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Legal updates

Keeping you up to date on the latest issues and what it means for you. Use our registation form to sign up to receive our regular legal updates.

European Court of Justice (ECJ) ruling extends UK’s discrimination law
The ECJ has delivered a ruling which extends the ambit of the UK’s disability discrimination legislation to those who are discriminated against because of their association with a disabled person but who are not themselves disabled.
Date: 2008-07-22

House of Lords changes the law on disability-related discrimination
The House of Lords has delivered a major judgement which will change the way in which the Disability Discrimination Act 1995 is interpreted and which is expected to make it harder for employees to succeed in claims of disability related discrimination.
Date: 2008-07-14

Collecting & delivering goods safely
Every year in the UK about 70 people are killed and 2,000 seriously injured in accidents involving vehicles in and around work places - a significant number of those are during the everyday essential business activity of collecting and delivering goods.
Date: 2008-07-11

Commission leads by example and sues elevator cartel for damages
The European Commission has apparently decided to blaze a trail in the relatively untested area of private damages actions.
Date: 2008-07-08

Resolving a dispute? New rules for asking an expert
Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) is considerably less ‘alternative’ than it was five years ago. The Academy of Experts, the professional body for expert witnesses around the world, has just published new rules for expert determination.
Date: 2008-07-03

Data protection good practice on transfer of TUPE employee liability information
Good practice guidance for dealing with data transfers in the context of a business sale or service provision change has been published by the Information Commissioner
Date: 2008-07-01

New era for equality legislation moves closer
The Government published details of the new Equality Bill in a White Paper, called “Framework for a Fairer Future - The Equality Bill” on 26 June. The Bill is expected to be introduced into Parliament in November.
Date: 2008-07-01

Consultation launched on new right to request time off for training
The Government has published details of a proposed new right for employees to request time off work for training purposes.
Date: 2008-07-01

Draft ACAS guidance on new disciplinary and grievance Code of Practice published
ACAS has published draft guidance to accompany the new Code of Practice that is expected to come into force in April 2009 which sets out good practice for dealing with discipline and grievances in the workplace.
Date: 2008-07-01

Three issues key to bank charges test case
On 24 April 2008, the now celebrated test case on charges made by banks and building societies for unauthorised overdrafts was taken to the High Court by the Office of Fair Trading (OFT), seven UK banks and a building society.
Date: 2008-06-13

Relief from Forfeiture
Relief from forfeiture is a remedy provided by the High Court allowing a customer a further opportunity to perform his contractual obligations, and is only granted in limited cases.
Date: 2008-06-13

Brands' frosty reception for keyword search policy change
Search engine Google has made a significant policy change to its online advertising facility - AdWords - in the UK and Ireland, allowing open bidding on all keyword search terms, including those protected by trademarks.
Date: 2008-06-12

Development agreements and the "OJEU" rules - a new case and a pause for breath
Last Thursday, the European Commission closed an investigation into a development in the German city of Flensburg. This gives us a chance, a year or so on, to look again at how the OJEU rules apply to development agreements.
Date: 2008-06-10

Landlords must have robust gas safety procedures
Over recent months there have been a number of high profile cases which have been reported about gas incidents in properties owned or managed by housing landlords.
Date: 2008-06-09

Treating customers fairly - Unfair commercial practices directive
The Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations 2008 primary objective is to harmonise consumer protection law across the EU by clamping down on unfair sales and marketing practices between businesses and consumers.
Date: 2008-06-09

UK's age law under scrutiny in Europe next month
Heyday’s challenge to the UK’s age discrimination law is due to be heard by the European Advocate General earlier than previously thought, a hearing has been scheduled for 2nd July
Date: 2008-06-03

Witnessesentials - Top tips for witnesses at employment tribunals
No employer likes to think that they could end up being taken to an employment tribunal by an employee. However, there are occasions when an employer is unlucky and has to deal with an employee who is determined to have their “day in Court.”
Date: 2008-05-28

Agency workers win equal rights after 12 weeks
On 20 May the Government announced that it had agreed a deal between unions and employers that will see agency workers in the UK receive equal treatment after 12 weeks' employment.
Date: 2008-05-21

Planning a new retail IT system
According to statistics, 76% of the leading 100 UK retailers have plans to replace at least one of their core IT systems in 2008.
Date: 2008-05-01

OFT Annual Plan 2008-09
The OFT has published its Annual Plan which sets out its priorities for the next three years.
Date: 2008-04-10

Commission imposes €38 million fine on E.ON for breach of a seal during an inspection
In May 2006, as part of an investigation into suspected anti-competitive practices in the German electricity market, the Commission carried out a surprise inspection – or “dawn raid” – of E.ON premises.
Date: 2008-04-10

Update on latest cartel fines: Belgian removal cartel and synthetic rubber cartel
The European Commission has continued to take tough action against cartels, imposing fines of €32,755,500 and €34,230,000 on a Belgian removal cartel and a Nitrile Butadiene Rubber (NBR) cartel, respectively.
Date: 2008-04-10

OFT offers cartel tip-off rewards
The OFT has announced that, for a trial period of 18 months, it will offer cash rewards to individuals that blow the whistle on cartels.
Date: 2008-04-10

Commission launches sector inquiry into pharmaceuticals
The Commission has launched an inquiry into the pharmaceuticals sector, using its powers under Article 17 of Regulation 1/2003 and conducting inspections at a number of pharmaceutical companies.
Date: 2008-04-10

The Consumer Credit Act 2006 - are you ready?
On 6 April 2008 the £25,000 financial limit is being removed for all consumer credit lending and two new exemptions are being introduced being a business exemption, which only applies to lending over £25,000, and a high net worth exemption.
Date: 2008-04-06

Competition Commission publishes provisional supermarkets remedies report
In November 2007, we reported on the provisional findings of the Competition Commission (CC) in its groceries enquiry.
Date: 2008-04-04

Community infrastructure levy
One of the Government’s new planning objectives as set out in the Planning Bill, unveiled on 27 November 2007, is the introduction of the so called “Community Infrastructure Levy”.
Date: 2008-04-02

‘No purchase necessary’ just became unnecessary
The familiar phrase ‘No purchase necessary’ could soon start to disappear from product promotions.
Date: 2008-03-31

When does a free prize draw become a lottery? – The new Gambling Act 2005
Prize competitions and free draws are free of statutory regulatory control under the Gambling Act 2005 (the Act). Public lotteries, however, must operate under a licence.
Date: 2008-03-28

Proposed new tax on high-value residential property transactions
On 17 December 2007 the government issued a consultation document on transfers of “high-value” (£1 million or more) residential property using special purpose vehicles (“SPVs”).
Date: 2008-03-27

Retailers who use agency workers should note
Retailers who use agency workers should note that after a long awaited decision from the Court of Appeal the current law in this area remains unchanged.
Date: 2008-03-26

Minimising the risk of discrimination
According to the Equality and Human Rights Commission there are 10 million people in the UK who have rights under the Disability Discrimination Act 1995.
Date: 2008-03-25

Green leases
It is clear that reducing the environmental impact of property is key to the Government’s drive to cut the UK’s carbon emissions. Energy performance certificates will be introduced across the commercial property sector to promote behaviour change.
Date: 2008-03-25

Executing documents - removing red tape
With effect from 6th April 2008, a company will be able to execute deeds and documents with the signature of only one director, attested by a witness.
Date: 2008-03-25

Reform of empty rates relief
From 1 April 2008 full rates will be payable in England and Wales on empty business premises once initial exemption periods have expired.
Date: 2008-03-20

Controlling property costs
Occupying commercial premises is a necessary evil for most retailers but there are some tactics which, if deployed, could add up to some substantial cost savings.
Date: 2008-03-19

Are your employees social networking or just not working?
The popularity of social networking sites is a modern day phenomenon: the use of these sites has grown at a huge rate in a relatively short space of time. We look at the problems this can cause in the workplace and what employers can do about it.
Date: 2008-03-18

Temporary workers and collective redundancy: don't fall foul of the law!
Temporary workers are often used in the retail sector to plug the labour gap over busy trading periods but retailers could be inadvertently breaching collective redundancy law when the temps are no longer needed.
Date: 2008-03-05

Using third party rights
The construction industry has long used collateral warranties to give contractual rights to third parties who have an interest in the development. The Contracts (Rights of Third Parties) Act 1999 offers an alternative means of providing those rights.
Date: 2008-02-28

Illegal immigrants
Watch Out! New penalties for illegally employing migrant workers
Date: 2008-02-27

Restrictive covenants: How far can you go?
What can an employer do when a key employee leaves them for a competitor? How do restrictive covenants work and what are the common problems for employers seeking to enforce them?
Date: 2008-02-27

Penalties for employing illegal workers set to soar
With new penalties to tackle illegal working coming into force, employers need to ensure that they are fully up to speed on checking employees’ right to work in the UK. Be warned, the penalties are increasing significantly and will not be avoided easily.
Date: 2008-01-30

The de minimis exception in merger cases
In November last year, the OFT raised the financial threshold in relation to markets of insufficient importance in merger cases.
Date: 2008-01-11

JJB agrees to pay damages for football shirt price-fixing
JJB Sports has settled the claim brought by Which? on behalf of consumers overcharged by a football shirt price-fixing cartel.
Date: 2008-01-10

CC final report on the Sky/ITV inquiry
Last May, the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry referred British Sky Broadcasting (Sky’s) acquisition of a 17.9 per cent share in ITV plc to the Competition Commission for a full investigation.
Date: 2008-01-10

Update on the supermarket and dairies OFT investigation
In September 2007, we reported that the OFT had found evidence suggesting that certain supermarkets and dairies had been engaging in price fixing.
Date: 2008-01-10

OFT recommendations on private actions in competition law
Last November, the OFT published its recommendations to the government on private actions for competition law damages.
Date: 2008-01-10

First charges in the UK under the criminal cartel offence
In June 2007 we reported that the OFT, the European Commission and the US Department of Justice were carrying out an investigation into a marine hose cartel. Marine hose is used for transporting oil between tankers and storage facilities.
Date: 2008-01-10

Groceries report: Competition update
The Competition Commission (CC) produced its provisional findings, on Wednesday 31 October, on the long-running groceries inquiry. This is an “interim” report, and still subject to consultation.
Date: 2007-11-02

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Get in touch

Karen Carter

Head of Corporate Communications
T: 08700 86 4086
I: +44 (0)121 335 4086
E: karen.carter@shoosmiths.co.uk