Knowledge
Our knowledge resources reflect the breadth and depth of our expertise, our insight into the issues which matter to your business, and our understanding of the markets in which you operate.

<p>Filter Knowledge</p>
2247 Results
Building Safety Levy
The Building Safety Act 2022 ('BSA') gives the Government the power to impose a building safety levy on all new residential buildings in England (the 'Levy').
Travers Smith's Alternative Insights: Fixing the European plumbing
A regular briefing for the alternative asset management industry.
In the Pipeline - March 2025
The UK’s tough new consumer regime: is your business ready for the 6 April start date?
6 April 2025 has now been confirmed as the "go live" date for most of the consumer law provisions of the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024 ("DMCCA"). These changes will give the UK one of the toughest enforcement regimes in the world, with the prospect of fines of up to 10% of global turnover on B2C businesses for infringing UK consumer law.
FCA Private Market Valuation Review
On 5 March 2025, the UK Financial Conduct Authority published a report (the Report) containing observations and feedback from its Private Market Valuation Review (PMVR). This had been trailed during the previous week in the FCA's Asset Management and Alternatives Supervisory Strategy letter as a key FCA supervisory priority for 2025.
The Use of Online Subscription Agreements in Private Markets
The process of investor onboarding is traditionally labour intensive, time consuming and costly. Completing subscription agreements and collating investor KYC materials can be arduous and can incur high costs for work that is largely process driven.
Will the UK legislate to curb ransomware payments?
The UK Government considers ransomware attacks to be the greatest of all serious and organised cybercrime threats. In response, it has launched a consultation on three measures to reduce payments to cybercriminals and increase ransomware incident reporting.
B2C online terms: another million pound mistake
Paddy Power's consumer terms and conditions failed to protect it against having to pay out over £1 million after an online game mistakenly indicated that a player had won a "Monster Jackpot". We discuss what lessons can be drawn from this dispute and two previous cases involving similar claims for million pound wins. We also look at the wider implications for B2C contracts, beyond the sphere of online games.
Asymmetry of information, "global claims" and "lead cases": the Court of Appeal's decision in the Alame v Shell group action
The Court of Appeal has handed down judgment in an appeal from various case management decisions in the long-running Alame & Ors v Shell plc & Anor [2024] EWCA Civ 1500 environmental group litigation ("Alame 3"). The decision emphasised the importance of parties' freedom to plead their case in a manner of their own choosing and the difficulties that can arise where claimants face an inequality of arms. The Court heard appeals from the first instance decisions in Alame & Ors v Shell plc & Anor [2023] EWHC 2961 ("Alame 1") and [2024] EWHC 510 ("Alame 2").
Employment Update - March 2025
Navigating the Online Safety Act
For businesses within the scope of the Online Safety Act, achieving compliance and swiftly adapting to extensive new guidance is a significant challenge. The contrasting approaches in Europe to online safety and the tensions with the US over content moderation further complicate the landscape.
Re 36 Bourne Street Ltd, Brierley v Howe: A clear illustration of the test for unfair prejudice claims
Under section 994 of the Companies Act 2006 ("CA 2006"), a member of a company may apply to the court for relief by way of petition if they are or have been unfairly prejudiced as a result of an act or omission of the company or the way in which the company's affairs are being or have been conducted. A section 994 petition is the primary procedural tool that minority shareholders can use to seek relief if they are being unfairly prejudiced by the conduct of a majority shareholder or a group of shareholders who are acting as a majority.
HMRC publishes guidance on provision of tax information by private capital executives
Private capital executive remuneration is commonly a mixed bag of returns from a variety of sources. This can make the tax analysis complex, and unless detail is provided to it, hard for HMRC to check.
Exciting times: the Commonhold White Paper
The Commonhold White Paper was published today, 3 March 2025. It contains the Government's proposals for legislating that all new flats, subject to certain unspecified exemptions, will be offered for sale under the commonhold model instead of the current leasehold model.
Arbitration Act 2025 receives Royal Assent
The long-awaited Arbitration Act 2025 was signed into law on Monday 24 February 2025. The Act makes a number of targeted improvements to the Arbitration Act 1996, which remains the legal framework for arbitration in this jurisdiction. Its main provisions will enter into force on a date yet to be determined, although the government has confirmed that the new Act "will be commenced through regulations as soon as practicable".
The UK, the EU and the law of limitation
In Issue 8 of ThoughtLeaders4 Competition Magazine, Joseph Moore and Imogen Nolan discuss the Court of Appeal's decision in the Umbrella Interchange litigation regarding the law of limitation and its implications for competition claims in the UK post-Brexit.
Energy & Infrastructure video series
Welcome to our series of bitesize Energy & Infrastructure videos, where we will be providing digestible horizon scan updates on the key developments across ten different areas of sustainable infrastructure that we will see more of in the coming years.
Simplification or Deregulation? The EU's Sustainability Omnibus Explained
Three months after the European Commission announced a "simplification revolution", and after six weeks of intense speculation, rumours and leaks, we finally have the official texts of the sustainability "Omnibus" package. It is now clear that there will be significant changes to EU sustainability regulation. However, since this package needs approval from the co-legislators, it is unlikely to be the final word. Opponents of the Omnibus have pointed out that what was billed as simplification has turned into significant deregulation – although the European Commission is not labelling it that way.
International employment law podcast series - New Zealand
Welcome to our series of podcasts focusing on international employment law.