The decorations are down, the last of the Quality Street has been consumed and the New Year’s resolutions are a distant (and perhaps failed) memory…….suddenly the dreary weather leads to thoughts of sunshine and distant shores. Travel companies have dubbed the first Saturday in January ‘Sunshine Saturday’ as many holidaymakers plot their escape during the … Continue Reading
With the UK festive season now merrily in swing, credit cards maxed out on Black Friday and Cyber Monday bargains and Christmas shopping well under way, will the lure of the Christmas spirit be enough to tip some people over the edge into unmanageable debt? For many the holiday season is a time to adopt … Continue Reading
The Asset Based Finance Association (ABFA) has reported that the amount of invoice finance secured by UK businesses has risen by over a quarter in the last five years and that the total amount of UK lending secured through invoice financing has hit a record and passed the £20 billion mark this year for the first … Continue Reading
Unfortunately that is not the question for many young (and even not so young) aspiring UK homeowners who are struggling to get their feet on the property ladder and buy their own home in the current market. It seems that the UK as a nation is obsessed with home ownership and that first rung on … Continue Reading
As the country recovers from the shock outcome of last Thursday’s Referendum, the question which Restructuring professionals must now consider is “what does Brexit mean for me?”. The truth is that nobody really knows. The Referendum decision is not legally binding on the UK Government and the process of the UK leaving the EU will … Continue Reading
On 23 June 2016 a 52% majority of the British people voted in favour of leaving the European Union. It seems likely that the immediate effect of the Brexit vote will be a degree of turmoil in the financial markets, involving, for instance a devaluation of Sterling against the Euro and of the Euro against the USD. This … Continue Reading
So after all the shouting, the half-truths and the speculation, there is a vote to leave. What does this mean for your business? What will your Board need to know today? Although no one knows today all the details of what will happen next, in our ‘Brexit – What Next?’ piece we have looked at some … Continue Reading
Chances are those well-known eloquent lyrics have stirred up some patriotic spirit from somewhere deep within even the most sporting averse of us. With the 2016 summer of sport fast upon us the effect of the Euros, Wimbledon and the Olympics could have a significant impact on the economy (and the nerves) of the nation. … Continue Reading
In case you have just returned from Outer Space- the UK Government has announced that it is holding a referendum on 23 June 2016 on the question: “Should the United Kingdom remain a member of the EU or leave the EU?” In the meantime, whilst the UK decides whether to Brexit or not, the EU … Continue Reading
Businesses should be aware that new anti-avoidance tax rules will take effect from 6 April 2016 which will have a negative impact on members’ voluntary liquidations (“MVLs”). The new rules are part of a crackdown by Revenue and Customs to avoid ‘income-into- capital’ tax planning. This is probably in part due to the higher dividend … Continue Reading
When will the Court exercise its discretion to adjourn a bankruptcy petition or make an immediate bankruptcy order? The recent Bankruptcy Court decision of Aabar Block Sarl v Maud provided clarification on the matters that the Court will take into consideration. John Alderton (Partner) and Jon Chesman (Associate) represented the Debtor, Glenn Maud, who successfully applied for … Continue Reading
A referendum on whether the UK should remain a member of the EU is scheduled to take place before the end of 2017. John Alderton and Helen Kavanagh were interviewed by Alex Heshmaty for LexisPSL about the possible impact of the referendum on restructuring and insolvency lawyers and their clients in an article entitled Leave … Continue Reading
Following on from our recent blog on ‘How the UK General Election Might Influence the Recast Insolvency Regulation’ and whether the UK will still be part of the EU in 2017 when it comes into force, we consider the ‘hokey cokey’ of the upcoming EU referendum. At first glance the Conservative’s victory in the recent … Continue Reading
Tim Jarvis, one of our tax strategy and benefits partners, was interviewed this month by LexisNexis for his analysis of a new and important case on VAT recovery. The outcome of the case is potentially very good news for customers in insolvency situations who have been incorrectly charged VAT. The circumstances of the insolvency situation … Continue Reading
Following on from our recent post ‘UK Retail – Another Dressing Down?’ commenting on the trends seen over Christmas 2014, we now take a look at the approaching Easter weekend. A 4 day weekend, a recovering housing market and only a few weather warnings issued….. surely this can only mean one thing-DIY and all the … Continue Reading
The European Advocate General has today given his opinion in the “Woolworths case” (and two other cases) on the meaning of “establishment” for the purposes of determining when the duty to consult appropriate representatives is triggered under the European Collective Redundancies Directive (the Directive). The good news for insolvency practitioners (IPs) faced with potential consultation is that … Continue Reading
Is UK Retail still in the doldrums? Christmas is a critical time for most retailers and can be the difference between life and death for many high street stores. With the economy’s recovery in its early stages and purse strings remaining tight, Christmas 2014 was never expected to be all tinsel and mistletoe. Christmas trading … Continue Reading
On 12 November 2014 it was announced that HSBC, Royal Bank of Scotland, UBS, JP Morgan Chase and Citibank have been collectively fined £2 billion by UK and US regulators for manipulation of foreign exchange rates. The fines follow a 13 month investigation by regulators into claims that the foreign exchange market was being rigged. … Continue Reading
