Private Client analysis: Transgenderism remains an area of ambiguity with regards to inheritance and the potential difficulties in the wording of modern wills. Mark Lindley, partner at Boodle Hatfield specialising in wills and trust, discusses how using gender-neutral pronouns in wills and the introduction of Gender Recognition Certificates (GRCs) improve clarity regarding inheritance issues.

The language used in this Practice Note reflects the language of the relevant statutory material and previous decided cases, which is binary and to some extent medical in nature. The extent to which attitudes and language have changed is demonstrated by the Report of the House of Commons Women and Equality Committee published in December 2015. In the pensions context, however, it remains the case that entitlement is in some respects dependent upon the question whether an individual is to be treated as male or female at a particular time. This is different from the situations which arise in particular in relation to the provision of services, where discrimination may arise in connection with non-binary or fluid gender identity. This Practice Note contains references to rights under the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR), as well as decisions of the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) and the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) in respect of such rights. The ECHR is an international treaty which the UK ratified

This Practice Note describes the commercial and legal aspects of transition in the context of outsourcing transactions. It contrasts transition with transformation and explains the key steps in the process of transitioning services from a current provider to a new supplier. The note also explains typical provisions found in transition schedules to outsourcing agreements including the creation of the transition plan, milestones and milestone credits (including earn back), rights of suspension, management and reporting. Transition is a key stage in the outsourcing process under which certain business functions are migrated to the new provider. This Practice Note considers the following legal and commercial aspects of transition in outsourcing agreements: • What is transition? • Transition process • Drafting the transition schedule • Transition plan • Milestones and milestone credits • Right of suspension • Management and reporting For an example transition schedule, see Precedent: Transition schedule. For the transition considerations arising at the end of an outsourcing transaction, see Practice Note: IT outsourcing—transition and termination issues. What is transition? Transition is usually the first stage in the outsourcing

The Trade Remedies Authority has initiated a transition review into an anti-dumping measure on chamois leather imported from China. The TRA will be reviewing whether this measure is still suitable for the UK’s needs, with the current anti-dumping duty amount for chamois leather from China being 58.9%. The period of investigation for this transition review is 1 January 2023 to 31 December 2023.

Schedule—Transition 1 Introduction 1.1 This Schedule describes how the Services will be transferred from the Customer to the Supplier on or before the scheduled Service Commencement Date . 1.2 It sets out the responsibilities of each party, management and reporting processes and the consequences of any delays or failures in the delivery of the Transition activities. 2 Transition 2.1 From the Effective Date, the Supplier shall: 2.1.1 begin Transition of the Services in accordance with the Transition Plan contained in the Annex to this Schedule; 2.1.2 ensure that each Milestone is completed on or before the Milestone Date; and 2.1.3 take any other action or perform any other services that are necessary to ensure that the Services are ready to be provided on or before the Service Commencement Date notwithstanding that such actions or services may not be expressly set out in the Transition Plan. 2.2 The Supplier shall be responsible for the overall management of Transition and shall identify and resolve, or assist the Customer in the identification and resolution of, any problems encountered in the completion of each activity set out in the Transition Plan. 2.3 Transition will be undertaken by the Supplier: 2.3.1 with

Dispute Resolution analysis: HHJ Sephton KC found that a road traffic accident claim, settled before the new fixed costs provisions came into force, was nonetheless caught by the new provisions when the claimant’s solicitors issued costs-only proceedings only after the provisions were in force. In April 2023 the claimant accepted a Part 36 offer made by the defendant which included provision for costs to be addressed in accordance with CPR 36.13 or 36.20. They did not issue proceedings for their costs until 27 November 2023. The judge held that the Part 36 offer did not give rise to entitlement for costs outside the provisions of the CPR, and that the claimant was entitled only to the fixed costs under the new regime. Given that the case had settled pre-proceedings for under £5,000, the fixed costs allowed were nil. Written by David Juckes, barrister at Hailsham Chambers.

Public Law analysis: The decision of the Secretary of State for Justice to reject Parole Board recommendations for an indeterminate prisoner to be transferred to an open prison was quashed in Judicial Review proceedings. ‘Open conditions prison transfer’ has generated a considerably large amount of caselaw as one of ‘the hottest topics in contemporary Public Law’, as His Honour Judge Tindal aptly put it at the outset of his judgment in the case. Despite being an area with no shortage of first-instance authorities, there remains a lacuna in two arenas: firstly, substantial Court of Appeal authority and secondly, authorities which deal with the 2023 Parole Board guidance which is currently in force. Allen provides important clarification on the proper approach to be taken to the transitional mismatch of policy and emphasised the need for the Secretary of State for Justice’s decisions in these cases to afford ‘appropriate respect’ by making some meaningful reference to the Parole Board’s recommendations to justify departure. Written by Anjelica Smerin, pupil, and Richard Furlong, barrister at Mountford Chambers.

Arrangements under a transitional services agreement are put in place to provide for an efficient handover of the operations of the business being sold by the seller so as to maintain the status quo, in circumstances where the buyer is not fully equipped or in a position to undertake all of the services required to support the business immediately following completion.

This Agreement is made on [insert day and month] 20 [insert year] Parties 1 [Insert name of party] incorporated in England and Wales with registered number [insert company number] whose registered office is at [insert address] (the Supplier), and 2 [Insert name of party] incorporated in England and Wales with registered number [insert company number] whose registered office is at [insert address] (the Recipient), and [(each of the Supplier and the Recipient being a Party and together the Supplier and the Recipient are the Parties)]. Background (A) The Recipient has purchased the Business from [the Supplier OR [insert seller name, if the Supplier is not the seller]] [as part of OR by way of] an intra-group reorganisation. (B) The Supplier has agreed to provide certain services to the Recipient on the terms and conditions of this Agreement to assist the Recipient with certain transitional matters following the sale of the Business. The parties agree: 1 Definitions and interpretation 1.1 In this Agreement unless the context otherwise requires: Business • means the business of [insert description of the business which is the subject of the acquisition] operated by [the Supplier OR [insert seller

This Agreement is made on [insert day and month] 20 [insert year] Parties 1 [Insert name of party] incorporated in England and Wales with registered number [insert company number] whose registered office is at [insert address] (the Supplier), and 2 [Insert name of party] incorporated in England and Wales with registered number [insert company number] whose registered office is at [insert address] (the Recipient), [(each of the Supplier and the Recipient being a Party and together the Supplier and the Recipient are the Parties).] BACKGROUND (A) The Recipient has purchased the Business from [the Supplier OR [insert seller name, if the Supplier is not the seller]]. (B) The Supplier has agreed to provide certain services to the Recipient on the terms and conditions of this Agreement to assist the Recipient with certain transitional matters following the sale of the Business. The parties agree: 1 Definitions and interpretation 1.1 In this Agreement unless the context otherwise requires: Business • means the business of [insert description of the business which is the subject of the acquisition] operated by [the Supplier OR [insert seller name, if the Supplier is not the seller]] and all other

Arises as a result of the retranslation of overseas subsidiaries in consolidated financial statements. Required by IFRS but not FRS 102. The reserve is released to profit or loss when the underlying foreign operation is disposed of.

Employment analysis: The Court of Appeal has overturned the decision of the Central Arbitration Committee (CAC), upheld by the Employment Appeal Tribunal (EAT), that the employer failed to consult an established European Works Council (EWC) when obliged to do so, and the £20,000 penalty for the relevant failure. In so doing, it has decided that the duty to consult is only triggered by events of a transnational character, not merely by the coincidence of events in more than one state. Fergus McCombie, barrister at The 36 Group, analyses the case.