A regular briefing for the alternative asset management industry. 

On 25 February 2025, the UK Government finally published the first UK Sustainability Reporting Standards, the UK SRS. The UK said at the Glasgow COP in 2021 that it would be an early adopter of ISSB and yet it has taken nearly three years after publication of the ISSB standards for the Government to endorse them, and far from being the first world economy to do so, the UK joins the ranks of more than 35 countries bringing ISSB sustainability standards into their national frameworks.

The past few months have proved more than ever that predicting tomorrow's headline is a fool's game.  While that illustrates the uncertainty of today's world, it also serves as a timely reminder that short-term, reactive strategies rarely maximise opportunities. That is never more true than on sustainability issues, where striking the balance between immediate and longer-term priorities is the name of the game.

Meeting the growing demand for data centres is complex and challenging enough, without having to contend with the extensive range of acronyms and technical vocabulary that are often used when discussing the sector.  Our glossary of data centre-related terminology is intended to provide a useful resource to help cut through the jargon.

Recent months have thrown automotive supply chain risks into the spotlight, with the Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) cyber attack and the collapse of First Brands Group providing stark reminders that supply disruptions can strike from multiple fronts and have wide-ranging consequences.

The EMIR clearing thresholds and calculation methodology are being changed.

Organisations need to ensure that their processes for handling data protection complaints meet new rules under the Data (Use and Access) Act 2025 (DUAA) ahead of a 19 June 2026 deadline. The new rules are designed to facilitate complaints being made directly to the data controller and include mandatory information requirements and timeframes.

On 20 February 2026, the US Supreme Court ruled that a wide range of tariffs imposed by President Trump in 2025 were unlawful. In response, he has stated that he intends to impose 15% tariffs under a different statute.

The Dryrobe Limited v Caesr Group Limited (t/a D-Robe Outdoors) judgment handed down late last year refers to the "relentless efforts" made by Dryrobe® to monitor and police the use of its brand. These efforts were not only crucial to Dryrobe®'s successful infringement claims against D-Robe, but also to its successful defence against counterclaims that Dryrobe®'s trade marks should be invalidated or revoked on the basis that the terms "dryrobe" and "dry robe" had become generic, common names for the product in question (think "aspirin" and "escalator" for previous examples of this). This briefing explores the practical lessons that brand-conscious businesses can learn from the pro-active brand protection strategy implemented by Dryrobe®.

UK sanctions regulation remains a highly fluid area of law and enforcement practice. This update provides a summary of some notable recent developments, including significant (and in some cases novel) changes to the civil penalty enforcement landscape following the Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation's ("OFSI") public consultation - which will broadly make it easier for OFSI to punish smaller breaches and increase the amount it may impose for more significant breaches – as well as the implications of OFSI's new (and welcome) consultation on the vexed issue of ownership and control.

A regular briefing for the alternative asset management industry 

The Court of Appeal's ruling in URE v Notting Hill Genesis highlights the importance of not treating termination wording in a contract as boilerplate. What appears to be "standard" drafting  may contain unexpected rights allowing one party to bring the agreement to an end and even to claim compensation.

A High Court claim by over 100 Filipino nationals against Shell may be the first to attempt to hold English-domiciled entities liable for climate-related harm suffered overseas.  The claim draws on advances in attribution science in an attempt to demonstrate Shell’s role in global warming and the intensification of extreme and catastrophic weather events.

In late 2025, HM Treasury set out its proposal to implement the government’s decision for the Financial Conduct Authority (the "FCA") to become the sole anti-money laundering and counter-terrorist financing ("AML/CTF") supervisor for legal, accountancy and trust and company service providers—replacing 22 private‑sector professional body supervisors ("PBSs") and aspects of His Majesty's Revenue and Customs ("HMRC") role. Shortly thereafter the Government ran a consultation, which closed on 24 December 2025, seeking industry views on exactly what duties and powers the FCA would need to perform this role effectively.

Introduction

The senior living sector is an important segment of the real estate market which integrates hospitality, healthcare, lifestyle and property management services within a single operating model.  As the sector has matured, its offerings have evolved and diversified.  Nonetheless, there is still a chronic undersupply of senior housing and frequent misunderstandings about the nature of the product and the benefits it can bring.  In this briefing, real estate partner Sarah Walker and sector expert Paul Teverson discuss the top three trends they expect to see playing out during 2026.

The core data protection and e-privacy reforms introduced by the Data (Use and Access) Act 2025 (DUAA) were brought into force on 5 February 2026, with minimal notice. These changes cover everything from e-privacy and cookie rules to subject access requests, the introduction of "recognised legitimate interests," a new test for international data transfers, expanded ICO enforcement powers - and, from 19 June 2026, a new statutory regime for handling data protection complaints.

Welcome to our 'A new era for HR' podcast series.

Under the new EMIR/UK EMIR reporting rules and the latest set of amendments to EMIR (“EMIR 3.0”), greater focus is placed on reporting and reporting errors. Download our EMIR/UK EMIR Regulatory Reporting briefing to see how Travers Smith and Validus can help.

A regular briefing for the alternative asset management industry.