HMRC has published a new manual providing detailed guidance on its approach to alternative dispute resolution (ADR) for tax disputes. The guidance captures existing practice and builds upon the more limited existing guidance covering ADR. It nevertheless provides a welcome degree of transparency regarding HMRC's approach, the process involved, and...

Do employees lose confidentiality in privileged material because they store or send it from their employer's laptop or email accounts? A recent case looked at whether an employer can deploy privileged documents held on an employee's company laptop Read more > When can draft judgments be shared internally? Court considers...

The legal landscape in England and Wales has undergone a significant transformation following the Court of Appeal's hotly anticipated ruling this week in Churchill v Merthyr Tydfil County Borough Council, which has expanded the court's power to compel parties to take part in non-court dispute resolution processes. Dispute background Mr...

In the Court of Appeal case of Halsey v Milton Keynes (2004), Lord Justice Dyson said that " to oblige truly unwilling parties to refer their disputes to mediation would be to impose an unacceptable obstruction on their right of access to court". However, the Court of Appeal has now...

You may hear that most disputes are settled at Mediation, with the parties compromising their claims in order to avoid litigation. This is true, but settlement doesn’t just happen. To achieve a settlement, especially one that you are satisfied with, you need to prepare thoughtfully and carefully for the day...

The Ministry of Justice is currently considering whether, and in what types of case, to introduce mandatory mediation. In any event, it has long been the case that the civil courts can encourage the use of mediation by potentially imposing costs penalties where a party unreasonably refuses to mediate (the...

Climate change guidance issued to in-house lawyers by the Law Society The Law Society has published guidance on how to advise clients on mitigating the risk of greenwashing claims and how to advise on sound climate governance. Read more > UK signs up to 2019 Hague Judgments Convention The UK...

No onus on claimant's solicitors to chase mediation request, English Court of Appeal finds We previously reported on a Court of Appeal decision which confirmed that the English courts can order unwilling parties to mediate (although that will not be done in every case). The English Civil Procedure Rules have...

What is mediation? Mediation is a form of alternative dispute resolution in which a neutral third party (the mediator) meets the parties in dispute to help them negotiate a settlement of their dispute. A large majority of disputes referred to mediation result in settlement. There are different types of mediation...

Environmental, social and corporate governance (ESG) criteria have become a central component of effective corporate governance. The risks posed by climate change are now at the forefront of the boardroom agenda. Coordinating an ESG policy that fit into a company’s corporate strategy can be a daunting task, in particular in...