The Government has announced that the new National Security and Investment Act 2021 will come fully into force on 4 January 2022. This means that mandatory notification requirements will apply to relevant transactions completing on or after that date, and other transactions (including those which have already completed since 12 November 2020) may be the subject of … Read more

We have published our half-yearly update briefing which summarises the major developments in UK corporate law and regulation that have occurred over the last six months, that is from January to June 2021, and which are of relevance to UK listed companies. The briefing is available here. Read more

Changes to the Takeover Code provisions on conditions to an offer, particularly those relating to regulatory / merger control clearance, and the offer timetable took effect on 5 July 2021. The revised rules, which were set out in the Takeover Panel’s response statement RS 20201/1 (published in March 2021), apply to all firm offers which are announced … Read more

The Court of Appeal has held that a buyer’s notice of claim complied with the requirements under a share purchase agreement (SPA). In doing so it took into account the fact that the seller already had knowledge of the events leading to the claim. At issue was whether the buyer’s notice contained “reasonable detail” of … Read more

In what is likely to be the most significant change to the UK restructuring and insolvency market since the Enterprise Act 2002, the Court has paved the way for restructuring plans (RPs) under Part 26A to the Companies Act 2006 to be used to compromise the rights of landlords, financial creditors and other unsecured creditors … Read more

The UK National Security and Investment Act 2021 has received Royal Assent and is expected to come into force later this year. However, as discussed further below, once in force it can apply to transactions being entered into now. The Act will introduce significant legislative reforms which will overhaul the review of transactions and investments … Read more

The European Union has adopted a bold new approach towards the use of the referral mechanism set out in Article 22 of the European Union Merger Regulation (“EUMR“). As a result, transactions which do not qualify for review under merger control regimes in Member States can now be referred to the European Commission for assessment … Read more