Opinion

Shaun George explains how arbitration can help ease the strain of the pandemic on family law. Family law arbitration has, to date, struggled to gain traction as a dispute resolution option given the very effective specialist family law courts in some sheriffdoms and an excellent and well-managed fam

The Scottish Legal Complaints Commission (SLCC) sets out key information for practitioners and law firms during the pandemic. It is intended to support you to ensure that necessary changes to your service to deal with the current situation do not result in additional avoidable complaints, and t

It is encouraging that companies are pausing before enforcing some contractual rights in favour of a collaborative, pragmatic approach to issues caused by coronavirus. In advising a range of businesses on their response to the crisis, our experience is that companies are not rushing to strictly enfo

On 25 March, the Scottish government published new guidance on social distancing for businesses during the COVID-19 outbreak, including which businesses are allowed to remain open during the period of so-called “lockdown”. This comes into effect immediately, writes Stephen McGowan. Leisu

The way we operate as an economy has changed, but the business world has adapted and changed with it. The COVID-19 pandemic has forced all businesses to re-evaluate how they operate on a global level. Many businesses have responded by increasing their capacity to operate remotely, through the enhanc

All organisations across the world are facing challenges as a result of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic and Kelly Fraser says many Registered Social Landlords (RSLs) will be concerned about what this means for their day-to-day operations. While data protection is often a term that we want to avo

The first Scottish court decision on the Electronic Communications Code, which was introduced to the UK under the Digital Economy Act 2017, has been issued. It highlights the increase in power that telecommunications operators are now enjoying, write Gareth Hale and Sarah Peock. The caseThe case of

At Pinsent Masons diversity and inclusion (D&I) is an integral part of how we conduct our business. This most obviously benefits our 3,500 staff who work in 25 offices over four continents, but it also generates a great deal of interest from clients who are always interested in what we are doing

Property law can seem boring and unimportant to some people at times. In the face of a crisis, property law often seems decidedly unimportant. People need to live somewhere, though, and opportunistic and/or thoughtless landlords might use a situation of crisis (or be completely or wilfully oblivious

Jonathan Seddon looks at the potential impact of coronavirus on UK construction projects being procured under JCT. I started looking at the potential impact that the coronavirus might have on my client's construction projects a few weeks ago when the virus hadn’t actually yet arrived in t

While the current instability has not yet fully impacted the property market, it is only a question of time before it does so. It is impossible to predict at this stage how long the current instability will affect the financial and property markets in the short, medium and longer terms, writes Ken R

Stephen Cowan takes a look at a recent case in which a Scottish university's claim against a student was dismissed due to lack of jurisdiction. Introduction

TLT's licensing teams both in England and Wales and Scotland have answered some key questions on the uncertainty and disruption brought by COVID-19 and the potential impact on licences. Please note that this article is of relevance to all licensed premises and where the law varies in England & W

Simon Allison looks at common issues for employers during the coronavirus outbreak such as whether an employer can lay off staff and what happens if they are forced to close their premises. Lay-off/short time working clauseIn the unlikely event that your employees have a “lay off” or sho

Licensing expert Stephen McGowan comments on the guidance issued by the Scottish government on mass gatherings. As of Monday 16 March 2020, the Scottish government recommends that all large gatherings or mass events of 500 people or more be cancelled or postponed.