Two new precedents have been incorporated into the expansive Sale and Purchase of Business publication. Read more...

The Land Registry hopes to release its digital mortgage service in public beta this year. In a recent news update, the Registry’s digital services manager Eddie Davies said that ‘the department is continuing to work with Coventry and Enact on the next phases of the service as well as also working with lenders to get their mortgage deeds approved and templates created. So far, the Registry has approved several deeds from lenders in the remortgage market including Nationwide, HSBC, RBS, NatWest and Santander. ‘Since opening the service to more lenders and conveyancers we have seen an increase in the number of digital mortgages registered showing an appetite in the market to use new technology. Some lenders have started offering online mortgage applications and our service helps to bring the industry one step closer to an end-to-end digital process.’

New commercial law AI prompts have been added to the Companies, Trusts, Partnerships and Joint Ventures guides.

The Court of Appeal, in CILEX v Mazur and others [2026] EWCA Civ 369, has overturned the high-profile High Court ruling in Mazur v Charles Russell Speechlys [2025] EWHC 2341 (KB). The decision is a relief for many firms, particularly those using paralegals and legal executives to handle day-to-day litigation tasks.

AI prompts are transforming the way legal documents are drafted. When crafted with technical precision, prompts can greatly enhance the utility and credibility of AI-generated content, especially when the AI relies exclusively on data contained in client matters, without incorporating outside sources. Read more...

The landmark decision that established the concept of a duty of care

Part of our series of common legal questions and their answer, we look at the rights of an employee. Read more...

Part of our series of common legal questions and their answers, we look at the criteria for eligibility for the Cladding Safety Scheme. Read more...

Part of our series of common legal questions and their answers, we look at removing a caveat. Read more...

The accelerated first appointment procedure enables clients to reduce costs and skip straight to a financial dispute resolution hearing if an agreement has been reached. Read more...

The Purchase of land guide now includes new precedents and commentary. Read more..

Breaking news for London's family law practitioners: His Honour Judge Hess has announced major changes to the case management process for the capital's courts. Read more...

An exciting and useful new guide to Leasehold property disputes has been published, with extensive commentary discussing commercial and residential properties from the point of view of both landlord and tenant clients. Matter plans which are tailored to acting for landlord or tenant claimants and defendants will assist practitioners to ensure that the right precedent is used at the right time. The commentary covers: Overviews of the court and tribunal systems, funding and alternative dispute resolution; Breaches of lease covenants by tenants; Breaches of lease covenants by landlords; Remediation and forfeiture; Commercial dilapidations and residential hazard reporting; Going to court under Parts 7 and 8 of the Civil Procedure Rules; Going to the First-tier tribunal. A number of precedents are included such as: Initial letters before action; Letters of response covering various situations; Notice before forfeiture under s 146 of the Law of Property Act 1925; Counter-notice claiming the benefit of the Leasehold Property (Repairs) Act 1938; Notice of landlord’s breaches of repairing covenants; Notice to former tenant regarding goods left and commercial premises; Example content for particulars of claim for a variety of circumstances; Quantified demand and schedule of dilapidations; Tenant’s response to dilapidations documents; Notice before tribunal application under s 22 of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1985; All the standard forms and letters for court and tribunal proceedings. We invite you to explore this new publication and to consider the wealth of assistance the Leasehold Property Disputes publication offers.

A valid Energy Performance Certificate must be provided in order to market a property. The Purchase of Property and Sale of Property commentaries have been updated to provide information about where Energy Performance Certificates and reports are centrally registered including details of the new location for the Energy Performance of Buildings Register. These certificates can be downloaded for free by anybody. We invite you to explore these updated publications and welcome Comments & Suggestions as always.

Relevant commentaries on Capital Gains Tax also include the upcoming changes to Private Residence Relief and Letting Relief. Also remember from April 2020 capital gains tax on the disposal of residential land is payable within 30 days of completion. Private residence relief is available for the years the home was owner occupied plus the last 18 months, even if not occupied by the owner. This 18 month period is reducing to 9 months from April 2020. Where part or all of the property has at some time in the period of ownership been let as residential accommodation letting relief is available. However from April 2020 letting relief will only be available where the owner is also living in the property.