This archived Practice Note considered the key issues for Corporate practitioners in relation to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. It has not been updated since May 2022. General meetings and AGMs The coronavirus outbreak raised immediate legal and practical issues for companies which were seeking to hold their annual general meeting (AGM) or other general meetings. For further details, see Practice Note: Coronavirus (COVID-19)—holding general meetings and AGMs. Latest guidance for company meetings in 2021 Chartered Governance Institute guidance for company meetings in 2021 On 24 February 2021 the Chartered Governance Institute (CGI) issued updated guidance (2021 Guidance) in anticipation that general meetings would be required to be held on a closed basis until at least 17 May 2021 and possibly until at least 21 June as a result of the government’s ‘stay at home measures’. The 2021 Guidance was produced by a working group comprising the City of London Law Society Company Law Committee and Martin Moore QC, with the support of the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) and the Financial

ARCHIVED: This archived Practice Note is not maintained and is for background information only. This Practice Note considers the impact of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic on contentious trusts and estates. For general dispute resolution guidance, see Practice Note: Coronavirus (COVID-19) implications for dispute resolution [Archived]. The six-month time limit to make a claim under the Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975 (I(PFD)A 1975) is due to expire shortly, but I am concerned that it might not be possible to engage with the other side and I am concerned about issuing the claim due to potential coronavirus (COVID-19) related issues. What should I do? An action under the Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975 (I(PFD)A 1975) should generally be commenced before the expiration of six months from the date of a grant to the estate. An application after that date can only be made with the permission of the court. See I(PFD)A 1975, s 4: ‘An application for an order under section 2 of this Act shall not, except with the permission

A number of temporary changes were introduced by government in relation to accessing Statutory Sick Pay (SSP), and SSP rules, in response to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. These changes have been reversed following the government’s decision to remove coronavirus restrictions in 2022 and, in particular, the publication of the government’s plan for living with COVID-19 on 21 February 2022. The temporary changes to SSP introduced during the pandemic, together with a summary of developments in relation to their removal, are listed below: • those who self-isolated or were required to shield from time to time because of coronavirus were potentially deemed incapable of working, and, therefore, entitled to SSP (see: SSP entitlement extended to those who self-isolate below). These deeming provisions were revoked by the Statutory Sick Pay (General) (Coronavirus Amendment) Regulations 2022, SI 2022/380, in force on 25 March 2022 (see: LNB News 25/03/2022 5). This means that from 25 March 2022, if an employee tests positive for coronavirus, in order to qualify for SSP they

A number of competition authorities around the world are reacting in order to adapt to the impact caused by the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak. The table below tracks and summarises coronavirus (COVID-19) related developments in relation to antitrust investigations/claims, exceptions/exemptions, new legislation and State aid investigations. For a summary of changes to merger control procedures in highlighted jurisdictions, see further: MJ merger control—competition authorities and coronavirus (COVID-19) status NOTE—this tracker only covers developments within its scope that have been made publicly available. It is not intended (nor purports to be) an exhaustive or definitive resource. Coronavirus (COVID-19) related antitrust investigations/claims Jurisdiction Case name, companies under investigation and industry Issues Developments Albania Personal protection products• Numerous pharmaceutical companies (listed here) Price-gouging • Infringement decision issued—15/10/2020• Investigations launched—18/03/2020 Armenia PCR tests• 11 undertakings Restrictive agreements • Investigations launched—26/11/2021 Medical gloves• Unknown Price-gouging • Investigation terminated—27/08/2020• Investigations launched—27/05/2020 Masks• Unknown Price-gouging • Investigation terminated—27/08/2020• Investigations launched—26/05/2020 Azerbaijan Medicines and masks• Buta Farm LLC• Olive Pharmaceuticals LLC• Vita Pharmaceuticals LLC• Intermed Plyus LLC• Dokta LLC Price-gouging • Investigations launched—13/03/2020 Brazil Masks, goggles and protection filters• Inmadica Andina Price-gouging •

UPDATE: The CJRS ended on 30 September 2021. This Precedent has been archived and is no longer maintained. For further information on the extended CJRS, see Practice Note: Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (extended version 1 May to 30 September 2021) [Archived]. [ To be typed on headed notepaper of employer ] [Date] Dear [insert name of employee], Re: [insert name of employer] (the Company) Thank you for confirming, in response to my letter dated [date], that you agree to being placed on furlough under the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (CJRS) and consent to the temporary changes to your contract of employment dated [insert date](Contract) and your terms and conditions of employment. [ [FULL-TIME OR PART-TIME EMPLOYEE WHOSE BASIC PAY DOES NOT VARY:] I am writing to confirm that the Company has made a claim to HMRC under the CJRS in respect of your wage costs for the [insert

ARCHIVED: This archived Practice Note is not maintained and is for background information only. This Practice Note considers issues for employers when ending furlough or terminating employment during the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. It considers the ways in which an employer may end an employee’s period of furlough under the Coronavirus (COVID-19) Job Retention Scheme (CJRS), whether by returning the employee to work or terminating their employment during or following the end of furlough. The Practice Note also considers redundancy consultation during the pandemic, including during periods of furlough, and issues for employers when the CJRS ended on 30 September 2021. Under the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (CJRS) as extended between 1 May and 30 June 2021, an employer can claim 80% of an employee’s usual salary for hours they do not work, up to a maximum of £2,500 per month, in respect of any furloughed employee who was employed on 30 October 2020, as long as certain conditions are met. For claim periods in July 2021, the level of grant will be

This tracker was used to track key developments, legislation, guidance and briefing notes relating to the initial response to coronavirus (COVID-19) between June and August 2020, focusing on updates relevant to local government governance. It is designed to provide a historical record of the legislation and guidance in place and used during that period. For current developments, see: Coronavirus (COVID-19)—governance tracker [Archived]. Click on the links below to jump to the relevant section: • Primary legislation • National restrictions • Local restrictions • Travel restrictions • Local authority governance • Financial support • Government guidance • Other sources of information • News Analysis • Case Law Primary legislation Development When in force Find out more Corporate Insolvency and Governance Act 2020 (CIGA 2020) Comes into force partly on 26 June 2020, and fully on such day as the Secretary of State may by regulations appoint. Act making provision for companies in financial difficulty and amends to the regulation of companies This Act makes provision about companies and other entities in financial difficulty;

ARCHIVED: This Practice Note has been archived and is not maintained. What is the CJRS? At Spring Budget 2020, the government announced several measures to help businesses face the coronavirus pandemic (eg suspending business rates). One of these measures was the ‘Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme’ (CJRS), which was a temporary scheme generally open to UK employers with a PAYE payroll scheme (subject to certain eligibility requirements). The CJRS came into operation on 1 March 2020 and, after several extensions, continued to operate until 30 September 2021. It was designed to support employers whose operations had been severely affected by coronavirus and which would otherwise have had to make redundancies. Workers covered by the CJRS were said to be ‘furloughed’. Under the CJRS, an employer could claim the following in respect of furloughed workers: • until 31 July 2020, 80% of a worker’s wages, up to a monthly cap of £2,500, plus employer National Insurance contributions (NICs) and pension contributions—the value of the pension contributions that could be claimed under the CJRS until 31 July 2020 is discussed

ARCHIVED: This Practice Note has been archived and is not maintained. In the midst of the coronavirus (COVID-19) crisis, the government announced a number of measures either that related specifically to the UK tax regime. For further details, see Practice Note: Coronavirus (COVID-19)—tax implications [Archived]. This Practice Note provides a high level picture of some of the ways that the coronavirus crisis impacted subsisting tax-advantaged share schemes and changes in HMRC guidance and legislation. This Practice Note also looks at how companies have dealt with underwater share options and unsuitable performance conditions resulting from the subsequent economic climate. These sections are relevant to all share plans. The coronavirus job retention scheme (CJRS) and the Job Support Scheme (JSS) The Coronavirus job retention scheme (CJRS), initially announced on 20 March 2020, provided support to UK employers with a grant to enable them to continue paying up to 80% of their employees’ salary not worked (up to £2,500 per employee per month) for those employees that were ‘furloughed’ during the coronavirus outbreak provided that

ARCHIVED: this Practice Note is no longer maintained as the majority of concessions, which were introduced as a result of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, have ended. It has been retained in archived form for historical interest, and may be beneficial for advisers for research purposes. This Practice Note is a compilation of links to useful information, news and news analysis in relation to the immigration implications of the coronavirus pandemic. This Practice Note will be updated on an ongoing basis with relevant materials. Note that links to all relevant government/third party guidance resources are found below at: Coronavirus (COVID-19) immigration resources—Information resources. For the National Archives webpage containing links to previous versions of the main Home Office guidance page for individuals from 27 March 2020, see here. Update: Relaxation of restrictions, switching and international arrivals and travel On 19 July 2021, the majority of coronavirus restrictions in England ended, only for new restrictions to be introduced from 30 November 2021 to reduce the transmissibility of the Omicron variant of COVID-19. England moved from ‘Plan

UPDATE (22/2/22): As announced by the Prime Minister on 21 February 2022, the Cabinet Office has published the government’s COVID-19 Response: Living with COVID-19, which sets out the government plan to remove the remaining coronavirus (COVID-19) domestic legal restrictions in England from 24 February 2022. For more information, see: LNB News 22/02/2022 8 and News Analysis: Coronavirus (COVID-19)—How should employers respond to the scrapping of self-isolation rules?. For information on the position from 24 February, see Practice Note: Living with coronavirus (COVID-19) in the workplace from 24 February 2022 [Archived]. This Practice Note has been archived and is no longer maintained. This Practice Note has been archived and is no longer maintained. It reflects the position under the COVID-19 Response: Autumn and Winter Plan 2021 and the Cabinet Office guidance on how to stay safe and help prevent the spread before the 24 February 2022 changes. For information on the position from 24 February 2022, see Practice Note: Living with coronavirus (COVID-19) in the workplace from 24 February 2022 [Archived]. This

ARCHIVED: This Practice Note explains the effect of the Wills Act 1837 (Electronic Communications) (Amendment) (Coronavirus) Order 2020 (the WA 1837 Amendment Order), SI 2020/952 and the Wills Act 1837 (Electronic Communications) (Amendment) Order 2022, SI 2022/18 which amend section 9 of the Wills Act 1837 (WA 1837) so as to expressly permit the remote witnessing of Wills during the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. Background to the changes WA 1837, s 9 as in force immediately prior to the WA 1837 Amendment Order, SI 2020/952 provided as follows (emphasis added): ‘Section 9 – Signing and attestation of wills No will shall be valid unless – (a) it is in writing and signed by the testator or by some other person in his presence and by his direction; and (b) it appears that the testator intended by his signature to give effect to the will; and (c) the signature is made or acknowledged by the testator in the presence of two or more witnesses present at the same time; and (d) each witness either- (i)