Business Law and Corporate Law

If you are thinking of leaving a gift to charity in your Will, deciding which charity to support is only one of the choices you have to make. You will also need to think about the form the gift should take, how much you want to leave and whether you want to place any conditions on how it is used.

Wealthy clients with complex family structures often seek ways to reduce inheritance tax liabilities to maximize what their beneficiaries receive. From spousal exemptions and charitable giving to strategic lifetime gifts and the seven-year rule, various planning opportunities exist to minimize the 40% tax rate on estates exceeding £325,000. Understanding these exemptions and reliefs, combined with carefully drafted professional Wills, can significantly impact how much of your estate passes to your chos

Charities managing multiple restricted funds face administrative challenges and underutilized resources when fund purposes become outdated or inflexible. This analysis explores how trustees can use statutory powers under the Charities Act 2011 to rationalize funds, modernize purposes, and unlock charitable assets for more effective use while respecting donor intentions.

The UK's takeover framework is transparent and internationally respected, yet overseas buyers often struggle not with technical provisions but with the transaction mindset required. Understanding the critical differences between UK public M&A and other jurisdictions—from the binding nature of Rule 2.7 announcements to strict financing requirements and limited contractual protections—can mean the difference between a successful acquisition and costly missteps.

The court applied the “no look through” principle, to find that the beneficial noteholders could not enforce an exclusive jurisdiction clause in an intercreditor agreement.

The London Stock Exchange has implemented sweeping reforms to the AIM Rules, fundamentally reshaping admission requirements, transaction thresholds, and governance obligations for companies on the Alternative Investment Market. These changes eliminate longstanding requirements like working capital statements and corporate governance codes while introducing new features such as capital access windows and special voting shares, marking the most significant overhaul of AIM regulations in recent years.

A death connected with a business can trigger a corporate manslaughter investigation, examining not just the immediate circumstances but how the organisation was managed, decisions made by senior management, and whether appropriate procedures were followed. Our specialist criminal and regulatory lawyers advise companies, directors and senior managers from the earliest stages of an investigation through to any prosecution, helping navigate the complex intersection of serious criminal liability and regulatory

The Grand Court of the Cayman Islands has issued a significant ruling on corporate governance, determining that directors cannot postpone an AGM once called and shareholders lack the power to elect a chair in the directors' absence. This decision, while based on Cayman Islands law, draws heavily from English common law and will influence future corporate governance disputes in England and Wales, particularly regarding the balance of power between directors and shareholders in conducting general meetings.

Allegations of fraud against directors or officers frequently give rise to coverage issues under D&O insurance, particularly if insurers perceive that if the fraud allegations were true...

For eligible companies, EMI options and growth shares each offer distinct advantages in employee equity incentives. But what happens when you combine them? This analysis explores how EMI can wrap contingent growth-share interests, the valuation principles that must be respected, and why the hurdle, exercise price and performance conditions need to be designed together to avoid accidentally over-gearing management's participation.

On 7 September 2026, the Government published its "Modernising Corporate Reporting" consultation document, setting out its proposed approach to modernising and streamlining corporate reporting requirements...

When a public company faces a takeover, executive remuneration arrangements designed over three-year cycles suddenly collide with deal timetables measured in months. This analysis examines how boards should distinguish between preserving existing value, repairing transaction-caused losses, rewarding deal-specific contributions, and creating future incentives—and why a single payment figure rarely tells the complete story.