Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP (JD Supra United Kingdom)

As a consequence of Brexit, the United Kingdom also left the European Union Emissions Trading System (EU ETS). The U.K.’s replacement cap and trade program, the U.K. Emissions Trading Scheme (U.K. ETS), went live on Wednesday last week. The U.K. government and the devolved administrations of Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland collectively constitute the U.K. ETS Authority to oversee the U.K....

While the U.K. has a mature approach to protecting national security overall, the government lacks effective statutory powers in relation to the ownership and control of businesses and other entities that could be used to undermine national security. Successive recent governments have lamented its deficient intervention powers in relation to foreign U.K. takeovers. In 2016, the then May...

In this episode, Akin Gump financial restructuring partners Lois Deasey and Liz Osborne offer an overview of creditors' fees related to English law schemes of arrangement. Among the topics covered: - The class and fairness tests under English law. - Lock-up fees, work fees and backstop fees. - Lessons from recent case law.

Environmental, social and governance (ESG) factors are becoming increasingly relevant across a range of financial investments. This has been driven in part by changes in the legal and regulatory landscape, including increased focus on ESG reporting and in part by investor demand for ESG-friendly investments.

TCFD Mandatory Disclosures - The UK Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy (BEIS) has published a Consultation on requiring mandatory climate-related financial disclosures by large publicly quoted companies, private companies and LLPs. The proposed regulations will require all large companies and LLPs to mandatorily disclose climate-related financial information in line with

The United Kingdom and the European Union have concluded technical discussions on the text of the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) referred to in the Joint Declaration on Financial Services Regulatory Cooperation agreed alongside the Trade and Cooperation Agreement (the “Agreement”) on 24 December 2020. See our prior alert for a discussion regarding the significance of the end of the transition...

On March 12, 2021, United Kingdom’s (UK) Digital Secretary Oliver Dowden announced the UK’s forthcoming National Artificial Intelligence (AI) Strategy as he set out his Ten Tech Priorities. The Strategy, which is due to be published later this year, will seek to establish the UK as a global centre for the development, commercialisation and adoption of responsible AI.

The United Kingdom (U.K.) currently operates certain off-payroll working rules (commonly referred to as IR35), which subject certain individuals (often operating as consultants to businesses) working through intermediaries (such as their own personal service companies) to employment taxes. Under these rules, the intermediary is responsible for assessing whether IR35 applies. Her Majesty’s Revenue

The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) and the Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA) have published a Consultation Paper1 with proposed changes to the secondary rules regarding margin requirements applicable to non-centrally cleared derivatives under the “onshored” UK European Market Infrastructure Regulation (EMIR).

On March 3, 2021, the U.K. government announced its 2021 Spring Budget (the “Budget”) which contained a number of extensions to measures designed to support the country even after our expected emergence from lockdown.  However, whilst the Budget set out some headline changes relating to U.K. tax, very little was revealed as to how the government expects to get the country’s finances back on track,

The Fundamental Problem - International arbitration is facing continued (if not increased) problems stemming from multitier arbitration clauses. What should happen when one party has not complied with a pre-arbitral step but nonetheless commenced arbitral proceedings? Typically, the parties have a satellite dispute: on one side, whether the commencement of the arbitration is void thus...

Key Points The United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is able to make requests of U.K. firms (including U.K. branches of non-U.K. firms) to provide books and records and other documents of SEC regulated entities, such as investment advisers and broker-dealers, as well as companies with U.S. securities that maintain a U.K. presence. The requested records and documents can often...

Finality is often cited as an advantage of arbitration. But what happens if there is a clear error or irregularity in an award? Institutional rules and national arbitration laws typically provide a limited mechanism to address such issues. The recent decision of the English Commercial Court in Doglemor Trade Ltd & Ors v. Caledor Consulting Ltd & Ors [2020] EWHC 3342, handed down on December 4, 202

The U.K. and the EU conclude the EU-UK Trade and Cooperation Agreement, which entered into force on December 31, 2020. The Agreement provides guidance on origin rules that must be met for products to benefit from duty-free movement between the U.K. and the EU. Other trade topics such as export controls, product regulation, sanctions and trade remedies are not (substantially) addressed by the...

On 24 December 2020, the government of the United Kingdom (UK) and the European Union (EU) reached a Trade and Cooperation Agreement (the “Agreement”) in advance of the end of the Brexit transition period (11:00 p.m. GMT on 31 December 2020). While the Agreement does not provide a solution for the provision of financial services between the UK and the EU, the Joint Declaration confirms that...

In light of Brexit, the U.K. government has made the unexpected announcement that it will limit DAC6 (Directive 2018/822) reporting in the U.K. to matters involving arrangements with the effect of concealing the ultimate beneficial owners of such arrangements, or of avoiding the application of information exchange regimes. While this will come as a welcome relief to many, businesses should...

In response to the unprecedented circumstances caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, the EU and the UK temporarily lowered the reporting threshold under the EU Short Selling Regulation (“EU SSR”) for net short positions in shares of companies admitted to trading on an EU/UK regulated market earlier this year. The European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) lowered the reporting threshold from 0

During the course of 2020, the U.K. government has pushed ahead with introducing new measures that are likely to be of material relevance to financial restructurings and corporate reorganizations. There have also been other international developments this year that may have some bearing on international restructurings, which we discuss below.

In anticipation of the United Kingdom’s exit from the EU on December 31 (‘Brexit’), the Competition and Markets Authority (the ‘CMA’) published its guidance on the expected changes to U.K. competition law regime. The guidance does not cover the U.K.’s future relationship with the EU as it is outside of the remit of the CMA. Broadly speaking and as anticipated, the EU competition legislation (ex

In a landmark decision handed down on November 27, 2020, the U.K. Supreme Court has confirmed that the English law of arbitration imposes a duty on arbitrators to disclose matters which would or might lead to the conclusion that there is a real possibility that they are biased. This welcome development in English law reinforces the integrity and reputation of English-seated arbitration, and is...

The United Kingdom Supreme Court in Enka Insaat Ve Sanayi AS v OOO Insurance Company Chubb has now resolved the question: which system of national law governs the validity and scope of an arbitration agreement when the law applicable to the contract containing it differs from the law of the seat of the arbitration? Will it be the law governing the contract; the law governing the procedure (the...

1. New EU and UK disclosure requirements - The new disclosure requirements for investment managers and advisers with respect to their environmental, social and corporate governance (ESG) policies will apply in the European Union from 10 March 20212. New climate-related disclosures will apply to investment managers in the United Kingdom under a UK disclosures regime that is expected to be phased

1. Summary The United Kingdom (U.K.) government published the National Security and Investment Bill (“NSI Bill” or “Bill”) on November 11, 2020, the aim of which is to strengthen the government’s powers to scrutinize and intervene in U.K. investment activity on national security grounds.

In this alert, we consider a recent decision of the English High Court concerning the extent to which the equitable duty applicable to lenders, security agents and receivers in the context of an enforcement sale may be excluded by agreement.

The London Court of International Arbitration (LCIA) has issued updated arbitration rules (the “2020 Rules”). These include some important changes, many of which are designed to address users’ concern to improve time and cost-efficiency: - Express powers to enable arbitrators to expedite cases. - An express power for arbitrators to make an early determination of claims/defenses that are...

On June 15, 2020, the Government of the United Kingdom issued a joint statement announcing the creation of the Global Partnership on Artificial Intelligence (GPAI) along with 14 other founding members, including the European Union and the United States of America. As announced, GPAI is an international partnership that will aim to promote the responsible development and use of Artificial...

- As of 1:00 p.m. BST July 6, 2020, the GHR Regulation came into force, representing the introduction of the U.K.’s long awaited GHR Regime. - The GHR Regime is the first standalone U.K. sanctions regime to be in current operation under the Sanctions and Anti-Money Laundering Act 2018. Various other U.K. sanctions regimes will take effect in the U.K. at the end of the transition period (curren

On 30 June 2020, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) announced proposals designed to provide breathing room to solo-regulated firms (meaning those governed solely by the FCA) in respect of the implementation of certain aspects of the Senior Managers and Certification Regime (SMCR). The proposals are intended to soften the blow for firms affected by the coronavirus pandemic and provide them with

The Corporate Insolvency and Governance Act (the “Act”) received Royal Assent on 25 June 2020 and is now in force. As anticipated in our client alert of 26 May 2020, the Act represents the most extensive changes in the insolvency landscape since the Enterprise Act came into force in 2003.

The economic landscape has changed immeasurably as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. Access to cheap credit has disappeared, and many companies have raced to draw down on existing facilities in an effort to access as much liquidity as possible in the face of unprecedented disruption across most sectors. The impact of the pandemic has been most acute on the travel, retail and leisure industry...