An agent is a person who has authority, whether express or implied, to enter into agreements or legal relations on behalf of their principal. The key to agency is the actual or ostensible authority to enter into such legal relations and if a person does not in fact have such authority, they are not an agent. Therefore, for example, estate agents are ordinarily not true agents, as they have no such authority to bind their principal without express authorisation to do so. It is unclear in this scenario what status the letting agent has and whether they are truly an agent. It is also unclear whether the claim under section 214 of the Housing Act 2004 (HA 2004), which entitles a tenant to claim the repayment of a deposit and compensation of between one and three times

In order to assess whether a cross-border supply is subject to UK value added tax (VAT), it is necessary to consider the place of supply rules, which are explained in detail in Practice Note: VAT place of supply rules—where is a supply made? We assume that: • the private individual is not a ‘relevant business person’, as explained in Practice Note: Who is a relevant business person?, and • the Australian company ‘belongs’ in Australia for the purposes of this supply, as explained in Practice Note: How do I know where the recipient or supplier of services belongs? The

It is assumed in this Q&A that: • pure hydrogen is to be conveyed to the offtaker via bespoke hydrogen pipeline infrastructure, rather than blending the hydrogen into the existing natural gas network (known as hydrogen blending), and • the hydrogen production facility and pipeline infrastructure are owned by separate entities For licensing purposes, under existing legislation, hydrogen gas is treated in the same way as natural gas. In particular, section 48(1) of the Gas Act 1986 (GA 1986) expressly includes hydrogen in the definition of ‘gas’ and so the regulatory regime for onshore natural gas also applies to hydrogen projects. In addition, Part 3 of the Energy Act 2023 (EnA 2023), extends GA 1986 to expressly cover the licensing of pipelines for the transport of hydrogen (see, in particular,

By its nature, a licence is a personal contractual arrangement between the parties. Therefore, a genuine car parking licence would be personal to the parties to it. If the arrangement is truly a licence, it will not bind successors in title. A licence will not bind a purchaser of the car park,

It is assumed that there are no issues concerning the solicitors’ duties to their client. Under the Rights of Light Act 1959, the owner of land may prevent rights of light being acquired over their property by applying for the registration of a notice that is equivalent to the obstruction of the light. This is known as a light obstruction notice (LON). For guidance on such notices generally, see Practice Note: Rights of light—obstruction notices. For the procedure for obtaining and registering a LON, see: Rights of light—Light Obstruction Notice procedure—checklist (Local Land Charges Rules 1977) (or Rights of light—Light Obstruction Notice procedure—checklist (Local Land Charges Rules 2018 procedure) as appropriate). As those checklists explain, an application must be made to the Upper Tribunal (Lands Chamber) (UT), which will give directions that the applicant must, within a specified time period and using a specified method (ie by advertisement

For the purposes of this Q&A, it is assumed that the relevant partnership is a limited partnership established in England under the Limited Partnerships Act 1907 (LPA 1907) as subsequently amended with effect from 6 April 2017 by the Legislative Reform (Private Fund Limited Partnerships) Order 2017, SI 2017/514 (LRO). Under the Companies Act 2006 (CA 2006) a limited partnership that carries on business in the UK under a business name must make certain disclosures in its business documents and at its business premises in accordance with provisions of the CA 2006 which apply equally to general partnerships and limited partnerships. A partnership, ie both a general partnership and a limited partnership, has a business name if it has any name other than: • the surnames of all the partners who are individuals (without any addition other than a permitted addition), or • the corporate names of all the partners who are bodies corporate (without any addition other

For the purposes of this Q&A, it is assumed that the relevant partnership is a limited partnership established in England under the Limited Partnerships Act 1907, which has as its general partner a private limited company incorporated in a jurisdiction outside the United Kingdom. The obligations that apply in relation to the production of partnership accounts depend on whether or not that partnership, which would include any limited partnership, is a ‘qualifying partnership’ (as defined). A ‘qualifying partnership’ is a partnership formed under the law of any part of the United Kingdom each of whose members is: • a limited company • an unlimited company each of whose members is a limited company • a Scottish partnership which is not a limited partnership, each of whose members is a limited company, or • a Scottish partnership which is a limited partnership, each of whose general partners is a limited company Here the reference to a 'limited company': • means

Liquidated damages clauses A liquidated damages clause in a contract provides that a pre-determined sum shall be paid by one party to the other for a specific breach or breaches of the contract. If the amount specified is grossly disproportionate to the actual loss suffered, the clause will be unenforceable as a penalty. The advantages of liquidated damages clauses are that they provide some certainty to the parties, allow the parties to agree an amount considered reasonable for any breach and avoid litigation. The disadvantage with such clauses is that it is often unclear whether they are enforceable or a penalty. See generally Practice Note: Contract interpretation—distinguishing between liquidated damages and penalty clauses and Precedent: Liquidated damages clause. The principles applicable The following general principles apply to liquidated damages clauses: • the traditional

A creditor wishing to recover a debt must submit a proof in writing to the liquidator pursuant to rule 14.3 of the Insolvency (England and Wales) Rules 2016 (IR 2016), SI 2016/1024 (unless the provisions of IR 2016, SI 2016/1024, r 14.3(2) or (3) are satisfied). Accordingly, HMRC will be required to submit a proof of debt in the liquidation regardless of the fact that the debt due to them was the basis of the winding up petition. The

Section 127 of the Insolvency Act 1986 (IA 1986), which only applies to compulsory liquidations, provides that: ‘In a winding up by the court, any disposition of the company's property, and any transfer of shares, or alteration in the status of the company's members, made after the commencement of the winding up is, unless the court otherwise orders, void.’ Once this provision (which does not apply to the liquidator) is triggered, it continues until the dissolution of the company following its winding up. Unless they have a valid defence, any recipient of the disposition may, depending on what property was disposed of, be ordered to either return that property or repay any monies that were paid to them. No remedy is

A person under the age of 18 is regarded as lacking capacity. Accordingly, unless the court allows the child to conduct their own proceedings, a litigation friend will need to be appointed to act for the child in the civil proceedings. The status of a litigation friend is that they are an officer of the court appointed to look after the interests of the child. Generally, a litigation friend is not

A live-work unit is a single residential unit (eg a studio or loft) that includes a work area, such as a home office, so that the occupant can work from home. The inclusion of the work area may be a requirement of planning consent. This Q&A assumes that the unit is in the UK. For VAT purposes the question is whether the unit is ‘designed as a dwelling’. If it consists partly of a dwelling or dwellings, and partly of something else, then there will need to be an apportionment: only the relevant part is treated as a dwelling. HMRC considers live-work units at paragraph 16.4 of VAT Notice 708 (buildings and construction). This states that if there