This Q&A refers to a business to business contract containing a general power of attorney granted under the Powers of Attorney Act 1971 (PAA 1971), and not lasting or enduring powers of attorney. In answering this Q&A we have focused on the requirements for execution of the contract documentation in which the power of attorney is granted. Novation Novation occurs when A and B are party to an agreement and B 'transfers' its obligations and rights under the agreement to C, such that C can be said to 'step into the shoes' of party B, with a resulting contractual relationship between

We have assumed that: • as a result of the reference in the question to the 12-month limit for the delegation by a trustee, the appointment of the attorney is an appointment which falls within section 25 of the Trustee Act 1925 (TA 1925) (as amended by section 5 of the Trustee Delegation Act 1999 (TDA 1999), and is not an appointment by the trustees as a body in accordance with section 11 of the Trustee Act 2000 or an appointment by the trustees of a person with an interest in possession in accordance with section 9 of the Trusts of Land and Appointment of Trustees Act

Lasting powers of attorney In contrast to an ordinary power of attorney, the authority conveyed by a lasting power of attorney (LPA) does not terminate on the incapacity of the donor. Once an LPA has been validly executed, it will last indefinitely unless revoked by the donor, the attorney, the Court of Protection or by operation of law. The different methods of revocation of an LPA are discussed in Practice Note: LPAs—revocation and disclaimer. It is worth comparing this with the position in respect of an advance decision, which can be deemed to be invalid if there

An overview of the law on perpetuities and accumulations can be found in Practice Note: Perpetuities and accumulations. It appears that the trust in question was created before the Perpetuities and Accumulations Act 2009 (PAA 2009) came into force and has an accumulation period limited to 21 years. As explained in the above Practice Note, PAA 2009 abolished the rule against excessive accumulations in relation to trusts created on or after 6 April 2010 with the effect that trustees can, in principle, accumulate income for the entire lifetime of the trust. Any power to accumulate income (either under section 31 of the Trustee Act 1925 or under any other express power in the trust deed) will not apply after the expiry of

This Q&A considers the situation where a pre-commencement condition attached to a planning permission stipulating that the local authority must approve plans before works can be carried out, where the approval has not been granted. This Q&A does not consider conditions attached to listed building consents. Non-compliance with conditions attached to listed building consents constitutes an offence and can lead to prosecution and/or enforcement action, see Planning due diligence—listed building consents—checklist. The general rule is that any works which breach a pre-commencement condition are not authorised by the planning permission, and cannot therefore implement the planning permission. If works required approval before commencement of development, and such approval was not obtained, then arguably any material operation carried out before the expiry date of the permission would be unlawful and the permission could have lapsed. A limited number of exceptions to this general rule have

A pre-emption agreement is a right to purchase something (usually land or shares) before the asset is sold to a third party. The right is contractual and is conditional upon a contemplated sale—if the owner of the asset chooses not to sell, the pre-emption right does not arise. In respect of land a right of pre-emption in respect of a legal estate can be (and should

What is a tenancy at will? A tenancy at will arises where a landlord allows a tenant to enjoy exclusive possession of a property, by virtue of personal permission. In that sense, it is similar to a licence. A tenancy at will can be created expressly, by conduct or by implication. Who can terminate a tenancy at will? A tenancy at will is a precariously held estate in land. The relationship between landlord and tenant is personal; it depends on the continuing

This Q&A assumes that this answer seeks only to address the licensing question asked and is not intended to be an authoritative statement on company or tax law issues that might also arise. Although the question concerns a premises licence for the sale of alcohol and the transfer of same to a foreign company, the answer applies to the grant and transfer of premises licences to foreign companies (if permitted by law), irrespective of the licensable activities authorised by the licence. Section 16 of the Licensing Act 2003 (LA 2003) specifies who may apply for a premises licence and, in the absence of any indication to the contrary, ‘apply’ must

Since the very first time an application for review was resolved by agreement between the parties before a hearing was held by the licensing authority, this question has been raised time and again. An application for review of a premises licence may be made by a responsible authority or any other person to the relevant licensing authority, pursuant to the Licensing Act 2003 (LA 2003) and the Licensing Act 2003 (Premises Licences and Club Premises Certificates) Regulations 2005 (TLA 2003 (PLCPC) Regs 2005), SI 2005/42. LA 2003, s 52 provides: ‘(1) This section applies where— (a) the relevant licensing authority receives an application made in accordance with section 51, (b) the applicant has complied with any requirement imposed on him under subsection (3)(a) or (d) of that section, and (c) the authority has complied with any requirement imposed on it under subsection (3)(b) or (d) of that section. (1) Before determining the application, the authority must hold a hearing to consider it and any relevant

Background—acquiring easements by prescription Easements can be established other than by express deed and implied grant through a process known as prescription. Prescription is defined as ‘a title acquired by use or enjoyment had during the time and in the manner fixed by law’. In other words, prescription is the acquisition of a right through long use or enjoyment; the law presumes that the right was lawfully granted. One of the most common ways that an easement is established by prescription is under the Prescription Act 1832 (PA 1832). By virtue of PA 1832, s 2, an easement can be established by the dominant owner showing twenty year’s use without interruption of the servient land. There

Easements over land may be acquired by prescription either under the common law, by the doctrine of lost modern grant, or under the Prescription Act 1832. There does not appear

We refer you to the Land Registry’s Practice guide 3: Cautions against first registration at paragraph 2. It is possible to register a caution to protect a prescriptive easement. The Land Registry