Arbitration analysis: Tim Rauschning, senior associate at Luther, discusses the EU’s proposals for the modernisation of the Energy Charter Treaty (ECT), highlighting its most notable revisions and additions, analysing how the proposal align with the EU/EU Commission’s overall investment and dispute settlement agenda, and sets out the next steps in the ECT modernisation process.

• How can the legal ownership of the land be transferred from the existing legal owners/trustees to new trustee club members? • The club wishes to sell part of the parcel of land. How should the beneficial interest of the club members be protected? This question raises the issue of land being held by trustees for the benefit of others and how it can be transferred to reflect changing circumstances. It raises aspects of the operation of the Land Registration Act 2002 (LRA 2002). In the present case, the land is said to be held for the benefit of the members of a club. That club is said to be an unincorporated association. This distinguishes it from an incorporated body which enjoys a different legal status from its officers and members. Absent fraud, the directors and shareholders of a company will usually be regarded

We have assumed that cohabitant A has sole legal ownership of the property. This raises the question of whether a cohabitant is to be viewed as a tenant or as a lodger/licensee. A tenancy is a legal interest in property. In contrast, a licence is simply a personal permission to occupy a property and does not provide long-term security for the licensee. A licensee is typically entitled to only a very basic level of protection from eviction. In the private housing sector, nearly all residential tenancies created on or after 15 January 1989 are assured or assured shorthold

The Trusts of Land and Appointment of Trustees Act 1996 (TOLATA 1996) relates only to interests in land (TOLATA 1996, s 14) or the proceeds of sale of land (TOLATA 1996, s 17). It enables the court to make a declaration as to ownership and an order for sale. However, a trust of land is defined to include a mixed trust comprising both land and personal property (TOLATA 1996, s 1(1)(a)). If therefore the parties own a mooring or such like to which the houseboat is attached, it may be possible to bring an application for an order for sale within TOLATA 1996. If the parties were formerly engaged

The position is that if the company will be asking for donations to the charity as part of its engagement, solicitation statements must be made under Scots law. The law requires such commercial

The purpose of a rent review memorandum is to record the fact that a rent review has taken place, and its outcome. The lease is likely to prescribe the rent review procedure and the memorandum will document the parties’ agreement. If the review has followed the procedure set out in the lease, it is unlikely that the memorandum will constitute a variation of the lease, because it is simply recording a process

As a general statement, it is only RICS members and RICS regulated firms that must comply with or have proper regard to the Service Charge Statement (see below). If the client and/or its surveyors are not RICS regulated, then they are not required to follow its provisions. As a general practice point, it is worth noting that non-RICS lawyers are not required to comply with the Service Charge Statement, but they should have regard to the fact that their RICS-registered clients, and/or their RICS-registered members, may have to comply with the Service Charge Statement. As to compliance by RICS-regulated clients and their

A right of way is an agreement that allows a person to pass and repass over land owned by another person. A right of way will usually be by way of an easement. A legal easement can be granted by a lease executed as a deed; if the lease is not executed as a deed the easement will take effect only as an equitable easement. Where the lease is a lease that is required to be registered (ie a lease for a term of seven years or more) the prescribed clauses should refer to any easements granted and the easements will be entered into the leasehold register in respect of the benefit of any easements granted by the lease. If the lease is not a prescribed

A commercial lease which contains a clause meeting certain requirements can be forfeited for a breach of the same. Such a lease can be forfeited through the obtaining of a court order, or by peaceable re-entry. Note that there are various notice requirements which must be followed in respect of certain breaches before forfeiture can take place. A tenant may apply for relief from forfeiture even after the landlord has re-let the property. This can cause the landlord difficulties, as if the application is successful, the original lease will be reinstated. As such, the lease between the new tenant and the original landlord would become an intermediate

Whether or not the tenant’s failure to respond to a rent increase notice will have resulted in the rent being reviewed at the level proposed by the landlord will depend on the precise terms of the rent review machinery. Some older leases contain prescriptive and formal rent review procedures, which may include a landlord having to serve a notice, followed by the tenant serving a counternotice. If the lease terms provided that if the tenant fails to serve a counternotice they will be ‘deemed’ as having agreed the rent at the

Section 17 of the Landlord and Tenant (Covenants) Act 1995 (LT(C)A 1995) provides that: ‘(1) This section applies where a person (“the former tenant”) is as a result of an assignment no longer a tenant under a tenancy but— (a) (in the case of a tenancy which is a new tenancy) he has under an authorised guarantee agreement guaranteed the performance by his assignee of a tenant covenant of the tenancy under which any fixed charge is payable; or (b) (in the case of any tenancy) he remains bound by such a covenant. […] (3) Where a person

Section 38A(1) and (3) of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1954 (LTA 1954) provides: '(1) The persons who will be the landlord and the tenant in relation to a tenancy to be granted for a term of years certain which will be a tenancy to which this Part of this Act applies may agree that the provisions of sections 24 to 28 of this Act shall be excluded in relation to that tenancy. (2)… (3) An agreement under subsection (1) above shall be void unless— (a) the landlord has served on the tenant a notice in the form, or substantially in the form, set