There are a small number of employees whose gender identity does not match the gender they were assigned at birth. Such people are known as ‘transgender’ or ‘trans’ employees. It should be remembered that individuals will view themselves and their experiences in a unique way and they may have personal preferences in terms of the language that their employers use. In its updated guidance materials, the Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service (Acas) uses the term ‘trans’ as an umbrella term to include both: • transsexual people, ie a person assigned female at birth who has transitioned or is transitioning to live as a man, or a person assigned male at birth who has transitioned or is transitioning to live as a woman, and • people with non-binary identities, ie those who identify neither as male nor female ‘Transitioning’ or ‘gender reassignment’ is a process by which a person aligns their life and physical identity to match their gender identity. The Equality

We are not aware of any specific guidance on the meaning of the expression ‘clear days’ in a survivorship clause in a Will. However, the term has been defined in other contexts which may be of some

On 28 April 2022, section 198 of the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Act 2022 (PCSCA 2022) inserted section 85A to the Courts Act 2003 (CoA 2003) permitting court proceedings to be live streamed to either: ‘(a) ‘designated live-streaming premises’ (CoA 2003, s 85A(3)(a)) or (b) individuals who have ‘first identified themselves to the court’ (CoA 2003, s 85A(3)(b)).’ The meaning of 'designated live-streaming premises' is defined in CoA 2003, s 85A(4) as 'premises that are designated by the Lord Chancellor as premises that are made available for members of the public to watch or listen to proceedings in accordance with directions under

While there has not yet, as far as we are aware, been clear and specific government guidance published about inheritance tax (IHT) exemption available for the estates of deceased key workers due to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, the existing IHT exemption for emergency personnel contained in section 153A of the Inheritance Tax Act 1984 (IHTA 1984) is likely to be available in certain cases. Similar to the IHT exemption for the estates of persons who die in the course of active military duty or police officers targeted due to their role (contained in IHTA 1984,

NRB discretionary trusts A nil rate band (NRB) discretionary trust can be an effective method of estate planning to reduce liability to inheritance tax on the death of a surviving spouse (which expression in this Q&A includes civil partner) as the property included in the trust established on the first spouse’s death is not included as part of the surviving spouse’s estate when he or she dies. See Practice Note: IHT—use of discretionary Will trusts. The beneficiaries of the trust are usually the spouse, children and grandchildren, thereby allowing the trustees to pay capital and/or income to the surviving spouse. NRB discretionary trusts are now less likely to offer tax advantages since the introduction of the transferable NRB on the death

A fixed-term contract may be agreed with provision for automatic renewals at the end of the fixed period. Automatic renewal clauses may take a variety of forms to the following effect. For example: • indefinite term renewal subject to notice—‘this agreement shall continue in force for a period of [three] years from the commencement date. Upon the expiry of such period, the agreement shall continue in force until either party serves notice to terminate the agreement in accordance with the provisions of clause [x] in which case this agreement shall terminate [sixty] days from the date of such notice’

A tenancy which has been granted by a landlord to a tenant by virtue of a written agreement will not automatically come to an end when the tenant dies. If the tenancy is a protected Rent Act tenancy, assured tenancy, assured shorthold tenancy, secure tenancy, flexible tenancy, demoted tenancy or introductory tenancy or family intervention tenancy then there is a statutory scheme which will apply to allow a specified class of people to automatically ‘succeed’ to the tenancy. The list of successors may be extended by the terms of the contract, ie the tenancy agreement or under the policy held by the particular private registered provider of housing. It is worth making enquiries to determine whether there is a discretionary succession scheme, and, if so, what the criteria are. It is important to remember that discretionary schemes are exactly that; discretionary.

The main focus of gender in financial services appears to be on gender diversity on boards and creating more senior female positions in financial services institutions. Recent initiatives such as HM Treasury’s Women in Finance Charter (which was signed by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) on 15 June 2016) focuses on a commitment for gender diversity across

Legal requirements for documentation There is no law that prescribes that each or any of these documents must be made available per se. Generally speaking, they are a way of imposing contractual rights and obligations or addressing legal requirements to provide information. The documents that are made available, and their contents, will vary greatly depending on the situation. It will make a difference whether, for example: • the website (assuming there is one) is merely ‘informational’ or has more complex features and functionality such as the ability for users to interact, generate content or sell their own goods or services • the website owner supplies goods or services itself • any such goods or services are being provided in exchange for payment or funded by advertising • personal data is being processed and whether cookies are placed on the user’s computer or device • the intended audience is businesses or consumers • children

A partnership is not a legal entity but is a relationship between partners. It is defined in the Partnership Act 1890 (PA 1890) as ‘the relation which subsists between persons carrying on a business in common with a view of profit’. The relationship between the partners is commonly governed by a partnership agreement between the partners, which usually amends or disapplies many of the default provisions of the PA 1890. In the absence of any agreement to the contrary, a partner may sell, assign or charge a partnership interest to a third party. However, many partnership agreements will not allow a partner to assign their partnership interest without consent of the other partners. For example, clauses 8.2.14 and 8.2.15 of Precedent: Partnership agreement state: ‘…8.2 No Partner shall at any time, without the prior written consent of the Management Committee: 8.2.14

Our suggested approach is set out in Precedent Lease of whole building under clause 22.1 which states that if the lease is disclaimed or forfeited, and if within three calendar months of that disclaimer or forfeiture the landlord serves notice in writing on the guarantor requiring it to do so, the guarantor must accept a lease of the property for a term commencing on the date of disclaimer or forfeiture

The issue of who owns the cremated ashes of a loved one is an extremely fraught issue. In Williams v Williams, it was held that there was no property in a body and as a result a body could not be left by will, and thus, as in that case, the digging up of a buried body and its cremation abroad (as cremation was at that time illegal in England and Wales) pursuant to the expressed wishes of the deceased by will did not entitle the person so carrying out those wishes to claim their expenses from the estate. The first question to consider is the ownership of the human body. It has been established for a considerable time that in general it is not possible to own a corpse, which would logically extend to any human remains including ashes. However, in Dobson v North Tyneside