ARCHIVED: This Practice Note has been archived and is not maintained. CORONAVIRUS (COVID-19): Many arbitral organisations have responded to the coronavirus pandemic with practical guidance and/or changes to their usual procedures and ways of working. This Practice Note introduces the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC), the International Court of Arbitration of the ICC (ICC Court) and the 2017 ICC Rules of Arbitration (ICC Rules). It also refers to the guidance in the ICC Note to Parties and Arbitral Tribunals on the Conduct of the Arbitration under the ICC Rules of Arbitration (ICC Note). The ICC Rules apply to any ICC arbitrations commenced on or after 1 March 2017, unless the parties have agreed to submit to the rules in force on the date of their arbitration agreement. The ICC Rules include: • an expedited procedure which automatically applies where the arbitration agreement is entered into after 1 March 2017 and the amount in dispute is below US$2m.

Reversionary leases (or future leases) are granted to take effect in possession at a future date. This Practice Note looks at: • when a reversionary lease is used (including to avoid a surrender and regrant) • statutory rules relating to the grant of reversionary leases (including in relation to term and registration), and • key transaction and drafting points to consider on the grant of a reversionary lease When is a reversionary lease used? A reversionary lease is typically granted to an existing tenant (rather than an unrelated third party). In effect, it allows the parties to ‘extend’ the term of the tenant’s existing lease and avoid an inadvertent surrender and regrant. Most frequently, it is used to document a lease renewal by contractual negotiation rather than under statutory provisions (eg Landlord and Tenant Act 1954 (LTA 1954)—see: LTA 1954 procedure—overview). The grant of a reversionary lease often forms part of a lease re-gear transaction (see Practice Note: Lease re-gears—what, when and how?). Key risk—avoiding surrender and regrant A reversionary lease should be used to avoid an inadvertent

This Agreement is made on [date] Parties 1 [insert name of Customer] [of OR a company incorporated in [England and Wales] under number [insert registered number] whose registered office is at] [insert address] (Customer); and 2 [insert name of Supplier] [of OR a company incorporated in [England and Wales] under number [insert registered number] whose registered office is at] [insert address] (Supplier) (each of the Supplier and the Customer being a party and together the Supplier and the Customer are the parties). Background (A) The Customer conducts the business of [insert description]. (B) The Supplier conducts the business of supplying [insert description of services] to other businesses. (C) The parties have agreed that the Supplier shall supply services to the Customer and its Affiliates under individual services contracts entered into between the Customer or any of its Affiliates and the Supplier from time to time. (D) The parties wish to set out in this Agreement the terms under which the individual services contracts shall be entered into. The parties agree: 1 Definitions and interpretation 1.1 In this Agreement: Affiliate • means any entity that directly or indirectly Controls, is Controlled by, or is under common

This Practice Note examines employment-related claims that either may or must be brought in the High Court or County Court. It gives a very high level overview of the procedure applicable to employment-related claims in the High Court and County Court under the Civil Procedure Rules 1998 (CPR) and signposts further resources available in the Dispute Resolution module which provide a full and comprehensive guide to civil procedure. It also considers: how to deal with overlapping employment tribunal and civil court claims; post-termination restrictions (restrictive covenant) claims; tortious claims (eg personal injury, negligence and stress at work); in which court the claim should be brought; judicial review proceedings; and the time limits for civil court proceedings, extending time and determining the limitation period. It then contains an overview of the main procedural steps in a claim in the civil courts: pre-action steps including the Practice Direction Pre-Action Conduct and Protocols, compliance with pre-action protocols, pre-action behaviour in non-protocol cases, how to start a claim, defendant’s action after particulars of claim are served, case management,

This Practice Note analyses the use of bonus plans for employees and directors. It examines the two main types of bonus schemes, namely discretionary and contractual bonus plans. Discretionary bonuses are examined in some detail, including eligibility, exercise of discretion, restraints, and expectation. The Practice Note analyses the tax treatment of bonus plans and the implications of their termination. It outlines factors relevant to designing a scheme, drafting considerations and regulatory considerations, such as the requirements of the UK Corporate Governance Code. Finally, the Practice Note examines the effect of pregnancy or maternity leave, part-time or fixed-term employment, long-term illness and related discrimination issues on bonus plans and payments and remedies and how bonus claims can be brought in the employment tribunal or court. Bonuses can be a very effective tool to motivate and retain employees while allowing businesses to control wage costs. In certain sectors and industries (eg the financial sector), bonuses are a significant element of an employee's reward package. Directors' total remuneration frequently includes variable performance-based bonuses, which can be critical to attracting and retaining

This employment consultation tracker details consultations, calls for evidence and inquiries (collectively referred to here as ‘consultations’) conducted by the UK government (and other bodies) that have an impact on employment law, which have closed and for which responses have been published between 2016 and 2024. Consultations are listed by topic, in reverse chronological response date order, ie the consultation which has the most recent response or outcome date will appear at the top of the relevant topic table. For details of the status of open consultations, and closed consultations for which responses are still being analysed, see: Consultation tracker—Employment. For details of consultations issued relating to the Employment Rights Act (ERA 2025), see: Employment Rights Act 2025—tracker—Consultations issued relating to the ERA 2025. For a summary of current key legal developments generally, including consultations, that are expected to impact employment lawyers, see: Employment—horizon scanner. This Tracker is not maintained. Government departments and other bodies move historical materials to The National Archives website on a regular basis. If you encounter any broken links to consultation documents or

STOP PRESS: As of 24 February 2025, the main provisions of the Procurement Act 2023 (PA 2023) are in force. Procurements begun on or after this date must be carried out under PA 2023, whereas those begun under the previous legislation (the Public Contracts Regulations 2015 (PCR 2015), the Utilities Contracts Regulations 2016, the Concession Regulations 2016, and the Defence and Security Public Contracts Regulations 2011) must continue to be procured and managed under that legislation. See Practice Note: Introduction to the Procurement Act 2023—PA 2023. This content relates to the Procurement Act 2023 regime This practical guidance is about public procurement under the Procurement Act 2023 (PA 2023). For practical guidance relating to the previous legislation, see Practice Note: Introduction to public contracts procurement. Duty to identify conflicts of interest PA 2023, s 81 places a duty on contracting authorities to take all reasonable steps to identify, and keep under review, conflicts of interest, or potential conflicts of interest, in relation to a covered procurement. PA

This Practice Note provides an overview of the public law obligations of higher education institutions (HEIs) that are enshrined in statute or funding requirements. It covers freedom of speech as provided for by section 43 of the Education (No 2) Act 1986 (E(No 2)A 1986), academic freedom, the prevent and equality duties in an HEI context, as well as fair access and participation obligations to promote and encourage admissions from under-represented admissions groups. The relationship between an HEI and its students is rooted in private contract but also has public law characteristics. That is because although education is delivered to individuals as a service in exchange for fees, HEIs have a clear societal function and are subsidised by public funding. Legislative change has extended some of these public law duties and exacerbated tension between protected freedoms and limited rights. This Practice Note provides an overview of the core higher education (HE) specific public law duties and how they are continuing to evolve. Freedom of speech Freedom of expression (which includes

This Practice Note provides a structured overview of how the UK and EU legal frameworks are evolving to accommodate digital bonds. It discusses commonly used terms and the digital bonds transaction lifecycle, to include the key documentation required in issuing digital bonds, with a focus on smart contracts. It further highlights what practitioners should be aware of when transacting with digital bonds. Summary Digital bonds are now legally recognised in the UK and EU, provided that the issuing structure aligns with the applicable securities regime Prospectus Regulation and/or the Regulation (EU) 2023/1114 on markets in crypto-assets (MiCA) and that the supporting distributed ledger technology (DLT) infrastructure is covered by the relevant regulator or sandbox. Practitioners must distinguish early between native digital bonds and tokenised traditional bonds, as this choice drives property law treatment, custody and settlement risk and conduct their regulatory mapping early, at the structuring stage of the issuance. In most digital bond structures, smart contract code operates as an execution mechanism for agreed outcomes rather than as the source

This Checklist sets out the key issues to consider when contracting on another party’s standard form terms and conditions. This Checklist is relevant for business-to-business transactions only. Unless you have a very strong bargaining position, you will have to deal on another party’s standard terms from time to time, especially when you are buying goods and/or services. How far you want to go in challenging the standard form terms of another party will depend on the overall importance of the contract, its length and value and the importance to your business of the goods or services supplied. A key issue when faced with third-party terms is extending the supplier’s liability so that their duty towards you is greater and maximising the extent of your recoverable losses if the supplier fails to perform satisfactorily. Incorporation of your requirements Ensure any specific terms or requirements are effectively incorporated. You should try and include as many of your requirements as possible as specific provisions within your order or in a request for a quote or

This Practice Note examines the mechanism that is used in equal pay claims, known as equality of terms claims under the Equality Act 2010 (EqA 2010). Prerequisites for an equal pay claim EqA 2010 contains provisions designed to achieve equality between men and women in pay and other terms of employment where the work of an employee and their comparator—a person of the opposite sex—is equal. It does so by providing for a sex equality clause to be read into the employee’s contract of employment. This is designed to ensure parity of terms between the employee and their comparator. A similar provision—referred to as a sex equality rule—is implied into the terms of pension schemes. EqA 2010 imposes an equality clause into a person's (A's) terms of work, or an equality rule into an occupational pension scheme, where A: • is employed on work that is equal to the work that a comparator of the opposite sex (B) does, or • holds a personal or public office and does work that is equal to the work that a comparator

During the course of a marriage or civil partnership where one spouse or civil partner is entitled to occupy a property by virtue of a beneficial estate, interest, contract or enactment, the spouse or civil partner who is not on the legal title to the property is entitled to register home rights (formerly known as matrimonial home rights) as a charge against the property under the Land Charges Act 1972 (LCA 1972) or the Land Registration Act 2002 (LRA 2002) depending on whether the property is registered or unregistered. The provisions regarding home rights are set out in Part IV of the Family Law Act 1996 (FLA 1996) and in FLA 1996, Schedule 4. In cases where the home is held jointly, both legally and beneficially, by the spouse or civil partner and the other spouse or the other civil partner then protection under FLA 1996 is not required. Home rights permit occupation, they do not give any right of ownership of any kind in the family home. They are personal rights not to be evicted or