Insights: Legal Updates - March 2013

The Supreme Court has been busy. Two final appeals in matters of interest to trust practitioners have been heard in the past few weeks. Judgment is awaited on the appeals in Petrodel Resources Limited & others v Prest & others (1) and the conjoined appeals in Pitt v Holt and Futter v Futter (2). The […]

The new Annual Residential Property Tax (ARPT) is almost upon us – in fact, if you are reading this on or after 1 April 2013, the new order is here! What is ARPT? In summary, it’s a new UK annual tax, payable by ‘non-natural persons’ owning UK residential real estate worth more than £2,000,000 (High […]

A judge hearing a tax case has held that Sir Joshua Reynolds’ painting Omai can be categorised as plant and machinery, as defined by the Taxation of Chargeable Gains Act 1992, and so is exempt from capital gains tax. The painting was on display at one of England’s grandest stately homes, Castle Howard, which is […]

There have been significant advances in awareness of the health and safety consequences of design and construction. Hopefully we will never again see disasters like the failure of the walkway onto the Ramsgate ro-ro ferry. But are there any circumstances where a completed project can legitimately put the end users at risk to their health […]

The Supreme Court has considered the “commercial purposes” exception to state immunity in a claim brought by a US judgment creditor against Iraq. In Servaas Inc. v Rafidain Bank [2012] UKSC 40, the appellant sought to attach a debt due to Iraq under a scheme of arrangement on the liquidation of the Iraqi state controlled […]

Athlete endorsement is big business. It has been widely reported that Rory McIlroy has recently signed a ten year deal with Nike worth in excess of £150 million. The deal has propelled McIlroy into the (long) list of fabulously wealthy sportsmen and women. With cameras following athletes’ every move and millions of eyes watching and […]

In a recent Supreme Court decision which consolidated two cases the Court has provided much needed clarity and confirmed that property used for commercial purposes cannot constitute a “house” for the purposes of the Leasehold Reform Act 1967 (Act). This means that landlords of properties which may have once been houses and which are now […]

Appointing a BIM manager early on a project is important to gain maximum benefit and avoid disputes. Is there already someone on the team who could take the job on though? One of the most important questions for the construction industry at the moment is, who should be appointed as the BIM manager on a […]