Commercial Client

  • Administration of Troncs

    The long-running series of disputes between employers in the hospitality industry and HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) concerning the taxation of employees’ tips and their National Insurance (NI) status seems to have been concluded by the issue of new ...

  • Advice on Acquisitions Deductible

    One common area of dispute between companies and the HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) is that of deductibility of expenses. One of the hottest areas of dispute is often whether an expense is a trading expense (deductible as part of the day-to-day running costs...

  • Are You Data Friendly?

    Many businesses regard the Data Protection Act 1998 as something that merely requires a lot of form filling and the payment of fees, but there is a lot more to it than that. The purpose of the Act is to protect a person's right to privacy with regard to...

  • Bank Deposit Protection Rules for Businesses

    In January 2010, new limits were announced for the levels of protection available for different investments underwritten by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS). The FSCS protects the deposits of small companies, which are those which meet...

  • Business Property Relief - Traps for the Unwary

    Most business people know that for family businesses there are generous Inheritance Tax (IHT) reliefs, which generally operate to make assets used in the business exempt or partially exempt from IHT. The reliefs take various forms, but are collectively known...

  • Business Tenancies - What is a Business?

    The question as to what sort of organisations can be regarded as businesses came before the courts in a case involving a not-for-profit company which had failed to give the required notices to protect their tenancy under the Landlord and Tenant Act 1954 . ...

  • Buying from an Administrator - Take Care

    With businesses becoming insolvent in large numbers, opportunities abound to acquire assets from their administrators. However, the low prices sought for the assets are due, at least in part, to the additional risk to the purchaser. Here are some of the...

  • Companies Act 2006 Overview

    The Companies Act 2006 became fully effective from October 1st 2009. Here are some useful sources of information on the Act. For more information and advice on your circumstances, contact us. Companies House Overview . Changes In Effect from...

  • Companies Act Model Articles - Think First

    The Companies Act 2006 came into effect fully on 1 October 2009.   One of the advantages of the Act is that it has made the incorporation of a company easier by creating a new and simplified set of model articles of incorporation. However,...

  • Company Name Rules

    On 1 October 2008, new rules relating to the registration of company names came into force. These allow companies to object more easily to the registration of a company name which could be confused with theirs. The new rules can be found on the website of...

  • Company Disclosure Rules

    The Companies (Trading Disclosures) Regulations 2008 came into force on 1 October 2008, making many changes to the requirements as to where and when company trading names, names of directors etc. need to be shown. The Statutory Instrument implementing the...

  • Company Formation Checklist

    You may have come across advertisements which make forming a company sound very easy, but before you go ahead there are some serious issues to think through. If you have decided that a company is the best vehicle for your new venture then here is a...

  • Company Late Filing Fees

    Companies filing their accounts after the due date are subject to late filing penalties which were last changed in February 2009. Private companies are required to file their accounts within 10 months of the end of the accounting period. Those that file...

  • Compensation for Loss of Light

    Following a recent case in which a dispute regarding a property owner’s right to light was unexpectedly dealt with by the granting of an injunction against a developer, a more recent case has offered guidance on how much compensation might be payable...

  • Considering Outsourcing

    These days more and more processes are being outsourced (run by external contractors under a service agreement) by more and more businesses. It is particularly common to outsource IT functions and telephone call management. Outsourcing can offer many...

  • Contractors Are Your Responsibility

    A handbook  produced by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) outlines the responsibilities of both the contractor and the client in situations in which work is carried out by contractors rather then employees. It does not apply to circumstances in...

  • Data Loss - What to Do

    The Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) has issued guidance for organisations that lose personal data, having reported that it has been notified of nearly 100 such incidents to date. One of the less intuitively obvious suggestions is to think...

  • Data Protection Guidance for Landlords

    The Information Commissioner's best practice guide for landlords - written to to assist them in complying with the Data Protection Act can be downloaded from the Information Commissioner’s website . The guide includes a checklist which is intended to...

  • Dealing With Breach of Patent

    When you discover that a business has breached your patent, what should you do? The answer to this question has two elements. The first is based on what you can do in law and the second is based on business strategy. Firstly, before picking a fight with...

  • Dealing With Subject Access Requests

    The Data Protection Act 1998 gives individuals the right to access information held about them by organisations. The Act governs how organisations can use the personal information they hold – including how they acquire, store, share or dispose of it....

  • Direct Marketing Via E-mail - Regulations

    UK law relating to the sending of unsolicited direct marketing material by electronic means are based on the EC Directive on Privacy and Electronic Communications . A major aim of the Directive was to cut down on the amount of ‘spam’ that...

  • E-Commerce Law - Do You Comply

    The Electronic Commerce (EC Directive) Regulations introduced specific legislation to underpin e-commerce. If your business has an Internet presence then you need to make sure that you are not falling foul of these new rules. The Regulations do not just...

  • EU - New Rules on Applicable Law

    Where a dispute has a foreign element, one of the common problems is deciding under what jurisdiction legal action should be taken. This is avoided in many commercial contracts by specifying the applicable law in the contract, but in consumer contracts there...

  • Email - Who Owns the Copyright?

    Copyright is a right which exists without any specific steps having to be taken. It applies whenever there is a work created which contains original skill or labour. It applies to written material and that includes email, as a recent High Court ruling has...

  • Employed or Self-Employed?

    Whether you are employed or self-employed makes a substantial difference to how you are taxed and the income tax liabilities of an employed person can be very different from those of a self-employed person with similar levels of gross income. The National...

  • Employee Fraud

    Employee fraud was a boom area even before the recession started.  ‘Targeted’ frauds, often backed by organised criminals, are also becoming more common. In these cases, an employee (often using a stolen identity) is ‘planted’ in...

  • Employee Fraud - Fraud Act 2006

    Employee fraud continues to rise as the recession continues to bite - however,  the Fraud Act 2006 provisions make it easier to obtain convictions for fraud a than was possible under the predecessor legislation. Under the Act, fraud offences are: ...

  • Entrepreneur's Relief - the Basics

    From 6 April 2008 disposals of qualifying businesses and business assets have been eligible for Entrepreneurs’ Relief. In simple terms, it allows business owners to reduce their Capital Gains Tax liability to the equivalent of 10 per cent of the...

  • Financial Fraud - What Not to Do!

    With recent surveys showing that instances of employee fraud are still on the increase, and HMRC showing regrettable lack of ability to safeguard personal data, eliminating poor security practices which make fraud easier is becoming even more important....

  • Freedom of Information - What it Means in Practice

    The Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) 2000 came fully into force on 1 January 2005 and it has serious implications for businesses doing business with the public sector. The reason for this is that because one of the aims of the Act is to engender greater...

  • Guidance on Letters of Intent

    Letters of intent are widely used in the building trade, because it is normal for both developer and contractor to wish to make progress on a building project without having to wait until the formal contractual arrangements have been fully agreed. However,...

  • Guide to Good Boardroom Practice

    The Institute of Chartered Secretaries and Administrators have published an excellent and highly practical short guide (3 pages) to boardroom good practice, which will be of great interest to company secretaries and directors, especially non-executive...

  • HMRC - Overnight and Subsistence Expenses

    HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) are well known for their dislike of claiming expenses without complete documentation but the reality, as every businessperson knows, is that maintaining complete and accurate documentation for all transactions is a...

  • How To Do Strategic Review

    Most businesses have some sort of business plan, even if it is only or a few lines on one sheet of paper. Larger businesses may have a formal business plan, which charts out the expected development of the business over the next few years in a systematic and...

  • How to Reclaim Foreign VAT

    It is commonly thought that within the EU, recovering VAT on expenditure made whilst abroad is merely a matter of calculating the VAT at the applicable rate and claiming it via your VAT return. However, the right to recover VAT on a VAT return is limited to...

  • IHT and Small Business

    Inheritance Tax (IHT) is payable on a deceased person’s estate at 40 per cent above £325,000 (2010/11) – the current nil rate band. However, business property is treated differently from personal property and may qualify for Business...

  • Intellectual Property: Who Owns It?

    One of the biggest sources of disputes in industries based on innovation is a difference of opinion about who owns the intellectual property (IP) created in terms of designs, software, processes and systems. This is a general guide for businesses to the...

  • Is Your Website Disability-Friendly?

    The British Standards Institution has published guidance on making sure that your website is disability-friendly. Under the Disability Discrimination Act , it is unlawful for a service provider to discriminate against a disabled person by refusing to...

  • It Wasn't in the Contract

    A common problem in contract disputes is that matters that create disagreement are sometimes not referred to specifically in the contract. However, as well as the express terms of a contract, there are also terms that are implied that is, they apply without...

  • Landlord's Repairs and Loss of Trade

    One of the continuing sources of friction between landlords and tenants is the maintenance of buildings. Normally, the arguments are over inadequate maintenance, but a recent case dealt with problems which arose when a landlord repaired a building occupied...

  • Landlords - Dealing With Pre-Pack Tenants

    Businesses in financial difficulties are increasingly seeking ways of ridding themselves of extra costs and, in many cases, premises let in more promising economic times are viewed as a substantial and avoidable liability, especially for businesses which...

  • Landlords and the Disability Discrimination Act

    The Disability Discrimination Act 1995 (DDA) – which was amended in 2005 – has caused concern amongst the owners of let properties for some time because of uncertainty as to the limits of their responsibilities to make the properties they let...

  • Late Payment and Material Breach

    Recent guidance has been given by the High Court on what constitutes a ‘material breach’ of a contract and the circumstances necessary for late payment to be regarded as serious enough to justify the termination of a contract. The dispute arose...

  • Leases - Code of Practice

    In 2007, a new code of practice for commercial leases was released following a long consultation exercise involving landlords and other interested parties. The code made a number of changes to the substance and detail of the then current practice. These...

  • Letters of Intent - Getting Them Right

    What Is a Letter of Intent? Letters of intent, commonly referred to as 'heads of agreement', are used to indicate the terms under which two or more people intend to enter into a contractual relationship when doing business together. The term 'letter of...

  • Limited Liability Partnerships

    Limited liability partnerships (LLPs) were first introduced in April 2001 and are becoming an increasingly popular way of structuring a business, especially with professional practices. The big advantage of the LLP is that it allows the liability of...

  • Making Retention of Title Work

    Prior to the recession, Retention of Title (RoT) clauses probably received less attention than they should have from many businesses. However, RoT is now back in the spotlight. An effective RoT clause will normally allow you to recover the goods you have...

  • Making Training Costs Tax Deductible

    Most business owners and managers think that training costs aimed at improving skills or business profits automatically qualify for tax relief, but that is not necessarily the case. The complexities of the UK tax system mean that the availability of tax...

  • Making Waivers of Dividends Work

    When a company is set up, it is common to divide the shares in it in approximately equal proportions amongst the subscribers. Whether or not this proves to be the most effective way to split them in the long run depends on a variety of factors, of which the...

  • Mixed Premises - Legal Status

    Living ‘above the shop’ is quite common in the small business sector and where the premises are rented, the lease will cover both the business and residential parts of the property. However, the statutory basis for repossession is quite different...

  • Mobile Phones and Tax: Hands-Free Kits

    It is well known that when an employer provides a mobile phone to an employee, there is no benefit in kind charge as long as the phone remains the property of the employer. The same rule can apply when the employer pays for a mobile phone 'hands-free' kit...

  • Money Laundering Regulations

    Money laundering is the process by which criminals turn their 'dirty' income – which is usually earned in cash – into 'clean' money, by undertaking transactions which hide the original source of the cash and/or turn the cash into 'legitimate...

  • New Contract, New Danger

    Every business needs customers, but every customer, especially a new one, represents a risk to your business. It is a very serious issue but there are many things you can do to make sure that you increase your chances of getting paid. Clearly, the...

  • Optional Errors

    People who want to buy a property but do not currently have the means to do so, or who simply want to be guaranteed the opportunity to buy it during a specified period or at some future date, will often undertake an option agreement with the owner. Under...

  • Options and Pre-emption Rights

    Prospective purchasers and vendors of land frequently wish to ‘lock in’ the other party to the deal and the means by which this is done will normally involve the prospective vendor either giving the prospective purchaser an option to purchase the...

  • Outsourcing the Processing of Personal Information - Guidance

    The Information Commissioner’s Office offers guidance on how to comply with the Data Protection Act 1998 (DPA) when you outsource the processing of personal information, such as your payroll function or customer mailing information. If you use an...

  • Patent Dispute Resolution Service

    The UK Intellectual Property Office (formerly the Patent Office) offers a dispute resolution service which is aimed at preventing unnecessary litigation over patent disputes. The new opinions service allows anyone to request an opinion on any UK patent,...

  • Patent Searches Improved

    Checking for existing patents in force is easy (and free) if you use the UK Intellectual Property Office's (UKIPO) patent databases which are accessible online. The new databases replace the Patents Journal and are designed to make obtaining information...

  • Paying for Employee Training

    It is well known that the rules regarding expenses that are allowed as deductions from income for tax purposes are far stricter for employees than they are for the self-employed. The relevant legislation gives a self-employed person the right to make a tax...

  • Pension Scheme Deficits Action Plan

    In accordance with the Pensions Act 2004 all defined benefit schemes must have regular actuarial valuations to ensure that the scheme meets the ‘Statutory Funding Objective’ (SFO).  The Pensions Act 2008 sets out an employer's...

  • Protecting Your Design Rights

    Protecting intellectual property has always been a complex area of law, but in one specific area things may be getting clearer. The Registered Designs Regulations 2001 include several protections for inventors of designs. If you have a new design which is...

  • Registering a Trade Mark

    Your business has its own unique brand and reputation and it is vital in a competitive marketplace to ensure that these are protected from unscrupulous third parties. Some business owners do not believe there is any point in registering their trading or...

  • Remedies for Breach of Contract

    Having the right contract is always a good idea, but no matter how much protection it offers, no contract can prevent a breach of contract by the other party. If you enter into a contract and it is breached, there are several possible remedies available to...

  • Rent Arrears Protocol

    Since October 2006, a revised protocol has applied where a social landlord wishes to gain possession of a property occupied by a tenant under a secure tenancy, where possession is sought on the grounds of arrears of rent. It does not apply to claims in...

  • Retirement Planning and Your Business

    It is arguable that the whole point of any business should be to enable the owners to retire when they want and with the lifestyle they want on retirement. Of course, enjoying it as you go along is a good idea too, but retirement comes to most of us...

  • Right to Buy - Can Tenants Buy Their Commercial Property?

    A recent decision of the House of Lords may have opened the door for thousands of tenants of offices and other properties originally designed to be used as homes to be given the right to buy their properties. The Leasehold Reform Act 1967 gives a long...

  • Stamp Duty Land Tax: Beginner's Guide

    Stamp Duty Land Tax (SDLT) is a self-assessed tax. The onus is on the taxpayer to make the necessary land transaction return, calculate the tax and pay it across. This is a fundamental change. The old Stamp Duty regime taxed documents, so it was...

  • Step by Step Plan for Health and Safety Compliance

    The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) has published a ‘ step by step plan’ for businesses for protecting the health and safety of workers and others . The key recommended actions are: 1. Register a new business with the appropriate authority...

  • Tax Avoidance Disclosure Rules

    UK tax law is almost unique in that it contains regulations which require professionals to advise HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) of information regarding tax avoidance schemes (TAS). Failure to comply can lead to a penalty of up to £5,000 plus other...

  • Tax Free Perks

    The Government has continuously sought to limit the tax free perks that businesses can provide for their employees. However, there are some remaining. Here is an update on some of those still available. Childcare Childcare provision and childcare...

  • Tenancy Deposit Protection Schemes - Rules

    If you are a landlord it is vital that you are aware of the requirement, introduced in April 2007, that all deposits (for rent up to £25,000 per annum) taken by landlords and letting agents for Assured Shorthold Tenancies in England and Wales must be...

  • Termination of Leases - Tips for Landlords

    In the present economic environment, many tenants will be seeking to vacate premises, reduce the size of their premises or renegotiate their leases, so times are tough for landlords. Furthermore, tenants who were ‘good tenants’ or who seemed...

  • Termination of Leases - Tips for Tenants

    Break clauses in commercial leases have probably received more attention from tenants in the last year or so than at any time since the early 1990s. For tenants seeking to break their leases, here are some pointers: • Make sure any notice to break the...

  • The Duty to Manage Asbestos - HSE Guidance

      According to statistics provided by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE), asbestos is the single greatest cause of work-related deaths in the UK. Every year 1,000 people who have been involved in carrying out building maintenance and repair work...

  • The Eight Data Protection Principles

    Anyone processing personal data must comply with the eight enforceable principles of good practice. Here is a checklist. Data must be: fairly and lawfully processed; processed for limited purposes; adequate, relevant and not excessive; ...

  • The New Insolvency Regime

    In September 2003, the insolvency provisions of the Enterprise Act 2002 came into force, bringing in a new regime for dealing with insolvencies. The main features of the new rules are: a streamlined procedure for putting a company into...

  • Tips for Business Borrowers

    With the economy seeming to be slowly improving, businesses will be thinking about financing the expected expansion of trade. Borrowing cost often dominates the thinking, but it isn’t all about the cost of the loan. In order to negotiate the right...

  • VAT - Place of Supply of Services

    With different rates of value-added tax (VAT) applying throughout Europe, the place that a supply is made (and hence the VAT rate which is applicable) can be a very important matter. The basic 'place of supply' rule is that in normal circumstances (and...

  • VAT and Electronic Goods - Take Care

    In order to combat ‘missing trader’ fraud, which is estimated to have cost the Exchequer hundreds of millions of pounds, HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) have introduced measures which can, in some circumstances, make a supplier (or customer)...

  • VAT on Business Assets With Private Use

    HM Revenue and Customs have issued a new brief covering the common situation in which assets are bought which are used for both business and private use. Traditionally, this could be dealt with either by claiming only the percentage of the input VAT...

  • What Do You Pay for Work After the Contract Ends?

    It is very common, especially with building contracts, for work to be needed to be done by contractors after the expiry of the original contract. Recently, a case came to court in which a company that had obtained work under tender for Brunel University...

  • What is Personal Data?

    The definition of Personal Data is contained in s1 of the Data Protection Act 1991. Personal Data is data that relates to a living individual who can be identified from the data or from the data and other information which is in possession of, or likely to...

  • What is a Change of Layout?

    The question of just how far a lessee can go in altering the layout of a property without either the landlord’s consent or breaching other terms of the lease can be a vexing one. The 2006 case of Waycourt Ltd. v Viscount Chelsea looked at the issue...

  • What to do When Your IT Doesn't Work

    These days it is increasingly the case that when your IT doesn't work, neither does your business. Clearly, the best way to deal with IT problems is prevention, which means doing regular backups, proper systems maintenance, keeping anti-virus protection up...

  • When Green is Brown (and Vice Versa)

    Development in rural areas presents a number of challenges for planning teams and developers alike. Whilst planning policy is clear that previously developed (i.e. 'brown') land is to be used for new housing in preference to undeveloped ('green') land, even...

  • When is an Environmental Impact Assessment Necessary

    The The Town and Country Planning (Environmental Impact Assessment) (England and Wales) Regulations 1999 apply to any development likely to have significant effects on the environment by virtue of its size, nature or location. If a Local Authority fails...

  • Your Home Office - The Legalities

    If you run your own business, working from home, there are legal ramifications which need to be considered. There are few regulations that apply to 'normal' businesses that do not apply to 'home' businesses: you are not exempt just because you operate...
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