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HSE Safety Alert: Review of risk from electrically powered gates
A new Safety Alert has been issued by the Health & Safety Executive after a spate of incidents involving electric gates, three of which led to the deaths of young children.
Date: 2010-09-03

Entrepreneurs' relief and loan notes
In the Finance (No.2) Act 2010 there is an important change to the way entrepreneurs' relief works where an individual sells shares and receives QCB loan notes in return. This change is retrospective and applies to all disposals on or after 23 June 2010.
Date: 2010-09-03

National Insurance holiday for new businesses
Draft legislation giving new businesses a National Insurance holiday has recently been published.
Date: 2010-09-03

Developing safely: know your construction regulations
In July 2010 the British Property Federation and the Construction Clients' Group issued a report revealing that two thirds of companies commissioning construction services have no knowledge whatsoever of the Construction (Design & Management) Regulations.
Date: 2010-09-02

Regulatory developments in the mortgage sector
As part of its Mortgage Market Review the Financial Services Authority (FSA) published Policy Statement 10/9 on Arrears and Approved Persons (PS10/09) and Consultation Paper 10/16 on Responsible Lending (CP10/16).
Date: 2010-09-01

A bit of a pickle?
When Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government Eric Pickles told council leaders in May of his intention to abolish Regional Spatial Strategies (RSS), it came as little surprise to the development industry or local planning authorities.
Date: 2010-09-01

Legislation hat-trick hits home builders
In an industry struggling to haul itself out of the worst property recession in post war history, it may come as a surprise to some home builders that they have been hit by a triple whammy of customer service regulation over the last 18 months.
Date: 2010-08-26

Software: Goods or services?
Software is an elusive product when it comes to determining whether supplying it should be classified legally as goods or as services.
Date: 2010-08-24

Good news and bad news for FHL property businesses
There is good and bad news for operators of furnished holiday lettings (FHL) property businesses in the Government's recently published proposed changes to the special FHL tax rules.
Date: 2010-08-16

BP agrees to pay record fine
BP has agreed to pay a record fine of $50.6m (£32.5m) in relation to safety failings at its Texas refinery plant, which killed 15 people in 2005.
Date: 2010-08-16

31% drop in fatal accidents as recession bites
Provisional fatal accident figures issued by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) for 2009-10 reveal a second year of sharp drops, particularly in the construction sector.
Date: 2010-08-16

Black Horse wins landmark PPI case
Mr and Mrs Speak (S) entered into a regulated fixed sum loan agreement with Black Horse Limited in 2006.
Date: 2010-08-10

In litigation, the biggest risk may not be losing
The decision to bring a claim, or to fight one, can be one of the trickiest problems faced by any business.
Date: 2010-08-10

TUPE transfer is no ongoing defence to equal pay claim
An employment tribunal ruling suggests contractors should be wary about equal pay claims when they inherit staff on an outsourcing.
Date: 2010-08-04

Financial regulation: A new approach
On 26 July 2010, HM Treasury published a consultation paper building on Chancellor George Osborne's Mansion House speech in which he outlined his proposals to re-shape financial regulation in the UK.
Date: 2010-08-03

TSA Review: Update
The future of the TSA and its role in the social housing sector received further impetus with Housing Minister Grant Shapps writing to the NHF chief executive outlining the Government’s TSA review and how the sector is regulated and inspected.
Date: 2010-08-03

Age: A concern? End of compulsory retirement from October 2011
The Government has confirmed it is to abolish the default retirement age of 65, which currently allows employers to force employees to retire at that age.
Date: 2010-08-02

OFT report: The high cost of credit
In June 2010, the Office of Fair Trading (OFT) published the final report on its High-Cost Credit Review.
Date: 2010-07-28

EDS v BSkyB: Businesses' salutary reminder as dust settles
As the dust settles on one of the longest and most talked about IT cases in recent history, it is time to look to the future and to consider whether or not the EDS v BSkyB case will lead to fundamental changes in business practices.
Date: 2010-07-27

Short term occupation with long term consequences
Landlords and tenants often require flexible occupation arrangements. Though there are various ways of achieving this, the basis of occupation must be made clear. Otherwise, short term occupation can have potentially expensive, longer term consequences.
Date: 2010-07-26

Bribery Act delayed six months
The Government announced today that the Bribery Act will come into force in April 2011 - not October 2010 as previously expected.
Date: 2010-07-20

CPI, SPA, default retirement age: Ones to watch in the coming months
The Government has announced it will change the basis on which private sector pensions will be required to be increased.
Date: 2010-07-20

Oil companies get fingers burnt over Buncefield
The firms involved in the operation and maintenance of the Buncefield fuel storage depot, prior to the huge explosion in December 2005, have today been ordered to pay fines and costs totalling nearly £10 million.
Date: 2010-07-19

Town or village green risk for developers
Developers must take seriously the risk to development proposals for open land wherever the land has been used for dog walking, jogging or other sports and pastimes in the recent past.
Date: 2010-07-19

Ryanair: The dangers of inaccurate advertising
Ryanair and its chief executive, have issued an unreserved apology to easyJet founder and shareholder, Sir Stelios Haji-Ioannou, for depicting him as Pinocchio in an advertisement published in the Daily Telegraph, The Guardian and on Ryanair's website.
Date: 2010-07-16

Panel considers 700th trade union recognition application
The Central Arbitration Committee’s annual report reveals that it dealt with its 700th recognition application during 2009-2010.
Date: 2010-07-12

Employers: Why you must comply with employment law
Recent annual statistics for employment tribunal services show claims submitted reached a record figure this year – up 56% on last year.
Date: 2010-07-12

Green light for redundancy payment cap – but for how long?
A recent decision is good new for employers operating contractual redundancy payment schemes, but the position may change in the future.
Date: 2010-07-12

Bribery Act 2010: A joined-up approach to correct documentation
The requirement for ‘adequate procedures’ under the Bribery Act 2010 means businesses will want to ensure they have the appropriate documentation in place before this autumn, when the new, so-called Corporate Offence is expected to come into force.
Date: 2010-07-09

Delivery charges do form part of the consumer's contract
Following this morning's announcement that Next will begin refunding delivery charges as well as the price of returned goods sold online, e-tailers should double check whether their returns policy complies with the Distance Selling Regulations.
Date: 2010-07-09

Agency worker changes under review
The new government has confirmed that the controversial Agency Workers Regulations 2010 are being reviewed – before they have even come into force.
Date: 2010-07-07

Equality Act 2010 will start coming into force in October
The new government has confirmed that it will stick with the implementation timetable for the Equality Act 2010 set by the previous Labour administration.
Date: 2010-07-05

Charities' cost-sharing arrangements may soon be more attractive
At a time when many charities have seen a decline in their income, cost-sharing arrangements between them may seem appealing.
Date: 2010-07-05

Shared ownership leases: Revolution or evolution?
The last 18 months have seen significant changes in the affordable housing sector, with the prospect of more to come - not least because of the challenges facing the new coalition government.
Date: 2010-07-02

Upper Tribunal case review: Daejan Investment Limited v Benson and Others (2009) UKUT
This case concerned a dispute over service charges in respect of a property in Muswell Hill, London.
Date: 2010-07-02

Can't pay, won't pay: Recovering service charges in hard times
Despite the first signs of a shaky economic recovery, the after effects of the longest recession in 70 years will be felt for some time, not least when it comes to recovering service charges from leaseholders.
Date: 2010-07-02

Section 20 consultation: The pitfalls and how to avoid them
If registered providers wish to avoid a cap on the service charge contribution they can recover from leaseholders, they must follow a set process - the Section 20 consultation.
Date: 2010-07-01

Let your employees watch the World Cup? Don't forget to claim tax relief
Employers who allowed staff to watch England’s World Cup matches should not forget that they may be able to claim tax relief on any expenditure incurred.
Date: 2010-06-30

Directors: Act now to appoint natural persons
The Companies Act 2006 introduced a requirement for all companies to have at least one director who is a ‘natural person’.
Date: 2010-06-29

The cloud: Coming of age
In August 2008 we predicted that the economic climate may lead to more businesses putting their heads in the 'cloud'.
Date: 2010-06-23

Emergency Budget 2010: Summary
The Chancellor delivered the 2010 Emergency Budget on 22 June. Here are the main tax points of interest.
Date: 2010-06-23

The Equality Act 2010: The Devil’s work?
One getting to grips with the new Equality Act 2010 may be concerned to note that ‘being taken as a devil’ is now, apparently, a protected line of work.
Date: 2010-06-22

£400,000 New Look fine will shake up fire safety risk profile
A Court of Appeal decision to uphold a £400,000 fine imposed against retail giant New Look for breaches of fire safety obligations, has no doubt left other industry players feeling a little hot under the collar.
Date: 2010-06-22

Wage rules set to change for apprentices
The new government has accepted the Low Pay Commission’s previous proposals to increase the national minimum wage and introduce an apprentice rate for the first time from October this year.
Date: 2010-06-22

The FSA is dead. Long live the Bank of England - and others
On 16 June, Chancellor of the Exchequer George Osborne announced sweeping changes which will bring about a new regulatory structure for the UK’s financial services sector.
Date: 2010-06-22

Dealing with grievances: What do managers need to know?
In this article we set out some guidelines for managers dealing with employees’ grievances.
Date: 2010-06-21

Supreme Court to consider the question of collective agreements on a TUPE transfer
Companies considering tendering for public sector work where employees’ terms and conditions are governed by collective agreements will be concerned to hear that the Supreme Court has granted permission for an appeal in the Alemo-Herron case.
Date: 2010-06-21

Terminal dilapidations: Valuing the reversion
Damages for breach of a tenant’s obligation to repair a property cannot exceed the amount (if any) by which the value of the landlord’s reversionary interest is diminished by the breach.
Date: 2010-06-16

Privilege: Must you show your hand?
What is privilege? When the parties in dispute reach the stage of disclosure, they have to review their documents (both hard copy and electronic) in order to determine which they are obliged to disclose.
Date: 2010-06-16

The new UK Corporate Governance Code: What does it mean for the board?
The new UK Corporate Governance Code was published on 28 May by the Financial Reporting Council (FRC)
Date: 2010-06-15

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Karen Carter

Director of Business Development and Marketing
T: 03700 86 4086
I: +44 (0)121 625 4086
E: karen.carter@shoosmiths.co.uk