Insights & News
Search for Insights & News
-
Commercial Court confirms that Recast Brussels Regulation does not permit intra-EU anti-suit injunctions
21 August 2018The decision in Nori Holdings has reaffirmed that West Tankers remains an authoritative statement of EU law, providing welcome clarity following the introduction of the Recast Brussels Regulation and Advocate General Wathelet’s comments in Gazprom. However, whether or not the UK courts will regain the ability to grant anti-suit injunctions restraining proceedings in EU courts after the UK leaves the EU remains to be seen.
-
Residents of Taiwan, Hong Kong and Macau will not require work permits when they are hired by enterprises on the Chinese mainland potentially as soon as September 2018
10 August 2018On 3 August the State Council in China made an announcement to the effect that residents of Taiwan, Hong Kong and Macau will not be obliged to apply for work permits in order to be employed by enterprises on the Chinese mainland, under a new proposal set to operate from September 2018.
-
Bad leaver provisions enforceable as not penalties
03 August 2018In the recent case of Signia Wealth Limited v Vector Trustees Limited, the court held that the company’s bad leaver provisions (pursuant to which a leaving shareholder was compelled to sell their shares for less than their value) did not fall foul of the penalty doctrine and were therefore enforceable.
-
Sports Q&A – Maternity leave and equal opportunities
31 July 2018Was it fair for Serena Williams to be seeded at Wimbledon?
-
Science and technology committee calls for free movement of skilled workers
31 July 2018To some of us, science has an ethereal power. It creates and changes the rules rather than simply being bound by then. So it comes as no surprise that the science and technology committee has suggested free movement of scientists (and all skilled workers) to the UK. Albeit for only 180 days.
-
Can we remove “limited” from the end of our company name?
30 July 2018In certain circumstances a private limited company can apply to Companies House to be registered with a name that does not have “limited” (or the Welsh equivalent) at the end. This article summarises the circumstances of this exemption.
-
Brexit part 3 - this time it’s temporary
27 July 2018While nothing in British politics should surprise us any more, the timing of the Government’s latest White Paper on Brexit – unveiled the day before Parliament broke up for the summer – seems to have caught out many MPs as well as the media.
-
Workplace sexual harassment – Women and Equalities Committee urges radical reform
26 July 2018The House of Commons Women and Equalities Committee (“WEC”) has published a report on sexual harassment in the workplace highlighting five points on which they are calling on the Government to take action. This follows an inquiry that was launched in February.
-
Care workers not entitled to minimum wage for sleep-in shifts
18 July 2018In a case of huge significance for the care sector, the Court of Appeal (“CA”) has decided that care workers carrying out “sleep-in” shifts are not entitled to the national minimum wage (“NMW”) for the whole shift, but only when they are required to be awake and working.
-
Where might the Government’s Brexit White Paper lead us?
17 July 2018Although massively contentious, the Government’s White Paper proposals on the relationship between the UK and the EU post-Brexit add some flesh to the bones of what future interrelation between the two entities might look like. What are the key points for employment lawyers?
-
Voluntary overtime to be included in holiday pay for NHS staff
12 July 2018In the latest decision on the vexed question of the correct calculation of holiday pay under the Working Time Regulations (“WTR”), the Employment Appeal Tribunal (“EAT”) has ruled that both non-guaranteed and voluntary overtime should be included in the calculation under the NHS Terms and Conditions of Service
-
Free trade and controlling free movement - can the UK and the EU square the circle (18 months on)?
05 July 2018The Brexit rollercoaster continues to rattle along as we hurtle towards 29 March 2019, the projected date for the UK to leave the EU.
-
Court of Appeal upholds enforcement of Chinese arbitration award in England & Wales despite allegation of attempted fraud
05 July 2018One of the attractive features of arbitration is the ease of enforcement of arbitral awards in other jurisdictions. The New York Convention (the “Convention”) provides a regime by which an award made in one Convention state should be enforceable against any assets in any of the other Convention states around the world. A recent Court of Appeal decision shows that the English court will only exercise its power to refuse to recognise or enforce an arbitral award on public policy grounds in limited circumstances.
-
Corporate Update – June 2018
04 July 2018Welcome to our June 2018 Corporate Update which brings you news and our views on law and practice for corporates and their owners and managers.
-
Hong Kong’s Court of Final Appeal rules in favour of allowing same sex married couples to submit dependant visa applications
04 July 2018Following the unanimous decision of the Court of Appeal on 25 September 2017, Hong Kong’s Court of Final Appeal today ruled in favour of QT the lesbian civil partner of a British expat who challenged the Director of Immigration’s decision not to grant dependant visas to same sex married couples.
-
Too hot to handle? What employers need to know about the heatwave
04 July 2018There’s nothing Brits like more than talking about the weather and this year we’ve had a lot to discuss. Just a few months ago, the country was shivering in sub-zero temperatures, brought from Siberia by the “beast from the east”. Now that seems like a distant memory and we’re enjoying one of the hottest summers on record.
-
Roll on 06 July 2018...
03 July 2018On 6 July 2018, transitional provisions will come into force, once again changing the way in which the Home Office calculates continuous residence in the UK for indefinite leave to remain (ILR) applications.
-
Supreme Court delivers key judgment on the availability of Wrotham Park “negotiating” damages
02 July 2018The Supreme Court has considered an important question in relation to damages. In what circumstances can damages for breach of contract be assessed by reference to the sum the claimant could hypothetically have received, known as Wrotham Park damages, in return for releasing the defendant from the obligation he had failed to perform?
-
Sports Q&A – Corporate governance - key things to know
29 June 2018I’m taking on an in-house role with a professional sports team and will have responsibility for ensuring the board meets its corporate governance requirements. What are some of the key things I should know?
-
Matthew Rowbotham writes for PR Week: Is PR ready to share? The employee ownership alternative to the agency model
29 June 2018In an article for PR Week, Matthew Rowbotham comments on how employee ownership uptake has, generally, remained confined to a few core sectors, and asks, is PR ready to share?