On 16 December 2025, the government published a package of documents to accompany the new consultation on major reforms to the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) and the draft revised NPPF. Together, they set out the political context, the formal ministerial position and the expectations for local authorities during the transition to the new national policy approach.

This Practice Note sets out the key documents which are required for a commercial mortgage-backed securities (CMBS) transaction including the key parties of each document and the main points to consider in each document and also considers at what point in the transaction such documents should be entered into. As with all financing techniques and transactions there are numerous permutations as to how the precise terms of each such transaction operates which are beyond the scope of this Practice Note. In addition, unless expressly set out, the requirements of particular jurisdictions, including in particular the requirements of the United States, with respect to a CMBS transaction are not specifically considered as part of this Practice Note. This Practice Note should be read in conjunction with Practice Note: Key parties, documents and terms of a commercial mortgage-back securities transaction. The key documents involved in a CMBS transaction are typically: • Offering Document • Subscription Agreement/Note Purchase Agreement • Trust Deed • Deed of Charge • Agency Agreement • Loan Sale Agreement

This Practice Note examines the documents which are required for a residential mortgage backed securities (RMBS) transaction from pricing to closing, including the key parties of each document and the main points to consider in each document. The key documents are: • offering document • subscription agreement/note purchase agreement • agreed upon procedures letter • trust deed • deed of charge • paying agency agreement • mortgage sale agreement • mortgage administration agreement • standby mortgage administration agreement • cash management agreement • liquidity facility agreement • master definitions schedule • corporate services agreement • bank account agreement • swap documents • legal opinions • risk retention memorandum • Volcker memorandum • risk retention letter, and • reporting designation letter Each of these will be considered in turn below. Signing date The following documents will be agreed and signed prior to the announcement and pricing of the RMBS transaction. Offering document Parties involved in the preparation: • issuer • arranger, and • managers Key

Inheritance is considered as an integral part of Shariah. Shariah means the path to be followed. Laws of Inheritance are stipulated by Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala swt (Allah, the most glorified, the most high). If a person has wealth then whether they are alive or have passed away, the use of this wealth cannot contradict laws set down by Allah swt. In Islam, violating these laws is considered a major sin. Laws of inheritance have been mentioned very clearly and in detail in the Quran. The Quran is the primary source of Shariah and the secondary source is the Sunnah. Sunnah refers to the actions and statements of the Prophet Muhammad, peace and blessings be upon him (PBUH). Other acts of worship have been mentioned in the Quran but the detail is found in the Sunnah of Prophet Muhammad (PBUH). However, when it comes to the laws of inheritance, Allah swt has explained these himself in the Quran. Inheritance law in the Quran Most inheritance laws in the Quran are found in the ‘Surah An-Nisa’

When restructuring is considered rather than formal insolvency proceedings (see Practice Note: Benefits of informal restructuring over formal proceedings) the company may want to ensure that relevant creditors quickly enter a standstill agreement to gain some breathing space to consider a restructuring plan. A standstill agreement is an agreement between the company and its creditors restraining creditor enforcement action (see Precedent: Standstill agreement). Parties The debtor company will be a party, together with operating subsidiaries holding valuable assets or at risk of formal proceedings or breaching their financial covenants, as well as usually the ultimate parent company. Other parties will be creditors and other stakeholders who are essential to the success of the company, eg key customers, suppliers (if the company is a critical client, useful concessions may be obtained) and the pensions trustee/regulator (if there is a large defined benefit pensions deficit). Who has a seat at the negotiating table (and who should be party to the standstill) depends on where value is expected to break (see Practice Note: Where the value

This Practice Note sets out what is covered in a typical confidentiality agreement in a restructuring, and why those terms are included. This Practice Note should be read in conjunction with Precedent: Confidentiality agreement—restructuring & insolvency. Why are confidentiality agreements required? Accurate information is a keystone for a successful restructuring. Directors, creditors, investors and other stakeholders will need information on the debtor company and its affairs to determine whether restructuring is possible, what form it should take and which parties have an economic interest in the outcome. A balance must be struck—the creditors need sufficient access to information to be able to properly assess the company, understand the cause of the problems and severity of the distress and so be in a position to provide ongoing support throughout the restructuring. If they are left in the dark and not given sufficient information, creditors will quickly become frustrated and start to consider their enforcement options. On the other hand, the company's management should not be unduly burdened by onerous reporting obligations as

Understanding the impact of a corporate transaction on the company's share incentives If a company is subject to a corporate transaction, this will often have an impact on any share incentive awards that exist over its shares. It is important to determine what this impact will be as early as possible in the planning stages of the transaction as the share incentives aspects can sometimes be critical to the proposed structure, mechanics and/or timing of the transaction, and can otherwise result in a need to revise the transaction further down the line specifically in order to take account of them. This can particularly be the case where: • a large proportion of the share capital is subject to share awards • where key individuals or a significant proportion of the workforce hold such awards, or • where there is an employee benefit trust (EBT) This Practice Note looks at the steps which will typically need to be taken on any transaction when dealing with the share incentives aspects of it (see:

Employment analysis: The LexisNexis® Employment team have put together a round-up of the key employment law changes taking effect in April 2024. These include: (1) changes to the calculation of holiday pay for irregular hours workers and part-year workers, (2) changes to the right to, and process for, flexible working requests, (3) changes to paternity leave and pay, (4) introduction of carer’s leave, (5) extension of the period during which protection in redundancy situations applies, (6) increases to the national living wage (NLW) and national minimum wage (NMW), (7) removal of the NMW exemption for live-in domestic workers, (8) increases to the VAT registration thresholds, (9) increases to the tribunal compensation limits, (10) amendments to employment tribunal rules on responses, (11) increases to the Vento bands for making awards for injury to feelings, (12) increases to the rates of statutory sick pay, statutory maternity pay, statutory paternity pay, statutory adoption pay, statutory shared parental pay, statutory parental bereavement pay and maternity allowance, and (13) various tax and National Insurance changes.

Employment analysis: The Lexis+® Employment team have put together a round-up of the key employment law changes taking effect in April 2025. These include: (1) introduction of neonatal care leave and pay, (2) amendment to the definition of ‘small company’ for the purposes of IR35, (3) changes to the Civil Procedure Rules, (4) increases to the national living wage (NLW) and national minimum wage (NMW), (5) increases to employment tribunal compensation limits, (6) increases to the Vento bands for making awards for injury to feelings, (7) increases to the rates of statutory sick pay, statutory maternity pay, statutory paternity pay, statutory adoption pay, statutory shared parental pay, statutory parental bereavement pay and maternity allowance, (8) an increase to the amount of statutory family leave-related pay that a small employer can recover from HMRC, (9) changes to court and tribunal fees, (10) changes made under Statement of Changes in Immigration Rules HC 733, and (11) various tax and National Insurance changes.

Employment analysis: The Lexis+® Employment team have put together a round-up of the key employment law changes taking effect in April 2026. In addition to routine annual up-rating of statutory rates and other annual changes, there are a number of changes implementing parts of the Employment Rights Act 2025 (ERA 2025). The changes include: (1) increases to the national living wage (NLW), national minimum wage (NMW), and for seafarers and agricultural workers, (2) reform of statutory sick pay, including removal of waiting days and the lower earnings limit, (3) establishment of the Fair Work Agency, (4) a number of employment-related tax changes, (5) tax reform in relation to PAYE liability affecting umbrella companies, recruitment agencies and end users, (6) annual increase to the Vento bands for injury to feelings awards, (7) the introduction, initially on a voluntary basis, of the requirement for large employers to produce and publish equality action plans, (8) ‘day one’ rights to parental leave and paternity leave, and removal of restriction preventing employees from taking paternity leave following shared parental leave, (9) a new statutory entitlement to bereaved partner’s paternity leave, (10) increases to the rates of statutory sick pay, statutory maternity pay, statutory paternity pay, statutory adoption pay, statutory shared parental pay, statutory parental bereavement pay, statutory neonatal care pay and maternity allowance, (11) increase to the amount of statutory family leave-related pay that a small employer can recover from HMRC, (12) the ability to submit a copy of a MATB1, rather than the original, (13) whistleblowing protections expressly covering sexual harassment, (14) a new duty to keep records to evidence an employer’s compliance with the right to paid annual leave, (15) simplification of the union recognition process, (16) increased protective awards for collective redundancy information and consultation breaches, and (17) increases to employment tribunal compensation limits.

Energy analysis: 2024 has been a dynamic and interesting year for energy law and policy. The Energy team at LexisNexis® look back at some of the key developments in 2024 and highlight what to look out for in 2025 with respect to: hydrogen, Carbon Capture, Usage and Storage (CCUS), the National Energy System Operator (NESO), grid connections reform, the Review of Electricity Market Arrangements (REMA), proposed government support for Long Duration Energy Storage (LDES), Contracts for Difference (CfDs), the Capacity Market, the establishment of Great British Energy (GB Energy), changes to planning law and policy which impact on the development of energy projects, and climate litigation.

Energy analysis: In another busy year, the Energy team at LexisNexis® looks back at some of the key energy law developments during 2025 and horizon scans to highlight what to look out for in 2026. Our round-up includes coverage of the following areas—overarching energy policy; grid connections reform; hydrogen; carbon capture, usage and storage (CCUS); greenhouse gas removals (GGR); the Review of Electricity Market Arrangements (REMA); long duration electricity storage (LDES); the Contracts for Difference (CfD) regime; the Capacity Market; Great British Energy; nuclear energy; oil and gas; and planning developments in the energy sector.