Charging orders and orders for sale—general Obtaining a charging order is only a method of securing the debt and does not, without further action, equate to recovery of the debt. To recover the debt secured by the charging order, once you have obtained a final charging order, you will then need to apply for an order for sale and subsequently sell the premises to recover the debt (to the extent that the sale releases sufficient monies to discharge the charging order). For more information in respect of the procedure for obtaining an interim and then final charging order and subsequently enforcing that charging order by way of an order for sale, please see our Practice Notes: • Pre-6 April 2016—charging orders—what are they and when to use them [Archived] • Pre-6 April 2016—procedure for obtaining interim and final charging orders • Charging orders and orders for sale—practical considerations • Order for sale—how to enforce a charging order • Obtaining an order for sale—potential difficulties Multiple charging

The court’s general discretion to award costs The court has a general discretion to award costs which is found in section 51 of the Senior Courts Act 1981 (SCA 1981), This discretion is specific to the costs ‘of and incidental to proceedings’. Are the costs of arranging funding recoverable? In light of the court’s discretion to order costs, the question is whether the costs of arranging a funding agreement and any subsequent costs, eg discussing matters with the after the event (ATE) insurers, are costs ‘of an incidental to proceedings’. The court is very unlikely to make a costs order for the costs associated with funding arrangements as funding arrangements are collateral to be collateral to the proceedings and so the costs associated with such arrangements will not be costs ‘of and incidental to proceedings’ as required under SCA 1981, s 51 for the court to exercise its discretion and award costs. This issue was

Upon creation of original literary, dramatic, musical and artistic work or original non-literary written work, such as software, web content and databases, copyright protection is automatic pursuant to the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 (CDPA 1988). In the UK, copyright lasts for the lifetime of the artist plus 70 years after their death, with special provisions applicable to older unpublished works. There is not currently an official national register of copyright works in the UK, meaning that existence of the right is often not examined until the owner wants to licence or assign it, or issue proceedings. It is possible to register works using a private register such as the UK Copyright Service, a copyright registration facility. Copyright infringement occurs when, without the copyright owner’s permission, someone carries out one of the copyright owner's exclusive rights, and an exception to copyright does not apply. The lack of any registration scheme makes it particularly important to be proactive in dealing with potential infringements, putting any third parties on notice of copyright

There is no specific reference in the Chartered Institute of Legal Executives (CILEx) Code of Conduct to undertakings. However, the institute’s practice advice states that legal executives can give undertakings on behalf of the firm, as can any other member of staff who is authorised to do so by the firm. The validity of a legal executive can be verified by using the CILEx directory. The Institute can also be contacted directly by telephone (01234 845777) to confirm the up-to-date current status and disciplinary

While a force majeure certificate from China could not bind the English courts in their determination of whether such an event had occurred for the purposes of interpretation of a contractual clause subject to English law, it could be useful guidance as to whether the contract was capable of performance given the conditions prevalent in China. Force majeure is not a precise term, and, indeed, a clause saying ‘…the usual force majeure clauses to apply’ has been held void for uncertainty (British Electrical v Patley Pressing). It has wider meaning than ‘act of God’, which is dependent upon there being no human intervention, and could not include, for instance, strikes or wars. For further information, see Commentary: What constitutes an act of God: Halsbury’s Laws of England [269]. The term is more widely used and recognised in civil law systems, particularly the French. A well-drafted contract

Requests for communication of reasons for Court administrative decisions On 8 October 2015, the ICC announced that the Court will communicate reasons for some of the administrative decisions it is called on to take under the ICC Rules. The new policy entered into force with immediate effect. The policy provides exceptions to ICC Rules, art 11(4) which provides: 'The decisions of the Court as to the appointment, confirmation, challenge or replacement of an arbitrator shall be final, and the reasons for such decisions shall not be communicated.' When does the policy apply? The policy applies where all the parties to an ICC arbitration agree. However, the Court has 'full discretion' to accept or reject a request for the communication of reasons (Note to the Parties and Arbitral Tribunals

Consider any existing dress code or policy The first issue to consider is whether the employer already has a dress code or policy in place that covers this issue. Employees have no right to dress in a particular way, or to be permitted to wear jewellery to work. Subject to discrimination issues (see: Assess the risk of a discrimination claim below) it is lawful for an employer to insist that their employees dress in a certain style, for example smart business wear, or to forbid the wearing of certain clothes or jewellery. For further information on dress codes generally, see Practice Note: Dress codes and appearance policies. If the employer does have such a code, which has been properly communicated to employees, and the code makes it clear that nose piercings are not permitted in the workplace, the employer should follow the procedure prescribed in the policy in relation to contraventions of dress code. This will usually involve a request to remove the piercing and

This Q&A focuses on the whether or not a ‘suspense account’ clause in a guarantee can safely be deleted when acting for the beneficiary of a guarantee. Summary If a guarantor requests that a ‘suspense account’ provision in a draft guarantee should be removed it is normally better for the beneficiary of the guarantee to refuse the request and explain why the suspense account is needed. A suspense account provision can help a beneficiary maximise its recoveries from one or more guarantors without imposing any greater liability on them. What is a suspense account clause? For an example of a suspense account provision see clause 8 Credit to a suspense account of our Precedent: Guarantee and indemnity: cross guarantee from group companies—bilateral—all monies. The recommended forms of facility agreement published by the Loan Market Association (LMA) contain similar provisions; see for example clause 18.6 Appropriations of the LMA Multicurrency Term and Revolving facility agreement available to LMA members on the LMA website. The effect of the clause The

There are two strands to consider—are the products ‘best’ and are they ‘British’? In addition to legislation that applies to all comparative advertising (see Practice Note: Comparative advertising), the Committee of Advertising Practice (CAP) has issued guidance on ‘best’ claims. Using ‘best’ According to the guidance, the most common way that advertisers will express a superlative claim without a clear basis for the claim is by using the word ‘best’. A superlative claim should ordinarily be backed up by evidence to demonstrate its truthfulness or accuracy, therefore advertisers using ‘best’ claims must be careful. For more information on superlative claims, see the ASA Advice. A best claim is allowed where the rest of the advertisement does not clarify the basis for it if the claim is subjective. For example, the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) allowed an advertisement claiming to sell ‘only the best in the business’ on the grounds that it would be seen as the advertiser’s opinion. (Alphason Designs Ltd,

It is common practice for law firms to serve bills by email. This Q&A considers the issue of whether, for the purpose of section 69 of the Solicitors Act 1974 (SA 1974): • an email constitutes a letter, and • an email signature is a valid electronic signature Why does this matter? Before you can pursue your client for unpaid charges: • you must have delivered a final (or interim statute) bill, in the form and content prescribed by SA 1974—see Practice Note: Final client bill • one month must have elapsed since delivery of the bill unless your client is about to quit England and Wales, become bankrupt, compound with their creditors or do any other act to prevent or delay you obtaining payment—in these circumstances you can seek permission to issue proceedings early, and • the client must not have made an application to the court for detailed assessment within one month of delivery of the bill or obtained an order for the bill to be assessed This

Rule 3.3 of the SRA Accounts Rules provides that: 'You must not use a client account to provide banking facilities to clients or third parties. Payments into, and transfers or withdrawals from a client account must be in respect of the delivery by you of regulated services.' 'Regulated services' means the legal and other

When seeking to serve a document in proceedings, Part 6 of the Civil Procedure Rules (CPR) sets out the methods of service and the places at which the document must be served. If you are unable to serve