Court of Appeal clarifies the test for striking out ‘warehoused’ proceedings In the recent case of BlackBerry Limited -v- Optiemus Infracom Limited,[1] the Court of Appeal clarified the key test for striking out ‘warehoused’ proceedings. The decision clarifies that, even where Grovit abuse is established, strike out is not automatic and remains a matter of judicial discretion. What is warehousing? [...]
Late Payments Bill: what businesses need to know On 19 May 2026, the Small Business Protections (Late Payments) Bill (formerly the Commercial Payment Bill) was introduced to Parliament. Described by the Government as “the toughest late payment regime in the G7”, the Bill intends to help tackle the cost of living for entrepreneurs and SMEs by ensuring they are paid [...]
Job title exaggeration and sponsor licence risks For many UK employers, international recruitment has become essential to growth. However, as the Home Office continues to tighten scrutiny of sponsor licence holders, one area is attracting particular attention: the exaggeration of job titles and responsibilities to fit Skilled Worker sponsorship requirements. What may appear to be a harmless administrative adjustment, calling [...]
Unfair dismissal reform: how the 2027 changes will affect workplace risk A major shift in employment law is approaching, and many employers may be underestimating its potential impact. Currently, employers benefit from two important safeguards within the unfair dismissal regime: employees require two years' service before they can bring an ordinary unfair dismissal claim, and compensation is capped at the [...]
The Building Safety Levy - an upcoming increase to the costs of Residential Development On 1 October 2026, the Building Safety Levy, introduced by the Building Safety Act 2022 and more particularly described in the Building Safety Levy (England) Regulations 2025 (“the Regulations”), will come into force. The government has published a detailed guidance note about the levy. Building Safety [...]
The Renters’ Rights Act Information Sheet 2026 - Deadline 31 May 2026 There is less than a week until the deadline (i.e. by 31 May 2026) for landlords and their agents to provide “The Renters’ Rights Act Information Sheet 2026” (“Information Sheet”) to tenants. What is the Information Sheet? The Information Sheet is a document produced by the government for [...]
Looking ahead: Navigating the impending ban on upward-only rent review clauses The English Devolution and Community Empowerment Act 2026 received Royal Assent on 29 April 2026, with the full Act being published on 11 May 2026. Schedule 37 of the Act, relating to a ban on upward-only rent review (UORR) clauses in business tenancies is not yet in force. Implementation [...]
Is new legislation required to tackle the increasing use of AI in the workplace? AI is becoming increasingly prevalent in the workplace, used for various tasks like filtering CVs, creating job adverts, assessing performance, and even surveillance. This raises questions about whether our current UK Employment law is fit for purpose, or whether a raft of new legislation is required. [...]
Completion obligations: what comes first? It is not uncommon to find in clauses setting out completion obligations that the buyer’s payment is expressed to be “subject to” the seller’s delivery of transfer documents. This wording seems to suggest that these obligations would be sequential. In Textor v Iconic Sports Eagle Investment LLC [2026] EWCA Civ 355 (25 March 2026) however, [...]
New employment regulations published ahead of April changes The Government issued its enabling regulations for a number of the provisions of the Employment Rights Act 2025 which are due to come in force this month. From 6 April, several key changes come into force: The maximum protective awards for collective redundancies double from 90 to 180 days’ gross pay; Sexual [...]
