Stamp duty land tax (SDLT) is payable on a land transaction (the acquisition of a chargeable interest). A chargeable interest is defined in section 48(1) of the Finance Act 2003 (FA 2003) as: • an estate, interest, right or power in or over land in England or Northern Ireland, or • the benefit of an obligation, restriction or condition affecting the value of any such estate, interest, right or power Certain interests in land are exempt (see FA 2003,

There are two types of opinions which we refer to in relation to this Q&A: • capacity opinions—this is typically desirable for a Banking and Finance lawyer on an International Swaps and Derivatives Association (ISDA) Agreement—ie to know that the borrower has the capacity to enter into a hedging agreement. This is why in Practice Note:

The current EPC expires after the completion date, however one month before the term commencement date. The reversionary interest in respect of a lease is the interest of the landlord following the coming to the end of the tenancy. A reversionary lease is a lease which takes effect immediately upon the expiry of the term of an earlier lease. There are various reasons why a reversionary lease may be granted, particularly where the underlying lease is contracted out of the provisions of Part II of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1954, which provides for the statutory continuation of a lease rather than its expiration by effluxion of time. A reversionary lease is a lease the term of which takes effect only when an existing lease expires. As it is not possible to vary a lease by a

A separation agreement is a document that can be drawn up between a couple upon separation, setting out how they agree to divide their assets. While such an agreement is not a court order and is not legally enforceable should either party subsequently apply for a financial remedy the court may well give decisive weight to the parties’ previous separation agreement if it met their needs and had been fairly negotiated with appropriate financial disclosure provided. A separation agreement can be a useful way to achieve clarity in respect of most assets, however, it cannot take the place of a pension sharing order. A pension sharing order is an order which provides that one party’s shareable rights

Section 108 of the Finance Act 2003 (FA 2003) defines a linked transaction. In particular, FA 2003, s 108(1) provides: ‘Transactions are ‘linked’ for the purposes of this part if they form part of a single scheme, arrangement or series of transactions between the same vendor and purchaser or, in either case, persons connected with them. Section 1122 of the Corporation Tax Act 2010 (connected persons) has effect for the purposes of this subsection.’ Section 1122 of the Corporation Tax Act 2010 (CTA 2010) does not directly address limited liability partnerships (LLPs) for these purposes. LLPs

It is assumed that the building meets the qualifying criteria and any non-residential parts do not exceed 25% of the internal floor area. Once

Collective enfranchisement is the term used to describe the right of tenants of certain long leases to acquire the freehold of their building on a collective basis. In order be a qualifying tenant, the tenant must have a lease of over 21 years and the lease cannot be a business lease under Part II of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1954 (LTA 1954). If the building contains non-residential parts let to business tenants, those tenants cannot participate in the collective enfranchisement. See Practice Notes: Guide to the right to collective enfranchisement under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 and Quick guide to time limits for collective enfranchisement under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993. Certain buildings are excluded from the right to collective enfranchisement, namely properties

Bank holidays are included in the computation of the 21-day time limit for filing of the acknowledgment of service (AOS) in judicial review proceedings under CPR 54.8. If this time limit is not adhered to, a party may not take part in a hearing to decide whether permission to proceed should be granted unless the court allows them to do so. The party may still take part in the judicial review hearing but there may be cost implications as a result of failing to serve an AOS within the specified time limit. CPR 2.8 deals with how to calculate a period of time specified by the CPR. CPR 2.8(4)(b) provides that where the period of time is five days or less and includes a Saturday, Sunday or a bank holiday, then that day does not count. However, where the time limit is more than five days, bank

CPR 57.5(3) provides that every defendant to a probate claim who acknowledges service of the claim form must in written evidence describe any testamentary document of the deceased of which they have any knowledge and, if any such document is not in his possession or control, give the name and address of the person in

A financial dispute resolution appointment (FDR) takes place after a first appointment in financial proceedings and is an opportunity for the parties to attempt to reach an agreement on all or part of the division of matrimonial assets. The judge in an FDR will give an indication as to what they would be likely to do in the circumstances. In order for an FDR to be effective, there needs to be full and frank disclosure so that the parties’ positions are clear, which includes without prejudice correspondence. Without prejudice correspondence is correspondence exchanged between the parties in an attempt to settle the case. These offers are made, and discussions had, without prejudice to their positions at final hearing so it cannot be relied on in court or seen by a judge. An exception

Bona vacantia means ‘vacant goods’ and it is the name which is given to ownerless property which, by law, passes to the Crown. Section 1012 of the Companies Act 2006 (CA 2006) stipulates that when a company has been dissolved, all of that former company’s property is deemed to be bona vacantia: ‘When a company is dissolved, all property and rights whatsoever vested in or held on trust for the company immediately before its dissolution (including leasehold property, but not including property held by the company on trust for another person) are deemed to be bona vacantia and— (a)     accordingly belong to the Crown, or to the Duchy of Lancaster or to the Duke of Cornwall for the time being (as the case may be), and (b)    vest and may be dealt with in the same manner as other bona vacantia accruing

There are two components to this question: first, what is the effect of a notice excluding liability for death and personal injury; and second, what is the liability of the organiser of a promotional event towards a claimant who has drunk excessive alcohol? The first question is answered by section 2(1) of the Unfair Contract Terms Act 1977 (UCTA 1977), which provides that ‘a person cannot by reference to any contract term or to a notice given to persons generally or to particular persons exclude or restrict his liability for death or personal injury resulting from negligence. This means that the organiser of the promotional event cannot exclude personal injury liability, or say that any attendee participates entirely at their own risk with regard to health and safety.