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ILN Today Post
November 30, 2017

The best Christmas present for your family: a discretionary trust?

By Fladgate LLP of Fladgate LLP

This article is taken from Helena Luckhurst’s blog The Wealth Lawyer UK.

It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas out there, as Bing says. Thoughts turn to what gifts to give our family. When it comes to making big gifts to family members, though, in lifetime or on death, still not enough people think of using a trust.

Many people hardly know what a trust is; still less understand what a trust can do for their family. Discretionary trusts (or, to be precise, their trustees) can be taxed without reference to the personal tax positions of the beneficiaries and, if desired, that of the person(s) funding the trust. The fact that trusts are taxable in their own right can be very useful for family tax planning.

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ILN Today Post
November 30, 2017

The SFO v ENRC: Erosion of fundamental rights and dangerous precedent or a valid aid to law enforcement?

By Fladgate LLP of Fladgate LLP

Eurasian Natural Resources Corporation Ltd (ENRC) has been granted permission to appeal the controversial ruling in Serious Fraud Office (SFO) v Eurasian Natural Resources Corporation Ltd [2017] EWHC 1017 (QB)  which sent shock waves through the legal profession earlier this year.

The appealed decision held that certain documents generated during an internal investigation conducted by lawyers into allegations of bribery and corruption were not protected by litigation privilege, and therefore could be used by the SFO in the prosecution of alleged offenders. With corporations being encouraged to police their operations and to put in place systems to protect them from abuse, the decision was seen as unhelpful by some in that it might discourage openness within organisations and restrict access to legal advice.

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Posted in Europe | Legal Updates
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ILN Today Post
November 30, 2017

Major change to the taxation of commercial property

By Fladgate LLP of Fladgate LLP

Radical changes to the taxation of UK real estate were announced in the autumn Budget.

Investment into UK real estate has long had a privileged status, especially for investors based overseas. But over the last few years those tax privileges have been whittled away.

Two years ago the UK extended Capital Gains Tax to individuals and closely held companies owning UK residential property. Last year the UK tax code was amended to make sure that profits from development of UK land were taxed wherever they arose. And in this year’s Budget the Government has announced that with effect from April 2019 offshore investors will pay Capital Gains Tax on their profits from UK commercial real estate.

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Posted in Europe | Legal Updates
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ILN Today Post
November 22, 2017

Rentcharges – historic but current

By Fladgate LLP of Fladgate LLP

What are they?

Rentcharges are any annual or other periodic sums charged on land, except rent reserved by a lease or any sum payable by way of interest.  If they remain unpaid, there could be disastrous consequences even if payment has not been demanded.

They were common in the 19th century in Manchester, Bristol and Bath where freehold owners sold properties to developers for less than market value in return for the developers paying an annual rentcharge. They were also used as part of imposing covenants on land.

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Posted in Europe | Legal Updates
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ILN Today Post
November 22, 2017

Brexit for business

By Fladgate LLP of Fladgate LLP

The United Kingdom continues to be a member of the EU as well as the Common Market and the Customs Union.  This situation will persist at least until the end of March 2019, i.e. the end of the two year negotiation period stipulated by Article 50 of the Treaty of Lisbon which governs the withdrawal of a member state from the Union. As such, therefore, no changes to the legal and regulatory environment have taken place yet for UK businesses and foreign businesses trading in and with the UK.  Just as it is currently unclear what form Brexit will take (soft or hard or, perhaps more likely, a degree of hardness in between), it is also unclear what changes to the legal environment will occur.

Nonetheless, businesses are understandably concerned about the future and increasingly approach us for advice. The following is a brief overview of key points and questions that we have come across in advising on matters of current significance in the context of Brexit:

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Posted in Europe | Legal Updates
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ILN Today Post
November 14, 2017

Mines and minerals – what goes on beneath the surface…

By Fladgate LLP of Fladgate LLP

Background

It is not unusual to see an exception for mines and minerals on a title register for a property. This exception means that any mines and minerals lying underneath the property are not included in the registered title and, as such, the property.

If you are told that this is the case for your property, your solicitors should undertake a Land Registry SIM search to find out if these mines and minerals are registered under a separate title. The search result will show if there is a separate freehold title showing the proprietor of the subterranean property.

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Posted in Europe | Legal Updates
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ILN Today Post
November 10, 2017

Brexit – recent developments and the implications for some aspects of construction law

By Fladgate LLP of Fladgate LLP

The European Union (Withdrawal) Bill (informally known as the “Great Repeal Bill”) passed its second reading on 11 September. The Committee stage is scheduled for 14-15 November, although it is still possible that political pressures will derail that timetable. What impact will the bill, if it completes its passage, have on construction law?

It must be said at the outset that the bill is likely to undergo significant change before it is enacted. Over 400 amendments have been tabled by MPs. Any assessment at this stage must necessarily be provisional.

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Posted in Europe | Legal Updates
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ILN Today Post
November 10, 2017

Understanding insurance indemnity principles and providing lender protection

By Fladgate LLP of Fladgate LLP

Real estate finance lenders need to achieve three things:

  • First ranking security over the real estate asset.
  • Maintenance of the real estate asset’s value by ensuring all damage is reinstated (and insurance proceeds applied accordingly).
  • Fixed security over any lump sum payment.

This all sounds simple enough but on nearly every real estate finance transaction insurance requirements are the last to be agreed. It can be helpful for both lenders and borrowers to understand how insurance claims are dealt with by insurers to be able to agree insurance requirements and ensure that the borrower’s broker will be able to deliver on these.

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Posted in Europe | Legal Updates
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ILN Today Post
November 3, 2017

Is your building WELL?

By Fladgate LLP of Fladgate LLP

The WELL Building Standard is the first building standard which focuses on the health and wellbeing of the building occupants and gives a ‘wellness’ rating for buildings.

The WELL Building Standard is an international standard which is administered by the International WELL Building Institute, a public benefit corporation based in the US, whose mission is to improve human health and wellbeing through the built environment.

Unlike other standards, which focus on the environmental and sustainability credentials of the building, the WELL Building Standard focuses on the impact of the building on the physical and mental wellbeing of the end-user.

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Posted in Europe | Legal Updates
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ILN Today Post
November 3, 2017

Don’t rely on the grace of the court to save you, keep your house in order!

By Fladgate LLP of Fladgate LLP

The courts have long recognised that companies do not always follow all the procedures prescribed by company law and that, in certain circumstances, it would be unjust for the courts to punish a party just because of a failure to observe legal formalities.

One area is that of shareholder approval. With English companies varying in size and complexity from smaller, owner managed businesses to large trading companies or parent companies of multinational groups, the level of formality given to decisions varies, as does the degree to which these are formally recorded. With smaller companies and groups especially, the directors and the (major) shareholders can often be one and the same, and the reality is that decisions are taken on an ad hoc basis, as and when necessary, with less focus on legal formalities or documentation.

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Posted in Europe | Legal Updates
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