Legal News

For almost as long as EU merger control has existed, scholars and practitioners have discussed and debated the European Commission’s (EC) split roles as investigator, prosecutor, judge, and jury under the EU Merger Regulation (EUMR). It wasn’t until the EU courts overturned three EC prohibition decisions due to manifest errors in assessment in the early 2000s that the discussion shifted to the undeniable need for reform....By: Bryan Cave Leighton Paisner

BCLP’s global Antitrust & Competition team have been tracking the various ways COVID-19 is impacting antitrust enforcement, merger control, state aid and foreign direct investment rules ("FDI") in key jurisdictions around the world. Here are some user friendly one-page maps which highlight the key impacts that the COVID-19 pandemic is having – and may have – on competition law and FDI rules - worldwide....By: Bryan Cave Leighton Paisner

The recent judicial review in R (Holborn Studios) v London Borough of Hackney raises important considerations for developers and planning authorities in terms of  financial details to be disclosed in viability assessments that accompany certain planning applications. The case also contains some useful guidance on the lobbying of committee members on planning applications....By: Bryan Cave Leighton Paisner

The Government yesterday published its Business and Planning Bill. The Bill includes an assortment of measures to support businesses as the country transitions from lockdown into recovery, including the introduction of new ‘pavement licences’, extending construction hours and eagerly anticipated measures to extend planning permissions. In this blog we discuss the details and implications of this Bill as currently drafted....By: Bryan Cave Leighton Paisner

The recent case of PBS Energo A.S v Bester Generacion UK Ltd [2020] EWHC 223 (TCC) provides a reminder of the care parties need to take when deciding to terminate a contract. It also provides some interesting commentary on the operation of the FIDIC Silver Book 1999 termination provisions....By: Bryan Cave Leighton Paisner

A recent High Court ruling in the case of R (Swire) v Secretary of State [2020] has highlighted the subtleties in the approach to screening decisions and particularly in the assessment of  measures to mitigate the adverse effects of a proposed development, in cases where negative screening opinions are given.   Environmental Impact Assessments (“EIAs”) have long been a fertile area for legal challenge to planning permissions due to the complexities and subtleties of the EIA regime....By: Brya...

On 21 June 2020, the UK Government announced that it is introducing emergency legislation that will bolster its powers to scrutinise, and potentially block, foreign takeovers on new public interest grounds, namely: ..to maintain domestic capability to combat and mitigate the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic and future public health emergencies; and ..to broaden the scope of transactions reviewable on national security grounds to those touching artificial intelligence (AI), cryptographic...By: ...

On May 21, 2020, the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) adopted amendments (the “Amendments”) to streamline the financial statement disclosures that are required in connection with acquisition and disposition transactions by U.S. public companies. The Amendments will, among other things (i) revise the requirements for financial statements and pro forma financial information for acquired businesses, (ii) revise the tests used to determine significance of acquisitions and dispositi...

For some time we have been following with interest the case of Bresco Electrical Services Ltd (in liquidation) v Michael J Lonsdale (Electrical) Ltd as it progresses through the courts. Why? Because this concerns an important question which comes up time and time again: are the regimes of construction adjudication and insolvency set off compatible?...By: Bryan Cave Leighton Paisner

The economic crisis of Covid-19 could provide a counterintuitive catalyst for delivering the Northern Powerhouse in the long term. In this blog we explore how the Development Consent Order process could unlock such projects....By: Bryan Cave Leighton Paisner