This Practice Note provides a brief explanation of the tax rules on capital allowances, then more detail on what is meant by capital expenditure in this context. It covers the enduring benefit test, replacement assets, like-for-like expenditure, nearest modern equivalent, the Law Shipping principle and the special rules for integral features. What are capital allowances? Where taxable profits are calculated by reference to generally accepted accounting practice, capital allowances are the means by which tax relief is given for some (but not all) capital expenditure. They are effectively a standardised tax-deductible version of depreciation or amortisation broadly intended to give tax relief which reflects the economic lives of business assets. In an income or corporation tax return, capital allowances replace accounting depreciation, which is not an allowable deduction for tax purposes. In general, capital allowances do not apply where a trade, profession, vocation or property business calculates its profits on the cash basis. This Practice Note therefore describes the position on the basis the cash basis does not apply. For information

This Practice Note looks at what a collateral warranty is, which parties will want collateral warranties on a construction project and why. It considers the usual beneficiaries of collateral warranties and the rights that they acquire against the warrantor concerning the building contract, consultant’s appointment or sub-contract. It is a general principle of contract law that only a person who is a party to a contract can bring a claim under that contract. This is known as the doctrine of privity of contract. In the absence of any other direct contractual relationship, a contractor or a consultant will not normally owe a contractual duty of care to any person other than its direct client. (Note that the doctrine of privity of contract has, however, been altered by the Contracts (Rights of Third Parties) Act 1999 which, in certain circumstances, permits a party to enforce the terms of a contract made between others for its benefit. For more information see Practice Note: The Contracts (Rights of Third Parties) Act 1999 in construction contracts). Many of the defects that

What are collective action clauses? Collective action clauses (CACS) are provisions contained in the terms and conditions of debt securities which: • allow a specified majority of holders of the securities to agree to a change in the terms of the securities proposed by the issuer, and • make any change so agreed binding upon all holders of the securities, including any who oppose the proposed change The main purpose of a CAC is to facilitate a rescheduling of the debt securities. If the issuer can agree rescheduled terms with the specified majority, the CAC will prevent minority holders from continuing to claim full repayment. A CAC makes it harder

A commodity code is a ten-digit code to classify goods for import and export declarations. It is used to identify the applicable tariffs, quotas, duties and valued added taxes, as well as any applicable reliefs or restrictions. It is also used for collecting trade statistics. The UK introduced a Goods Classification Table setting out commodity codes and the UK General Tariff of duties applicable to imports under the Customs Tariff (Establishment) (EU Exit) Regulations 2020, SI 2020/1430, which came into effect at 11 pm on 31 December 2020. The commodity codes and applicable tariffs are available at the UK government’s Online Trade Tariff search engine. At the outset the UK has retained the same commodity codes applied by the EU but this may change over time. In the UK, EU and most countries around the world, the first six digits of a commodity code are based on the standard nomenclature developed by the

Difference between common and solemn form probate A grant of probate relating to the Will of a deceased testator may be issued in common form or solemn form. Broadly, the difference between common and solemn form probate is that common form relates to non-contentious proceedings, ie where the Will is not contested or questioned, and solemn form relates to contentious proceedings. Most Wills pass through the probate process with no issues, with executors dealing with the requisite probate application and submitting it to HMCTS Probate, following which probate will be granted in ‘common’ form. Where the validity of a Will is contested some form of court proceedings will normally be brought. There could be numerous reasons for the alleged invalidity of the Will. It may also be that probate has already been obtained before someone realises their right to bring a claim. Solemn form probate In many cases where a Will’s validity is being challenged, the executors will be aware of this at an early stage. It is not uncommon for them

Do you have to submit, with an application, all of your expired and current passports for all nationalities and multiple passports where you (are permitted to have and do) have more than one passport from the same country? An applicant should submit all current and expired passports held for all nationalities which cover the requested time period when submitting a UK immigration application, most importantly those that show any previous UK travels. If any of their passports are no longer in their possession, they must declare they had them and provide a reason why they are unable to submit them in their entry clearance or further leave to remain applications. Practically speaking, for entry clearance applications, only one current valid passport needs to be submitted and a certified copy of others can be included if the applicant needs to travel during the currency of the application. However this should be checked with the entry clearance post in advance. Can you travel with

To claim an extended lease of their flat, the tenant must serve a tenant's notice of claim on the competent landlord or any intermediate landlord, and also on any party to the tenant’s lease other than the immediate

Judicial review is considered to be a remedy of last resort. Accordingly, the Administrative Court will not normally entertain a claim for judicial review if there is a 'suitable alternative remedy' available to the claimant. This may include a statutory right to appeal under CPR 52 and appropriate private law proceedings. The ‘adequacy’ of an alternative remedy is an elusive concept. Whether or not an alternative remedy is suitable depends on all the circumstances. The principle was set out by Lord Bingham in Kay v Lambeth LBC at para [30]: ‘… [t]he principle that if other means of address are conveniently and effectively available to a party they ought to be used before resort to judicial review.’ There is no single test to determine when an alternative procedure is ‘adequate’, but rather a series of principles can be derived from the case law. The Divisional Court stated in R (L) v Serious Fraud Office: ‘There is no fixed or definitive

What is a cookie? A cookie is a text file containing a unique piece of alphanumeric text. The publisher (in the case of onsite/first party advertising) or the ad network provider (in the case of an advertising network) will place a cookie on the web browser of a user’s device when the relevant advert is first viewed. It is important to note that a 'device' could be a computer, a tablet, a smartphone or any other internet enabled device, such as a smart-TV. See Practice Note: Cookies and other storage and access technologies and ICO Guide to PECR: Cookies and similar technologies. When a user, using the same web browser, visits the website for a second time, or visits another website within an ad network provider’s network, the publisher or ad network provider is able to access the same cookie on the web browser of the user’s device to recognise the user (or more specifically recognise the user’s device). Cookies have different lifespans. Some cookies are automatically

What is a credit derivative? A credit derivative is a bilateral transaction which takes its underlying value from the credit risk of a third party, known as the 'reference entity'. The reference entity issues reference obligations, which refer to its specific underlying direct and indirect (eg guaranteed) obligations. The primary purpose of a credit derivative is to isolate the credit risk of that reference entity from all of its other risks. This reference entity can be a corporate, sovereign, municipality or a similar organisation and does not need to be a party to, or even aware of, the transaction. This ensures confidentiality for the parties entering the credit derivative transaction, as the reference entity may be a customer of one of the parties and so that party may not want that customer to be aware of the credit derivative transaction. In its simplest form, a credit derivative is an over-the-counter transaction, meaning that the transaction is traded directly between two parties, without the use of an exchange. The party assuming the credit risk of the reference

What are CUSOs? CUSOs are entities that are owned jointly by a number of credit unions and provide shared services to them, thereby providing economies of scale benefits. What services do CUSOs provide? CUSOs enable credit unions to access sophisticated services that would otherwise be cost-prohibitive, potentially enabling credit unions to compete more effectively with each other and with other mutuals, banks and short-term, high-cost lenders. CUSO services typically include back-office operations, such as IT support, data processing, and accounting. CUSO services may potentially also include a wider range of services, such as compliance, core banking platforms and payment systems, cybersecurity, and digital banking tools. Can the same services be provided by commercial third-party suppliers? Yes. The provision of services by both credit union-owned CUSOs and third-party suppliers is subject to a number of existing rules and expectations on outsourcing, governance, risk management and business continuity that apply to credit unions when outsourcing services. These include: • in the Credit Unions Part of the  Prudential Regulation

Directors owe various duties to the companies of which they are directors and to other persons. Historically, some of the key duties were fiduciary in nature. The main directors’ duties developed by the courts are now set out in statute in sections 171–177 of the Companies Act 2006 (CA 2006). For an overview of the nature