envisaged in early 2020.

In November 2020 the Office of Tax Simplification (OTS) has published a report reviewing capital gains tax which included the following recommendations:

A regular briefing for the alternative asset management industry. 

The draft Regulatory Technical Standards (RTS) to supplement the Sustainable Finance Disclosure Regulation (SFDR) have been issued by the European Supervisory Authorities (ESAs) and are available here .

The scope and application of the AIFMD portfolio company provisions - including the "anti-asset stripping rules" – have changed significantly as a result of Brexit. This briefing highlights how these changes may affect your firm.

Updated 2 September 2021

Our annual briefing highlighting the key 2020 legal developments which impact the funds' industry and previews what can be expected in 2021.

Brexit Transition Period comes to an end…

At 11 p.m. on 31 December 2020, the Transition Period (during which the UK was effectively treated as still part of the EU) came to an end. In our previous article, "Social Security and Brexit: Where are we now?", we highlighted the risks faced by UK employers with employees working in the EU if no agreement on social security coordination was reached by that point. 

The Trade and Cooperation Agreement (TCA) signed by the UK and EU in December 2020 contains few provisions which are directly relevant to M&A – but there are provisions on investment and the end of the Brexit transition period is likely to have a significant impact, both on M&A and the wider investment landscape.

Welcome to the third edition of our quarterly disputes newsletter, which covers key developments in the dispute resolution sphere over the last three months or so.