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Thomas Armstrong and Sarah Magee outline the problems posed by the registration gap, as well as some practical ways to alleviate them ‘Until the Land Registry completes the registration of a transfer of land, the legal and beneficial ownership is split between the transferor and transferee.’ In property transactions we often see buyers believe that, …
Continue reading "Registration of title: Take a running jump!"
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The European court has confirmed that mitigation measures cannot be taken into account when screening a project under the Habitats Regulations. Elizabeth Dunn and Lucy Metcalfe discuss the recent rulings over when to carry out an assessment ‘Under the Habitats Directive, if a development or project may have an impact on a European site, this …
Continue reading "Habitats Directive: Assessments still needed"
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John Starr examines two recent cases concerning when limitation periods begin and when a company in liquidation can refer a payment dispute to adjudication ‘Tenants or purchasers of newly built or refurbished properties who have the benefit of a contractor’s collateral warranty should be alert to ascertain the date of practical completion of the works, …
Continue reading "Construction focus"
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Following the collapse of Carillion the vulnerability of some Tier 1 contractors and the choice of procurement structure has been put under the spotlight. Marcus Harling and Oliver Lowson consider some available procurement options ‘The key principle of design and build contracting is that the contractor accepts responsibility for all design, including the contents of …
Continue reading "Construction procurement options: It’s not just about the label"
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Lucy McDonnell analyses the impact of land and buildings being listed as ACVs on development schemes, as illustrated by three recent cases ‘These cases demonstrate that the assessment of whether land or buildings will meet the ACV listing test will turn on the facts of each case, and the challenges for both landowners and community …
Continue reading "Planning update: Development assets?"
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How effective are standard building contract amendments? John Starr examines two cases with different outcomes ‘The court decided that the question was whether clause 5.8 excluded any liability to which the landlords might have been subject by reason of any misrepresentation made by them before the contract was made.’ This month, I am looking at …
Continue reading "Construction focus: Keep it under review"
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Susi Förschler outlines some of the benefits that a distributed system such as blockchain can bring to transactions ‘In a distributed system, as is used in blockchain, information may be stored in an infinite number of different nodes, all connected to each other, and in this way forming a network.’ At DWF we have been …
Continue reading "Blockchain in real estate: Building economies of scale"
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Overseas entities must register beneficial ownership in order to own or sell UK real estate, according to a new draft Bill published by the Department of Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, as Richard Clark finds out ‘Buyers, tenants and lenders will be reluctant to transact with any overseas entity other than a registered overseas entity …
Continue reading "Beneficial ownership: Registration required"
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Alexandra Herbert reviews the case of The Manchester Ship Canal Company Ltd v Vauxhall Motors Ltd [2018] ‘The court has a wide discretion when deciding whether to grant forfeiture. One of the considerations taken into account when considering an application is the possibility of the landlord receiving a disproportionate windfall if the agreement was to …
Continue reading "Relief from forfeiture: Application to licences"
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Adam Craggs reports on a sub-sale case in which the Supreme Court allowed HMRC’s appeal ‘The court concluded that the combined effect of sub-sale relief under s45 and alternative property finance relief under s71A would have resulted in the transactions escaping SDLT, but for the anti-avoidance rule in s75A.’ In Project Blue Ltd v HMRC …
Continue reading "SDLT: No question of motive"
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