Spencer West LLP

News and Insights

Welcome to our News and Insights section. Here we’ll talk about the latest legal developments with our articles and videos. You can browse or search by practice area or sector. We’ll also let you know about changes at our firm including the expansion into new practice areas, sectors and locations.

13 Aug

2020

Update on Coronavirus and UK immigration

This update highlights the available policy information, the problems posed for visa holders and their employers and what they can do...

Webinar | Immigration | COVID-19

12 Aug

2020

Insolvency within the supply chain in the construction industry and what to do about it - Part Four

Part Four Introduction This week in our series on insolvency within the supply chain in the construction industry, we...

Article | Insolvency & Restructuring | COVID-19

29 Jul

2020

Insolvency within the supply chain in the construction industry and what to do about it - Part Three

Part Three Introduction This week we take a look at what practical and legal steps an Employer or Contractor can take to...

Article | Insolvency & Restructuring | COVID-19

27 Jul

2020

Employment law Tips for July 2020

This month we include some Coronavirus issues, but also a useful case in interpreting TUPE. 1. 88% of employees would be...

Article | Employment Law

27 Jul

2020

Hong Kong British National (Overseas) visa and exceptional entry options

A special UK visa for those with British National Overseas (BNO) status in Hong Kong will be available from January...

Article | Immigration | Private Client

17 Jul

2020

Insolvency within the supply chain in the construction industry and what to do about it - Part Two

Part Two Introduction As part of this series, last week we looked at what we mean by “insolvency” as defined by the...

Article | Insolvency & Restructuring | COVID-19

14 Jul

2020

Details published on the UK’s future immigration system

‘The UK’s future immigration system’ is not a new immigration system. Rather, the government proposes further changes to...

Article | Immigration

13 Jul

2020

Insolvency within the supply chain in the construction industry and what to do about it - Part One

Part One Introduction The following statement appeared in Construction News (2 June 2020): “a total of 35...

Article | Insolvency & Restructuring | COVID-19

26 Jun

2020

The Court awaits trial of cover in respect of the Coronavirus

To date, a number of blogs have touched upon the Coronavirus and its effect on contested cover. There is no doubt that the...

Article | Insurance | COVID-19

23 Jun

2020

Remote control: Checking right to work documents for employees working from home

The Spencer West immigration team has been fielding a lot of queries about checking right to work documents whilst employees...

Article | Immigration | COVID-19

19 Jun

2020

Is the expedient of competitive interviewing a fair method of selection for redundancy? - the decision in Gwynedd Council v Barrett

I longed for a way to write anything in the current situation without mentioning a certain horrible virus, but….. Business as...

Article | Employment Law | COVID-19

10 Jun

2020

A message of support from the Senior Partner and Managing Partner of Spencer West LLP

Colleagues and friends The killing of George Floyd in Minnesota at the hands of police a few weeks ago has been one of the most...

Article

5 Jun

2020

Latest legal developments and business interruption policies

It is 7 a.m. and the radio alarm has spluttered into action. “Coronavirus” is the first word to be heard although much of...

Article | Insurance | COVID-19

5 Jun

2020

Sense and screenability: an analysis of the UK’s quarantine plan

In this article, Immigration and Global Mobility Partner Samar Shams summarises the UK’s quarantine plan. She considers the...

Article | Immigration | COVID-19

18 May

2020

UK recovery depends on skilled migrants

If you think that increased unemployment in the UK means that there is less need for work visas for overseas nationals, think...

Article | Immigration | COVID-19

14 May

2020

Return to Work : Refusal and Discrimination

So, the PM has announced an ‘easing’ of the lockdown. Suffice to say that the measures have hardly been met with universal...

Article | Employment Law | COVID-19

14 May

2020

Immigration issues arising in the context of the return to work

Immigration status is not a protected characteristic, but employers of overseas nationals must navigate part-time work, right...

Article | Immigration | COVID-19

29 Apr

2020

After COVID-19: As a Contractor - are you prepared?

Our online panel discussion considered the consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic on the construction industry in the UK. ...

Article | Employment Law | COVID-19

16 Apr

2020

IR35 rules to be applied as of next year

In the UK Parliament on 17 March 2020, a deferral of the changes to IR35 has been announced (the off-payroll working law) in...

Article | Tax | COVID-19

16 Apr

2020

Announcement of tax measures by the UK authorities for the support of businesses and individuals

The UK government has announced financial support measures, including tax measures, to mitigate the effects of COVID-19 to the...

Article | Tax | COVID-19

8 Apr

2020

Senior Managers & Certification Regime ("SMCR"): Financial Crime and CASS

Introduction The SMCR is now the fertile ground from which CASS and Financial Crime should be considered. As the FCA themselves...

Article | Financial Services | COVID-19

7 Apr

2020

Watch our Webinar: COVID-19, immigration and employment - government policies and HR best practice

Listen to immigration expert Samar Shams and employment law expert Fudia Smartt on their engaging, interactive webinar on the...

Article | Employment Law | COVID-19

6 Apr

2020

COVID-19 Job Retention (“Furlough”) Scheme - Questions Answered Based on HMRC Guidance

1. Who can claim the furlough rebate? Any entity which has created and started PAYE payroll on, or before, 28 February 2020,...

Article | Employment Law | COVID-19

3 Apr

2020

Furlough Leave - update and what we now know that we didn’t a few days ago

*We intend to keep this page up to date with the latest developments on Furlough leave, please bookmark it and check...

Article | Employment Law | COVID-19

2 Apr

2020

Dealing with Restrictive Covenants

1. Introduction A land owner who transfers some land, either by disposing of the freehold or by granting a lease, can by...

Webinar | Real Estate

1 Apr

2020

COVID-19 and tax residence

Since the start of the COVID-19 outbreak, many countries advise against non-essential travel in and out of their international...

Article | Tax | COVID-19

31 Mar

2020

The UK's Future Immigration System

With only months to go before the UK’s future immigration system takes effect on 1 January 2021, you should understand the...

Article | Immigration | COVID-19

27 Mar

2020

Covid 19 and Force Majeure

All our lives have been radically changed by Covid 19 and none of us were expecting it apart from a few ‘planners’ formerly...

Article | COVID-19

24 Mar

2020

The impact of the Coronavirus on insurance

The potential impact of the Coronavirus on insurance cover has already been aired in the press a multitude of times in respect...

Article | COVID-19

23 Mar

2020

Furlough – what does it mean and how does it work?

The Chancellor announced a package of measures to help businesses, which, among other things includes the “Coronavirus Job...

Article | COVID-19

18 Mar

2020

Employment Law Coronavirus update

Many employers at the moment are balancing keeping a workforce going through measures such as home working, even if...

Article | COVID-19

16 Mar

2020

Coronavirus and UK immigration

There is relatively little information available to date on the consequences of the coronavirus pandemic for visa holders and...

Article | Immigration | COVID-19

12 Mar

2020

The implications of the Coronavirus for construction contracts

Video | Construction Law Update | Elizabeth Vago

Article | Employment Law | COVID-19

9 Mar

2020

Coronavirus (COVID-19) and its implications for construction contracts

On 30 January 2020, the World Health Organisation (WHO) declared that the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) outbreak...

Article | Construction & Engineering | COVID-19

6 Mar

2020

How the UK’s immigration system will change when free movement ends

Samar Shams considers the government’s plans for a points-based immigration system once the UK fully withdraws from the EU....

Article | Immigration

1 Mar

2020

Employment Law: 5 fab facts for early March 2020

Having had a wet and miserable February, some of the following may brighten your day. Or just more of the same. We hope to be...

Article | Employment Law

19 Feb

2020

Spencer West LLP announces exciting expansion plans for 2020

City of London law firm Spencer West LLP has expanded over the last 15 months from being a boutique 3 partner firm to now...

Article

31 Jan

2020

Migration Advisory Committee (MAC) publishes recommendations on a points-based visa route and salary thresholds for sponsored workers

This article first appeared as a Thomson Reuters Practical Law Legal Update on 30 January 2020. The Migration Advisory...

Article | Immigration

30 Jan

2020

5 employment law tips for January 2020

We start the new year with some interesting employment law issues arising at the end of 2019, and some new things to get on...

Article | Employment Law

28 Jan

2020

Immigration update: The Migration Advisory Committee Report

Take a look at Immigration Partner, Samar Shams's summary of the Migration Advisory Committee's recommendations for a points-based visa route and a lower salary threshold for sponsored workers.

Article | Video | Immigration

16 Dec

2019