Archive for January 2021

Debt Moratoriums – More frustrations for the recovery of rent arrears from individuals?

As we emerge from the Covid-19 pandemic there are many tenants, and others, with substantial debts. In some of these cases where an individual has a source of income, or will gain one, that can be used to pay the debts off in time, it may be possible for them to apply for a Debt […]

gunnercooke launches Midlands recruitment drive with launch of new Birmingham office

gunnercooke is launching a new recruitment drive for partners in the Midlands following the opening of its Birmingham office. Since its launch in 2010, the firm has expanded rapidly, through an active recruitment strategy dedicated to appointing senior lawyers across the UK.  The Midlands team has seen strong hires so far including Pensions Partner Helen […]

10 in 20: Legal Year in Review

On 5 November 2020 gunnercooke partner, Veronika Koroleva, presented at the TXF Global Commodity Finance 2020 conference. The session was a roundup of 10 biggest legal stories of the year affecting commodity finance business. It also included a few predictions of what to look out for in 2021.   The recording was made available courtesy of […]

gunnercooke launches Inspiring Leadership podcast series and invites industry leaders to get involved

gunnercooke has launched a new ‘Inspiring Leadership’ podcast, hosted by its Co-Founder Darryl Cooke and featuring guests including Damian Hughes, Hassan Damluji and John Timpson. The series aims to delve into the minds of successful businesspeople to understand what makes an inspiring leader. Insights include recipes for success, behaviours to model and practical tips from […]

New VAT changes on compensation payments for leases including dilapidations

HMRC has now issued draft guidance on its revised view of compensation, liquidated damages and early termination payments and now consider that most of these payments should be treated as further consideration for VAT purposes. Notably this includes dilapidation payments common at the end of commercial property leases, and which will now mostly be treated […]

Further Six Week Extension to Eviction Ban in England and Wales

As anticipated, with the eviction ban due to come to an end on Monday 11th January 2021, the Government announced on the afternoon of Friday 8th January 2021, again at the last minute, that the eviction ban will be extended in England for a further six weeks to 21st February 2021.   They also emphasised that they would keep the measures […]

Thinking of entering into an Overage Agreement?

What is Overage? Overage (also known as claw-back or uplift) is an agreement whereby the buyer of land will pay extra, on top of the purchase price, if and when certain ‘events’ occur which lead to an increase in the value of the land.  Typically, this would arise if planning permission is obtained for development, […]

Eviction Ban remains “under review”

The Prime Minister responded to a question from Labour Leader, Sir Kier Starmer in the House of Commons on 6 January 2021 stating that the eviction ban, due to come to an end next week, remains “under review”.   A ban on evictions was first introduced in March 2020 at the beginning of the Coronavirus outbreak […]

Pension Protection Fund: Levy for 2021/22

Shortly before the Christmas break, the Pension Protection Fund (“PPF”) published confirmation of certain key points, in advance of its full response to consultation on its levy for the year 2021/22.  The full levy conclusions and final rules are due in January 2021. Background The Pension Protection Fund replaces most of the benefits due to […]

Tales from the Tribunal: 10 Takeaways for Lawyers from the Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal’s 2020 Decisions

I have acted in a number of Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) investigations over the years and understood how stressful and time-consuming they are for both the firm and the individuals involved. While many investigations are brought to a conclusion by the SRA, the most serious cases are referred to the Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal (SDT), an […]

Does the GDPR still apply to you?

Now that the post-Brexit Transition period has ended, organisations established in the UK will need to consider urgently whether their data processing activities mean that they are still subject to the GDPR. Although GDPR is EU law, not UK law, the GDPR does not just apply to organisations (ie controllers and processors) that are established […]