Updates

Government considers a range of cost protection options for claimants bringing discrimination claims

Most organisations will, at some point, have to respond to a claim (meritorious or not) alleging discrimination under the Equality Act 2010. The usual rule for most litigation before the courts in England and Wales is that the loser pays the winner’s costs (or at least pays a proportion of them). The government is considering …
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How does the VAT fundraising exemption apply to your charity’s events?

On 9 January 2025 the Upper Tribunal released its decision in the Yorkshire Agricultural Society case [2025] UKUT 00004 (TCC). The outcome of this case clarifies the application of the VAT fundraising exemption for charities. The Tribunal concluded that fundraising events, even when intertwined with furthering the charity’s primary objectives, can benefit from VAT exemption. …
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What’s next for UK environmental protection?

On 24 January, the Climate and Nature (CAN) Bill was ‘adjourned’ to 11 July after politicians were denied the opportunity for a ‘free vote’ to advance the Bill to its next stage. Instead, the government has promised that next steps will include binding commitments to advance the CAN Bill’s objectives, including for legislation. We considered …
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Too good to be true? New legislation cracks down on fake consumer reviews.

The new Digital Markets Competition and Consumers Act came into force on 1 January 2025, bringing in a raft of changes to competition law for organisations in the UK. In this series we’ll be looking at key sections of the Act, and what this means in practice for businesses and charities.   With more and …
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Refining the subsidy control regime: our response to the consultation

The introduction of the new UK subsidy control regime in 2023 brought with it a range of challenges for organisations distributing public money – mainly central and local government, but also non-department public bodies and charitable funders – as well as grant applicants, as they got to grips with compliance. The Department for Business and …
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Age verification measures to regulate pornography – the latest from Ofcom and the Online Safety Act 2023

Pornography legislation has long been an emotive and contentious topic, with no consensus as to the correct approach to regulation. Measures must strike a delicate balance, upholding rights such as free speech, privacy and adult autonomy against the responsibility to protect vulnerable individuals from associated harms. What happened to regulation under the Digital Economy Act …
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USAID and UK NGOs: Trump’s Executive Order Freezing Foreign Assistance

Many INGOs and English charities working in the humanitarian and international development sectors will be impacted by President Trump’s recent executive order, Reevaluating and Realigning United States Foreign Aid. The order mandates a 90-day pause in U.S. foreign aid assistance, with a view to aligning US aid to President Trump’s foreign policy agenda: it was …
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The Southport murders – will a non-statutory inquiry be enough?

The government has announced a public inquiry into the murders of Elsie Dot Stancombe, Bebe King and Alice DaSilva Aguiar in Southport in July 2024. The inquiry will look at the murders in the context of rising youth violence, online radicalisation, and extremism. As with all inquiries, the aim will be to work out what …
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What’s in a name: Reconsidering the public interest in naming individuals in the press in the era of social media

In this thought piece, Natasha Davies and Emily Wilson consider the constitutional and human rights issues raised by the anonymisation of the family court judges who made decisions about the Sharif children prior to Sara Sharif’s murder. Currently, the leading case regarding the anonymity of judges upholds the principle that “where open justice prevails so …
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“Yes we CAN”: The new Climate and Nature Bill

The Climate and Nature Bill has its second reading in Parliament on 24 January and we’re one of hundreds of organisations supporting the proposed change in legislation. Its aim is to require the UK government to put stronger policy and action in place with important principles that go much further than the existing Environment Act. …
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Strategic litigation: Driving change and positive impact. January 2025

Over the past six months there continues to be an appetite to use the tools of strategic litigation to create accountability and address harms. We’re using this roundup to share information about key updates and insights in the area through litigation and policy action. Strategic litigation has had a significant impact on decision-making, policy setting, …
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CS3D – Who’s in Scope?

Since our last article, the Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive (“CS3D”)[1] was published in the EU’s Official Journal on 5 July 2024, and it officially entered into force on 25 July 2024. EU Member States are required to transpose the Directive into their national laws by 26 July 2026. By way of reminder, CS3D creates: …
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