With no clear path yet determined for our exit from the European Union, many commercial tenants could have been forgiven for watching the dispute between the European Medicines Agency (EMA) and its landlord, Canary Wharf, with their fingers crossed.

Jon Blood is an experienced commercial property consultant and director at Leamington Spa-based Wareing & Company. Here he talks to us about why delivering social experiences is part of the way forward for our high streets, and why a solution to the high street isn’t a one size fits all solution.

Coronavirus is causing untold difficulties and strain on the life of many businesses. As a result, boards of directors across the country are being asked many unexpected questions. Details of commercial contracts, employment and HR-related issues such as furlough, and the financing of a business are all high on the agenda.

When it comes to Software Developers creating IP for customers (i.e. they enter into a contract with a customer to do so) there are some important caveats to include in the contract between parties, where IP cannot, or from a commercial perspective, should not, be assigned to the customer.

As we await publication of the Corporate Insolvency and Governance Bill which is expected to include details of the new moratorium procedure and changes to wrongful trading provisions, in a surprise announcement on 23rd April 2020 the government confirmed that the Bill would also include further measures to protect commercial tenants from aggressive debt collection by landlords in respect of rent arrears which have accrued directly as a result of the coronavirus pandemic.

The Building Safety Act 2022 (which started to come into force in April and will have a phased entry over the next two years), continues to have a dramatic effect on the property and construction industry. A fundamental part of the Act came into force on 28th June 2022 relating to the use of Special Purpose Vehicles (SPV) which could have a significant effect on the approach to procurement strategy and risk allocation for both residential and commercial development.

Human capital, intellectual property and a secure customer base often drive the value of an acquisition. To secure that value, the buyer of a business may want to retain key employees and prevent the seller from competing with the business for a specified period. The acquisition agreement therefore often includes certain restraints. Buyers and sellers may later disagree on the interpretation and enforceability of these terms. Various immediate dispute resolution steps must be taken to protect the value of the acquired business. Our commercial litigation team regularly acts for clients involved in this type of dispute.

The Modern Slavery Act 2015 (“MSA”) received royal assent in March 2015, but one of its most important provisions only recently came into force at the end of October.

In appointing an agent or distributor, a supplier is effectively outsourcing part of the selling function of its business. A supplier may wish to do this for a number of reasons.

The recent story in the Sunday Times that a supplier to online fashion retailer Boohoo is allegedly paying workers less than the minimum wage highlights yet another reason why organisations should pay close attention their supply chains.