Our knowledge resources reflect the breadth and depth of our expertise, our insight into the issues which matter to your business, and our understanding of the markets in which you operate.
As you will be aware, last week the FRC published its awaited proposals for a revised UK Corporate Governance Code: a "comprehensive review to ensure that the Code remains fit for purpose". This is the biggest shake-up of the Code in recent years, and the changes will affect all companies on the premium segment of the Official List and others who voluntarily agreed to comply with the Code.
Under section 3 of the Prescription Act 1832, tenants as well as freeholders can acquire rights to light. A recent case, Metropolitan Housing Trust Ltd v RMC FH Co Ltd [2017] EWHC 2609, illuminates what happens when a landlord and tenant disagree over whether the tenant can release the right to a developer without the landlord's consent.
Can landlords recover any loss at lease expiry on change of use from offices to flats? What is the dilapidations position in the context of residential conversions?
What if the main body of a contract appears to say one thing, but the detailed wording of a technical schedule appears to be at odds with that? You might have thought that the main body of the contract would take precedence – but a recent Supreme Court ruling suggests otherwise.
In VB Football Assets -v- Blackpool Football Club (Properties) Limited (formerly Segesta Limited) & Others [2017] EWHC 2767 (Ch), the High Court ordered that the majority shareholder of Blackpool Football Club Limited (Blackpool FC) purchase the minority shareholder's entire interest in the company, following the minority shareholder's successful petition alleging unfair prejudice.
How confidential information exchanged at a single meeting can infringe competition law
The decision in Franses v the Cavendish Hotel [2017] EWHC 1670 has attracted a lot of concern as to whether a landlord's motive is relevant to its ability to utilise section 30(1)(f) ("Ground (f)") of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1954 (the "LTA 1954"). Tenants and their representatives are concerned that Ground (f) is being used openly to defeat the purpose of the LTA: 1954 to protect tenants' business tenancies.
The provision of heating from combined heat and power ("CHP") plants through a network of underground and internal heating pipelines has become a fairly common aspect of the utilities infrastructure in modern residential and mixed-use development schemes. They are also an increasingly popular investment asset class in their own right, attracting a diverse range of investors into the infrastructure sector.
All too often, businesses believe that they have secured a valuable commitment to exclusivity – only to discover that, when they come to enforce it, the relevant contractual provisions aren't watertight. In this briefing, we look at how to avoid the most common pitfalls and ensure that your exclusivity provisions achieve your commercial objectives.
Landlords are responsible for the buildings they own. But increasingly this responsibility is being extended to encompass the behaviour of their tenants.
Battery storage is the way ahead for renewable energy. However, there are various practical, legal and technological hurdles to overcome before this solution can be fully implemented.
Commercial, IP and Technology Partner, Ben Chivers recently hosted a talk on technology in the modern age, where David Rowan, former editor-in-chief of Wired Magazine UK, explored the ways in which technology is disrupting everything from the retail sector to our healthcare system.
An update from the Candy brothers litigation
In Millgate Developments Limited (and another) v Bartholomew Smith and the Alexander Devine Children's Cancer Trust [2016] UKUT5150 (LC) the Upper Chamber prioritised public interest in housing development over a private landowner's rights. This approach is likely to become common.
A recent case throws light on a question that property owners and occupiers sometimes need to consider: if I acquire a plot of land next to land I already own, am I entitled to use the right of way over which I get to my existing land in order to get to the new plot?
SANGS can be taken into account by local authorities considering development proposals, but they must be real and deliverable, not hypothetical.
Randhawa & Anor v Turpin & Anor [2017] EWCA Civ 1201
In a fascinating (and very readable) judgment, the Court of Appeal has held the appointment of joint administrators made under paragraph 22 of Schedule B1 to the Insolvency Act 1986 ("IA 1986") to be invalid because, among other things, the appointment was made following an inquorate board meeting. Readers are encouraged to read the judgment, as the following is merely an overview of the facts and conclusions.
When should benefits arising following a breach of duty be brought into account when assessing loss?
SAW (SW) 2010 Ltd & Anor v Wilson & Ors [2017] EWCA Cif 1001 (25 July 2017)