Author: John Moore

For the sixth year in a row we are sending a team to attend this major property conference MIPIM.
This year our attendees being Steve Ryan, John Moore, Lynsey Newman and Chris Alexander.  We have a busy itinerary, to include attending the Savills Shedmasters party on Wednesday 7 March and the BDO Stoy Hayward drinks reception.  On the final day, we are also jointly hosting a brunch with Brasier Freeth at a beach front Cafe, hosting our various clients and contacts attending the conference.

Please contact one of our team if you are personally attending the conference or know someone who is and would like to meet up for a coffee/beer, etc.

With slightly more positive economic news over the past month, we very much hope to spot the first green shoots of recovery in the property sector!

Author: Victoria Thomson

The Business Excellence Awards have been welcomed back with open arms by the regional business community as a record number of entries have been taken from businesses of all shapes and sizes from Hertfordshire, North and North West London.

SA Law are proud sponsors of the ‘Success Through People’ category in the Business Excellence Awards 2012. Entering your company is a fantastic opportunity to showcase the success of your workforce.
As businesses have faced testing times for a number of years, the people behind the company become a driving force, and there has never been a better time to celebrate and reward the teams of people who truly make your business what it is.
As a firm of Solicitors who have a large Employment Team, we understand the importance of protecting your employees and promoting their best interest to ensure loyalty and a dynamic working environment.

SA Law’s Managing Partner Steve Ryan comments “People are a businesses greatest asset and maximising their participation at all levels is the driving force of any great organisation, regardless of its size. As a firm who truly values its staff’s commitment, we are looking forward to meeting companies who share our values and hearing their success stories.”

Two ‘Success Through People’ award entrants who feel their companies have got what it takes are multi-media agency Clock limited and US founded manufacturers Swagelok London.

Clock – Clock is an award-winning digital agency, with a unique combination of marketing, design and technology talent. The agency work with some of the biggest and most recognisable brands in the world, including the BBC, Channel 4 and News International, as well the likes of Eddie Izzard and Saracens Rugby Club, among others.

“We entered the Business Excellence awards for a variety of reasons” Says Sam Fresco, Marketing Executive at Clock. ”First, we strive to recruit and retain the very best staff. In return, we issue a copy of our ‘Little Book of Benefits’ to the whole team, including benefits such as ‘early finish Fridays’, flexible working hours, a remote-working policy, free hosting for private projects and a personal concierge service.
So, for us, awards are a great way of getting a credibility check, ensuring that what we’re doing is truly the best in breed and not just what we think!

Swagelok -  is a major designer, manufacturer, and provider of high-quality fluid system products, assemblies, and services. The components manufactured and the services  provided help make our customers successful and are often critical to the safety of those who work in high-risk environments. Those environments include power generation, oil and gas production, chemical processing, biopharmaceutical production, research, and semiconductor manufacturing, among others.

The operation in Kings Langley is one of a dedicated network of authorized Swagelok sales and service centres operating in 56 countries. These centres deliver fluid system knowledge, products, and services tailored to the local market.  From Kings Langley, Swagelok services customers in areas as diverse as West Africa and the former Soviet Union . The company offers products and expertise anywhere safety and the environment are important.

How to enter

The panel of Awards judges will be looking for evidence of compelling people strategies and performance as well as the impact of training and incentives on both staff and the business commercially. It is not too late to enter your business into the Business Excellence Awards 2012, apply online now at www.bea2012.co.uk

Entry to these prestigious awards is free and is open to organisations of all sizes and individuals – regardless of industry or sector. If you are based in South Hertfordshire, South Buckinghamshire, North London or North West London, you are eligible to showcase your talent and success to our panel of judges.

Networking Opportunity

SA Law looks forward to welcoming all award applicants to an evening event at the SA Law offices in St Albans on 2nd April. The event will give applicants a chance to meet (and eye up!) their competitors and judges alike. For further information please contact Victoria Thomson 01727 798000.

Author: Leyla Fuad

In support of our CSR policy and in addition to our regular community and fundraising initiatives, we will be setting six monthly Trainee Community Challenges to coincide with each new intake.
Each Trainee Solicitor team will be set the challenge to come up with a volunteering/fundraising initiative and manage it from start to finish.

Trainees are free to choose their own team challenge that will benefit a group within our local community. The target for each Trainee team is to contribute at least £5000 in either volunteered time or money raised for the chosen cause.

The Trainees will be actively supported by all members of the firm.

At SA Law, we believe that being a good corporate organisation in the community, conducting business in an ethical way and supporting voluntary and philanthropic actions is imperative. This is an ethos that we instill across our activities and amongst our staff.

We will keep you updated with our trainees progress and hope you will join us in supporting them.

For more information about the SA Law Trainee Community Challenge, contact CSR Chair Leyla Fuad or Training Principal Terence Ritchie.

To find out more about SA Law in the community, click here.

Author: Victoria Thomson

SA Law’s outstanding work for commercial and private clients has been recognised by the Chambers and Partners 2012 Guide to the UK legal profession.

SA Law has been recognised as a leading regional practice by independent legal research bodies Chambers & Partners and The Legal 500, in addition to achieving The Law Society’s Conveyancing Quality Scheme accreditation.

A leading publisher of legal research, Chambers conducts thousands of interviews with lawyers and their clients every year to identify regional leaders around the world.
All of SA Law’s departments have been recognised as regional leaders in the Northern Home Counties, with Managing Partner Steve Ryan cited as a top tier lawyer: “These achievements are extremely important in a sector that suffers from fierce competition in a slow economy. Achieving recognised first class credentials in the marketplace has never been more essential.” Adds Steve Ryan.

To find out more about SA Law and how our dedicated team can assist your business, visit our website www.salaw.com

Author: Ben Ashworth

Some big headlines are being made this week in the arena of Football Finances and Insolvency. Yesterday, Old Firm giant Rangers confirmed that they had taken steps to appoint administrators.

The problems appear to have evolved over a disputed tax bill, in so far that the club is awaiting a tax tribunal decision which could result in liabilities and penalties exceeding £50m, which, Rangers said it cannot pay.

The case relates to the use of employment benefit trusts (EBTs) to pay players, which HMRC argue Rangers have misused to avoid paying tax. HMRC have stated that they will appeal the decision if it goes against them, leaving Rangers exposed to prolonged financial uncertainty.

Chairman Craig Whyte also points to inherent problems with the financial structure at Rangers as a further reason to call in Administrators. He has stated that the move to administration is “the most practical way to safeguard the long-term future of the club is to go through a formal restructuring process”.

With the threat of a HMRC winding-up petition, Rangers will likely seek the protection of a moratorium against such action through entry into a Company Voluntary Arrangement (CVA) with its  creditors. It has also emerged that Criag Whyte is the club’s main secured creditor, by which, he could look to secure Rangers’ future by entering the Company by which the club is incorporated into  a pre-pack administration to satisfy the clubs debts to him personally. Either way however a move into administration is likely to  lead to extensive cost-cutting with potential job loss.

This is a big development in the world of football insolvency where the icy chill of taxation continues to blow. With Portsmouth also taking steps to enter administration yesterday and the thorny issue of the Football Creditor Rule (where uniquely, debts owed as transfer fees and player wages are paid in priority to other creditors) still subject to court action, Football’s Finances could be said to have never been so turbulent. Click here to read more.

Ben Ashworth is a Commercial Dispute Resolution Solicitor specialising in Debt Recovery.

Author: Keely Rushmore

Last week the Public Services (Social Value) Bill passed its second reading in the House of Lords.

What is the Public Services (Social Value) Bill?
The aim of the Bill is to make social value – ie “economic, social and environmental well-being” more relevant in the placing and provision of public services.

The Bill started off life as the Public Services (Social Enterprise and Social Value) Bill in 2010 and although some organisations have expressed disappointment that the bill has been diluted during the parliamentary process, generally it is being hailed as legislation that will have a ‘profound impact’ on the commissioning and procurement process, with social enterprises, charities and other community-based groups being presented with huge opportunities.

What could this mean for Charities and Social Enterprises?
If the Bill becomes law (which now appears likely) this would mean a significant shift in focus from a simple assessment of the ‘bottom line’ price to consideration of the much wider concept of the social value that can be offered.  This means public authorities will be under a duty to consider how what is being procured might improve the economic, social and environmental well-being of the area in which it operates, and how it can act with a view to securing that improvement during the procurement process.

In order to take advantage of this, not-for-profit organisations will need to consider carefully how they can best demonstrate the social value that they are able to offer and provide appropriate evidence.  Social value is something that will be dealt with on a case-by-case basis, with only matters relevant to the what is being procured being taken into account, and only to the extent to which it is proportionate in the circumstances to taken those matters into account.

In addition it has been said that the Bill may assist British based companies to secure contracts in preference to foreign based companies (such as the recent award of the Thameslink contract to the German manufacturer Siemens over Derbyshire based company Bombadier).

Watch this space for further developments in the progress of the Bill…

If you would like more information or advice relating to a specific matter, please do not hesitate to contact Keely Rushmore on 01727 798017 or by email at keely.rushmore@salaw.com or any member of the Employment Team.

© SA LAW 2012
Every care is taken in the preparation of our articles. However, no responsibility can be accepted to any person who acts on the basis of information contained in them. You are recommended to obtain specific advice in respect of individual case.