EU Law analysis: In a landmark ruling, the Court of Justice recently affirmed the applicability of EU consumer protection law to contracts involving minors in the sports industry. The court found that a contractual term obliging a young athlete to transfer part of his income to a sports talent agency if he becomes a professional athlete may be considered unfair under Directive 93/13/EEC, the EU Unfair Terms in Consumer Contracts Directive (EU UTCCD), if the clause is not plain and intelligible as regards the financial consequences of the commitment. The Court of Justice remains true to its principles on consumer protection issues and emphasizes once again the transparency requirement. As promising talents are being recruited at ever earlier ages, the decision is likely to have significant implications for practitioners particularly in the sports sector but also beyond the industry. While the Court of Justice generally allows such contracts and finds that a disproportion between the provided service and the remuneration does not lead to unfairness per se, talent development professionals must ensure that sports agent agreements with minors are drafted in accordance with consumer protection standards and adequately reflect the long-term interests of the athletes. Written by Robert Briske, M.mel., partner at Osborne Clarke (Berlin, Germany) and Jonas Müter, LL.M. (EMLE), associate at Osborne Clarke (Hamburg, Germany).

1 Clause [insert assignment clause number] is without prejudice

Defining a contractual term by reference to a list of items and expressing that list to be ‘without limitation’, is a technique used by the drafter to broaden the potential reach of the term without requiring the drafter to expressly provide for every possible eventuality which could be captured

Unfortunately, we have been unable to find authority on the specific point raised in this Q&A. Terms of the contract It is first necessary to determine the parties’ respective rights and obligations under the contract. Investors Compensation Scheme v West Bromwich Building Society sets out the five principles of contractual interpretation which were later summarised in BCCI v Ali as: ‘To ascertain the intention of the parties the court reads the terms of the contract as a whole, giving the words used their natural and ordinary meaning in the context of the agreement, the parties’ relationship and all the relevant facts surrounding the transaction so far as known to the parties.

This Precedent request for consent to assignment is intended to be used where a commercial contract expressly prohibits assignment, or specifies that it can only be assigned with the consent of the other party to the contract. If such consent is needed, the assignor should consider seeking consent in the terms of this letter to the other party. This Precedent is not intended for use for seeking consent to assignment of a lease. Check to see if there is a confidentiality clause prohibiting details of the contract being made available to third parties. Where disclosure is prohibited, the assignment should not be requested without evaluating the consequences of breaching the confidentiality clause. In such circumstances, consider obtaining, before asking the other party for its consent to the assignment, its consent to details of the contract being revealed to the proposed assignee. For guidance, on assignment of rights under contract, see Practice Note: Ireland—Assigning rights under contracts. If consent to an assignment is not forthcoming, it is worth checking to see if the party whose

The Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ) has published the response to its November 2024 consultation on proposed additions to the Contract for Difference (CfD) contract arising from the introduction of the Clean Industry Bonus (CIB). The government's response confirms the inclusion of several key provisions in the CfD contract, such as requiring generators to comply with the requirements outlined in their CIB Statements and provide updates to the Low Carbon Contracts Company on the status of their CIB Statement, CIB Implementation Statement application, and their CIB Implementation Statement or CIB Refusal. Further additions include provisions on Performance Related Adjustments linked to the CIB Minimum Standard in case of non-delivery, the conclusiveness of Secretary of State determinations, as well as provisions allowing for adjustments to CIB payments in the event of a new determination by the Secretary of State, among other additions. Additionally, the response addresses concerns regarding the treatment of phased CfD units, clarifying contract changes designed to accommodate such scenarios.

Private Client analysis: H and W divorced on terms that the matrimonial home (in H’s name) would be left to the son of their marriage (T) on H’s death. The divorce settlement was approved by the Family Court by order made in 2017 and H made a Will as per the agreement/order. Following a terminal diagnosis in 2019, H married his girlfriend, M, so that M could draw down the widow’s benefit of his pension post-death. The marriage revoked the Will. On the ensuing intestacy, the estate passed to M. T claimed against H’s estate for breach of the divorce settlement. M counter-claimed for ownership of the house under section 11 of the Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975 (I(PFD)A 1975), on the basis that H had entered into the divorce settlement with the intention of defeating any future claim by her, and that W had not given full consideration, the divorce agreement being better than she would have achieved in contested divorce proceedings. The divorce settlement was upheld and section 11 claim dismissed, albeit that H and W found to be in collusion against M with regards the divorce negotiations. Written by Imogen Halstead, barrister at No5 Chambers.

A 'lay-off' occurs when the employer temporarily shuts down some or all of its operation because it cannot find any or enough work for its employees. In such circumstances, the employer may purport to suspend the contract of employment, rather than terminate it. However, the employer has no unilateral right to suspend the contract (Neads v CAV Ltd, Peter Pain J). There must be a permissive term in the contract, express or implied, before the employer may lawfully suspend the contract (Hanley v Pease & Partners Ltd, Div Ct; Marshall v English Electric Co Ltd).

This Flowchart illustrates the issues to be considered when choosing a method for termination of a commercial business-to-business (B2B) contract. It covers rights to terminate at common law for repudiatory breach and contractual rights to terminate, contract breach and no-fault termination scenarios. It is important to remember that rights to terminate a contract may arise at common law (for example, in the event of repudiatory breach) and under the express terms of the contract. Where an agreement is silent as to contract

Funder means a party (acting for itself

The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has responded to the Scottish Government’s consultation on the Scottish Law Commission’s contract law review report. In the response, the CMA provides an update on developments in consumer protection law, in particular the new enforcement powers the CMA will have under the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024 (DMCCA 2024) from Spring 2025. The response states that two changes made by the DMCCA 2024 will have some indirect impact on the enforcement of contract law in Scotland, namely the changes to the existing court-based consumer enforcement model, and amendments to the UK’s implementation of Directive 93/13/EEC (the Unfair Contract Terms Directive), including the Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations 2008, SI 2008/1277.

Signed by [insert name of director] for and on behalf of [insert name