Spotlight on:
Hugh Grant v News Group settlement puts Part 36 in the spotlight
Last week, Hugh Grant accepted what he describes as "an enormous sum" to settle his phone hacking claim against News Group. Hannah Hooper considers the use of Part 36 offers to raise the stakes of litigation and the impact this has on access to justice.
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Legal Updates and Insights:
Prescription: What it is and why it matters when pursuing claims in the Scottish Court
In a Views from the Bridge first, this month we are featuring a guest article from the Scottish firm, Anderson Strathern. Often wrongly equated with limitation, the Scottish law principle of prescription has seen significant recent judicial discussion and legislative change. Tom McEntegart and Liam McKay tell us what we need to know.
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Retail-iation from Consumers? A new benchmark is set for environmental claims
With consumers' increasing interest in companies' green credentials, the CMA is cracking down on environmental claims in the fashion retail industry. A recent CMA investigation resulted in three major retailers voluntarily entering into a series of undertakings. Kerry Price and Robyn Watson consider the significance of these developments.
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The 'green premium': How the FCA is responding to greenwashing claims
The so-called 'green premium' by which investment is attracted to those businesses sporting environmental credentials, has brought with it allegations of greenwashing. Vernon Dennis considers the preference for green investment opportunities and FCA's response to concerns over inauthentic responsible business claims.
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A shifting landscape for UK Collective Proceedings Regime
The government's introduction of legislation to reverse the consequences of PACCAR demonstrates a growing recognition of the need for litigation funding to be front and centre in future collective actions. Boniswa Dzere considers the growth in collective proceedings and what the future may hold.
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Insolvency Corner:
No statutory trust for OneStop: Court provides guidance on e-money and payment services regulations
When a payment service provider goes into liquidation holding merchant monies, who does the money belong to – the company or the merchants? In this article, Hannah Hooper looks at a recent case dealing with this issue in which Howard Kennedy was acting for the officeholder in the liquidation of OneStopMoneyManager Limited.
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Behind the scenes: Pre-Packs to the rescue!
Recent high-profile administrations such as Ted Baker, Body Shop & Muji, mean many are now familiar with the term "pre-pack administration sale" but outside of the restructuring industry, few will know what a pre-pack entails. Rebecca Stratton looks behind the scenes: what does a pre-pack sale involve, and how is the process used to rescue businesses in financial distress.
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And now for something completely different:
One of life's great philosophical questions
In the most eagerly awaited decision since "cake or biscuit" (a 1991 judgment in which it was decided that McVitie's Jaffa Cakes are in fact cakes and not biscuits), the English courts have provided the answer to the question on everyone's lips: Are marshmallows a sweet or an ingredient? You've guessed it, this is all about VAT. Innovative Bites, a company that imports American sweets, successfully argued before the Upper Tribunal that the marshmallows it imports should be zero VAT rated because they are ingredients for cooking, and not sweets. The case turned on the tribunal's determination that the usual way to eat marshmallows involves toasting them first.
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