Parties to commercial contracts may wish to exit their contractual arrangements for all sorts of reasons. In many cases, they will have included in their contract a right to terminate in particular circumstances, and a process for doing so. Even where there is no express right to terminate, parties may be entitled to terminate under … Read more

Contract issues Many contracting parties have already been affected by force majeure events arising out of the Covid-19 pandemic and the associated restrictions. Various locations around the globe are now experiencing a “second wave” of the pandemic and the re-imposition of restrictions. The second wave has important implications for contracting parties, some of whom may … Read more

The Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) has published a consultation on new powers for the Small Business Commissioner to tackle the ongoing issue of late payments. In March 2020, responsibility for the voluntary Prompt Payment Code moved to the Small Business Commissioner following the Government’s call for evidence on how to create a responsible payment … Read more

When events take a dramatic turn, parties may be left unable to perform their contractual obligations, or may find that their counterparty is unable or unwilling to perform. In such circumstances, a party may be able to rely on contractual provisions, such as a force majeure or material adverse change (MAC) clause, to suspend its … Read more

Many treasury teams are currently receiving letters from their lenders reminding them of the discontinuation of LIBOR from the end of 2021. Our finance team has published a briefing on Libor Transition: where things stand and what you should do now, which sets out the current state of LIBOR replacement across different debt and treasury products, … Read more

The High Court has handed down judgment in the Covid-19 business interruption insurance test case (The Financial Conduct Authority v Arch and Others). The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) advanced the claim for policyholders in the case, which considered 21 sample wordings from eight insurers. Whilst different conclusions were reached in respect of each sample wording, … Read more

The European Commission has published a Notice to Stakeholders setting out the rules that it considers will apply in the field of civil and private international law once the Brexit transition period comes to an end on 31 December 2020 (assuming no other agreement is reached). At the end of the Brexit transition period, the … Read more

The following guidance and materials may be of interest to companies in light of the Covid-19 pandemic. Corporate reporting FRC thematic review – The Financial Reporting Council (FRC) has published a thematic review on the financial reporting effects of Covid-19. The report seeks to provide guidance for companies when preparing their annual and interim financial … Read more