Business Law

The government is strengthening the Prompt Payment Code to ensure large companies pay small businesses on time. Carly Davies Debt Recovery Manager reports. Companies that have signed up to the code will be obliged to pay invoices within 30 days – half the time outlined under the current agreement. Despite almost 3,000 companies signing the code, poor payment practices are still rife, with many payments delayed well beyond the current 60-day…

The widespread administration of the vaccine in the UK is good news for many employers to help working life slowly return to normal in time. But what if one of your employees refuses to have it? The big question being considered by Joanne Stronach Head of Employment Law and HR is – can an employer require its employees to have the COVID19 vaccine? The quick answer is that the Government…

We are deeply concerned about the plight of the smaller businesses across the UK including the c. 3m self-employed directors of limited companies, who are not eligible for the government’s existing grants, and have therefore been excluded from the financial support measures thus far during COVID-19.  And this is one of the reasons that we are working ‘behind the scenes’ to try and influence the government to look at introducing more support…

Mark Aspin Director and Head of Dispute Resolution provides an update. Since last May, we’ve been following the proceedings launched by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) to add some clarity to the availability of “Business Interruption” (BI) insurance as a result of business closures as a result of the pandemic.  Last September the High Court came to its conclusions, and as the national press has now reported the Supreme Court…

A Q&A published by the Law Society’s Company Law Committee covers the practicalities of using electronic signatures in a business context. Sam Lyon, Head of Corporate and Commercial reports. Electronic signatures can take different forms, from simply typing in your name or pasting a scanned image of your physical (or “wet”) signature, to clicking a button to confirm agreement where your identity has been sufficiently verified. The Q&A covers a…

The government has extended the ban on business evictions until the end of March because of the continuing Covid pandemic. Stephanie Johnson Associate Solicitor provides an update. There will also be a review of commercial landlord and tenant legislation, to address concerns that the current framework does not reflect the current economic conditions. This final extension to protections from the threat of eviction will give landlords and tenants 3 months…

The government is considering a crackdown on what it describes as unfair employment contracts that restrict worker freedom. Joanne Stronach Head of Employment & HR reports. The measures could include banning the use of exclusivity clauses, which prevent workers from taking on additional work with other employers. This would apply to workers whose guaranteed weekly income is below the Lower Earnings Limit, currently £120 a week. The change would put…

A businessman has won his appeal against his disqualification from being a company director. Sam Lyon Associate Solicitor and Head of Corporate & Commercial reports. Gabriel Gatheru Rwamba had been disqualified in 2009 for four years for failing to appropriately monitor the company’s finances. In 2010, interim orders permitting him to act as a director subject to various conditions were made. He breached that permission by failing to ensure the…

Businesses struggling with debt due to the Covid-19 crisis have been given extra breathing space to help them avoid insolvency. Mark Aspin Director & Head of Dispute Resolution provides an update. A temporary measure introduced by the Corporate Insolvency and Governance Act restricting the use of statutory demands and winding-up petitions, which was due to expire on 31 December 2020, has been extended to the 31 March 2021. This will…

Should I buy/sell the shares in a company or just its business and assets? When selling shares in a company, the entire business, including all assets and liabilities of the company all transfer to the buyer. Sellers tend to prefer this approach as it is a cleaner break for them and ensure they retain no liabilities going forward.A business and asset sale involves only specified business assets and liabilities of…