News Archives - Page 11 of 14

Building a safer future

The Government introduced new building regulations to improve building safety, which is the biggest changes in a generation. Will the reform help people sell or remortgage of flats in high-rise buildings? GSC’s Real Estate Partner Carole Joseph has got the update in the video below:

For any questions in relation to the above video or property-related issues, please contact Carole Joseph directly on [email protected] or 0207 822 2235.

COVID-19: Tenant stopped paying the rent? Letting landlords leverage subletters…

It has been reported that a week after the March quarter day, UK landlords had collected just 57% of the rent they were due for that quarter, compared to 90% for the same period in 2019*.

Whilst the Coronavirus Act 2020 places a freeze on the forfeiture of business leases until 30 June 2020 where tenants have not paid their rent, there are other remedies that may be available to a landlord.

Landlords will most commonly first look to any guarantors that are liable to pay the rent where the tenant has defaulted and to any rent deposits that are being held.

A debt claim and the right to exercise CRAR (commercial rent arrears recovery), which is a statutory procedure that allows landlords of commercial premises to recover rent arrears by taking control of the tenant’s goods and selling them (previously the law of distress), are also potential options.

However, where commercial premises are sublet, one other avenue which landlords may not be aware of or which may not immediately come to mind, is the right to receive rent from a subtenant contained in section 81 of the Tribunals, Courts and Enforcement Act 2007.

This right applies where CRAR is exercisable by a landlord to recover rent due from its immediate tenant. The landlord must follow the procedure set out in section 81 to give the subtenant notice of the outstanding amount of rent due from the immediate tenant.

When the notice takes effect (14 clear days after service of the notice on the subtenant), the right to recover and receive rent payable by the subtenant under its own sublease will be transferred to the landlord i.e. the rent payable under the sublease will be diverted and become payable directly to the landlord.

This right will end when the amount of rent that was outstanding from the tenant has been paid (by payments under the notice or otherwise) or when the notice is replaced or withdrawn.

For further questions in relation to the above article, please contact Amee Popat on [email protected] or 020 7822 2250.

* Research conducted by Remit Consulting, in conjunction with members of Remit Consulting’s Property Managers Forum, into rent collection levels across more than 18,350 properties in the office, industrial, retail and residential sectors during the first few days of April 2020. The report received coverage in the Property Week magazine and in the Financial Times.

© 2020 GSC Solicitors LLP. All rights reserved. GSC grants permission for the browsing of this material and for the printing of one copy per person for personal reference. GSC’s written permission must be obtained for any other use of this material. This publication has been prepared only as a guide to provide readers with general information on recent legal developments. It is not formal legal advice and should not be relied on for any purpose. You should not act or refrain from acting based on the information contained in this document without obtaining specific formal advice from suitably qualified advisors.

Covid-19: Intellectual Property

As a result of Covid-19, many of the offices around the world that administer intellectual property rights, including the UK Intellectual Property Office, EU IPO and WIPO, have extended the time limits which apply in respect of proceedings in front of them. This can include opposition and renewal dates. However, care needs to be taken as the extensions are different depending the Intellectual Property Office. Furthermore, they will not cover proceedings before other bodies such as the courts.

If you are concerned about any trade mark rights or proceedings that affect you, please contact us or seek details from the relevant intellectual property office.

Even where a deadline is inadvertently missed, it is likely that the relevant office will take a lenient approach to any belated requests for an extension to that deadline. It is also worth noting that proprietors of trade marks can use the late renewal processes to address any marks which have inadvertently been allowed to lapse.

Court Proceedings

The courts generally remain open and there have been not any automatic suspensions or extensions of the time limits that apply to these proceedings. Where parties are placed into difficulty in complying with these deadlines, parties should seek to agree extensions between themselves before applying to the court.

Where possible, courts are conducting hearings on paper or via video/teleconferencing proceedings. Further information about those arrangements are set out in our earlier litigation update here.

For further questions please do not hesitate to contact Ross Waldram directly on [email protected] or 0207 822 2236.

Dos and don’ts of furlough leave

In the last few weeks people have become familiar with the term furloughing. It is the concept brought in by the government in the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme which states that an employee can be put on a period of leave during which they are asked to stop working for the employer. The employer can claim 80% of the wage costs of each furloughed employee back from HMRC (up to a cap of £2,500 per month).

Although many people are familiar with the basic concept of furloughing, below are some dos and don’ts:

Do make sure that the employee agrees in writing to being furloughed. This is necessary because it is a change to the contract of employment. An employee’s duties are not normally not do any work.
Do pay employees at least statutory sick pay if they become eligible for this while on furlough.
Do make sure that all relevant records and information are provided to HMRC.
Don’t discriminate when deciding who to furlough, as equality legislation will still apply in the usual way e.g. don’t just furlough women in an organisation.
Don’t undertake any work for the employer if you are an employee on furlough. However an employee can undertake work for a different employer if he/she has more than one job.
Don’t forget that it is possible to rotate employees on furlough. An employee must be furloughed for a minimum of 3 weeks, but after that it is possible to take him/her off furlough and put someone else in the organisation on furlough instead.

If you have any concerns or questions about your situation, please do not hesitate to contact David Nathan at [email protected] or on 020 7822 2247.

COVID-19: Possession procedures

What is the latest position regarding possession procedures for landlord & tenants? GSC’s Head of Commercial Litigation & Dispute Resolution Michael Shapiro has the details:

Whether you are a landlord or a tenant, if you have any concerns or issues, please contact Michael Shapiro directly on: [email protected] or 0207 822 2246.

COVID-19: The latest position on Holiday Pay

What is the latest position in relation to holiday pay under current circumstances around COVID-19? One of the most popular questions and biggest concerns these days. David Nathan who heads GSC’s Employment department comments in the short video below:

If you have any concerns or questions about your situation, please do not hesitate to contact David Nathan at [email protected] or on 020 7822 2247.

HMRC & Tax Policy: Time to pay arrangements

The government will introduce a new “time to pay” (TTP) scheme, to help businesses and self-employed individuals manage their cash flow in light of financial difficulties caused by COVID-19.

There will be a dedicated helpline and bespoke arrangements will be offered to enable taxpayers to defer tax liabilities for a time-limited period.

Interest and penalties arising from the late payment of tax as a result of COVID-19 or from administrative difficulties in contacting HMRC will be waived.

For further questions in relation to tax-related issues in general or on the above article, please contact James Cohen directly on [email protected] or 0207 822 2257.

COVID-19 & Will Signing

The signing of wills can now be witnessed by solicitors through the windows of clients’ homes and their cars, as the legal profession responds to the Covid-19 pandemic.

Michele O’Boyle, president of the Law Society, issued new guidelines following a significant increase in the number of people looking to get their affairs in order by making a will as part of contingency planning as the number of COVID-19 infections in the United Kingdom rises.

Ms O’Boyle urged solicitors to take additional health precautions when executing wills during this period of social distancing.

Ms O’Boyle said solicitors attending a client’s home can witness the client signing a will through a window instead of entering the home, The Times reports. If the client is sitting in a car, “they can sign on the dashboard of their car witnessed by you and the other witness” from outside, she added. Ms O’Boyle also recommended that clients be asked to bring their own pens for signing wills at solicitors’ offices.

Patrick Moylan, president of the Clare Law Association, said that there has been a “massive” increase” in the numbers making wills.

https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/solicitors-allowed-to-witness-wills-through-the-window-dcl5206gj

For further questions on wills please contact James Cohen directly on [email protected] or 0207 822 2257.

The courts in the time of COVID-19: Skype in the Court of Protection

Following the restrictions on personal movement arising from the continued spread of COVID-19 and the Prime Minister’s broadcast, the Lord Chief Justice reviewed the conduct of court hearings in England and Wales.

In respect of hearings in County and Family Courts the LCJ has stated the following:

“No hearings which require people to attend are to take place in any County or Family Court until further notice, unless there is a genuine urgency and no remote hearing is possible. All cases currently being heard should be adjourned part heard so that arrangements can be made, where possible, to conduct the hearings remotely”.

The Lord Chief’s directions did not address the Court of Protection but, in the opinion of The Honourable Mr Justice Hayden Vice President of the Court of Protection, exactly the same measures should be extended to it. Accordingly, no hearings which require people to attend are to take place unless there is a genuine urgency and it is not possible to conduct a remote hearing.

The extremely complex case that Mostyn J has recently conducted entirely by Skype conference illustrates the fact that even cases of “genuine urgency” may be heard remotely.

The case is a serious medical treatment application brought by a clinical commissioning group (CCG). A dispute had arisen as to whether or not it was in the best interests of A, a man in his 70s who had suffered a stroke in 2016, to continue to receive clinically assisted nutrition and hydration (CANH).

In itself, this would be an unusually sensitive case for the Court of Protection (CoP), and Keehan J listed it for four days, including a day of judicial reading time. What makes this case even more unusual is that the judge listed it to start on Tuesday 17 March 2020, less than 24 hours after Boris Johnson had told the nation to avoid all non-essential contact in the bid to stem the rising tide of COVID-19.

Mostyn J called an urgent telephone hearing with the parties on the morning of Tuesday 17 March to discuss whether the hearing could realistically go ahead in Nottingham Civil Justice Centre, and if not, whether conducting the trial remotely was permissible. He determined that the hearing should go ahead and asked the lawyers to find a way of doing so over Skype.

One of the parties’ solicitors set up a Skype for business meeting which everyone could join via laptop or tablet. With a very slight extension to the court day (starting at 10am and finishing on two days at 5.30pm), the hearing was finished in three days, and the judgement is now being awaited.

As a result, judicial time was not wasted, nor a hearing listed for four months lost. The sensitive and difficult case was not adjourned, possibly for months and months. No one had to compromise their health; before and during the hearing, some involved were self-isolating, with no impact on the trial. No one had to travel or stay overnight, saving significant costs, public money in this case. Even with an extended court day, all the lawyers involved saved a huge amount of travelling time.

This may well be the way forward for the next few months. Skype for Business looks to be on the way out for Microsoft, to be replaced by Teams, but it is clear that the judiciary are also prepared to consider other ways of conducting remote hearings such as Zoom: guidance just published for the Civil courts refers encouragingly to a ‘non-exhaustive’ list.

For further questions in relation to the above article, please contact James Cohen directly on [email protected] or 0207 822 2257.

Power of Attorney/LPA’s and Isolation – Allowing someone to act on your behalf while in Isolation

Given the unprecedented times we are facing due to the Coronavirus pandemic, your thoughts may be ‘how can my financial affairs be dealt with if I am ill or isolating?’ The solution is a power of attorney.

What is a general power of attorney (“GPA”)?

A general power of attorney (GPA or ordinary power of attorney) allows you to appoint one or more people to deal with your financial affairs at your direction and sign on your behalf. You must have mental capacity for a GPA to be used.

Unlike an LPA you do not need to register a GPA with the Office of the Public Guardian (OPG) before it can be used. Therefore, it is effective as soon as you sign it. You can stop the GPA being effective through a deed of revocation or it will automatically end if you lose mental capacity to make your own decisions.

A lasting power of attorney (LPA) allows you to appoint one or more people to make or help make decisions on your behalf if you have an illness or accident which result in you being unable to make your own decisions, i.e. you lose your mental capacity. In practice, this means you and will have more say over what will happen to you.

There are two types of LPA:

1) Health and welfare: can only be used when you do not have mental capacity and may cover decisions concerning your medical care, moving into a care home, life-sustaining treatment, your daily routine etc.

2) Property and financial affairs: can be used with your permission as soon as registered with the OPG and may cover decisions concerning payment of bills, access to bank or building society accounts, selling your home or collecting benefits or a pension.

Here is a comparison of some key points for you to consider when choosing between a GPA and an LPA:

	Lasting Power of Attorney (LPA)	General Power of Attorney (GPA)
Timeframe	At least 12 weeks to: • Choose your attorneys • Complete the relevant paperwork • The OPG to register so that it is effective.	Approximately 1 week to: • Choose your attorneys; • Complete the document • The GPA will be effective when you have signed.
When can the power of attorney be used?	Health & Welfare can only be used when you are unable to make decisions due to mental incapacity. Property & Financial affairs may be used, at your direction, once registered with the OPG.	As soon as you sign the document and it is witnessed.
Am I eligible to make the power of attorney?	Yes if you: • Are aged 18 or older; and • Have mental capacity	Yes if you are: • Are aged 18 or older; and • Have mental capacity
Do I need mental capacity for the power to be used?	No	Yes

For further questions in relation to the above, please contact James Cohen directly on [email protected] or 0207 822 2257.

Category: News