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An abridged version of this article was originally published in Artificial Lawyer here.

The UK's Walker Guidelines for Disclosure and Transparency in Private Equity (the "Guidelines") have been updated, and a feedback statement was published by the BVCA on 18 December 2024. 

An Australian court has held that bitcoin is personal property, in a way that highlights our concern that the Law Commission's Property (Digital Assets etc) Bill (the Bill), presently going through Parliament, will create an unhelpful "fork" in the international legal treatment of cryptoassets.

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A regular briefing for the alternative asset management industry. 

Jonathan Gilmour, Head of our Derivatives & Structured Products Group and member of the Governance Committee of the UK Voluntary Carbon Market (VCM) Forum, answers the team's most frequently asked questions surrounding VCMs and the potential implications for investors.

Travers Smith's Specialty and Structured Finance team were among the more than 1,200 registered delegates at DealCatalyst's ABSF Global Conference at the Royal Lancaster on Monday 25 November 2024.

The Older People’s Housing Taskforce published their long-awaited report entitled 'Our Future Homes: Housing that promotes wellbeing and community for an ageing population' on 26 November 2024. Its intention is to explore how best to support people to live well and longer in an age-friendly home and neighbourhood of their choice.

The Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act 2023 introduces a new strict liability 'failure to prevent fraud' offence (the "FTPF Offence") in the UK. The FTPF Offence will come into effect on 1 September 2025.

The Supreme Court's long-awaited judgment in SkyKick v Sky has made it easier to challenge trade mark registrations in relation to overly broad classes of goods and services on the basis that they were applied for in bad faith. This briefing provides an overview of this significant decision and what it means for trade mark owners.    

The Terrorism (Protection of Premises) Bill, also known as Martyn's Law in honour of Martyn Hett who died in the 2017 Manchester Arena attack, will when enacted improve the UK's security by obliging those responsible for certain premises and events to plan how they would respond to a terrorist attack in or near to their property. Persons responsible for larger premises and events must also take steps to reduce the property's vulnerability to terrorist attacks.

Since our last briefing, there have been several significant tax developments which affect the real estate sector. The new Labour Government's first Budget included welcome confirmation that it will press on with introducing a new form of investment fund (the RIF) that is expected to be particularly attractive for investment in commercial real estate, and proposals for significant reform to the tax treatment of carried interest.

A regular briefing for the alternative asset management industry. 

The first ever judgment on the UK Government's application of the National Security and Investment Act 2021 ('NSIA') has been handed down. With a focus on the procedural aspects of the review, the High Court upheld the Government's decision to require LetterOne (ultimately owned by Russian nationals, including individuals subject to UK sanctions) to divest the entirety of its shareholding in Upp, a fibre broadband start-up. 

In this edition, we focus on the infrastructure implications of the new Labour Government's first Budget, including for energy, vehicles, telecoms, housing and major projects.  We also look at new initiatives affecting the UK water industry and UK infrastructure investment more generally.  Please get in touch if you would like to discuss any of the issues discussed below.

Many businesses may not have heard of the European Accessibility Act ("EAA").  If it has slipped under your radar, now is the time to take note because this legislation has a broad reach across many sectors, significant implications for product and services design (as well as documentation) and a looming compliance deadline.  The EAA becomes applicable from 28 June 2025 and aims to ensure that many categories of consumer products and services, particularly digital technologies ranging from payment terminals and smartphones to banking services and online shops, are accessible to all, including people with disabilities. 

At the time of our last COP29 update, we were still waiting to hear what the outcomes would be from several key discussion areas, including negotiations relating to the headline climate finance deal. Although it is relatively normal for COPs to overrun, it was not until the Sunday after the official closing that a New Collective Quantified Goal on Climate Finance ("NCQG") was finally unveiled – highlighting the intensity of last-minute discussions and the difficulty in reaching a climate finance figure that would be acceptable to different parties.

The Chancellor's Mansion House speech on 14 November 2024 was almost as hotly-anticipated as her Budget, with the speech's proposals on pension fund consolidation as extensively trailed in advance as the Budget's tax increases.