Author Archives: Alice Heathfield

Coronavirus: Open, closed or who knows? Keeping construction sites open amidst lockdown

Posted on March 30, 2020 by Alice Heathfield

On the evening of 23 March, the Prime Minister announced a nationwide lockdown in which he instructed everyone to stay at home subject to specific exceptions. One exception was “travelling to and from work, but only where this is absolutely …

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Coronavirus: Your Employment Questions Answered

Posted on March 27, 2020 by Alice Heathfield

If you cannot find the answer you are looking for or would like some more bespoke advice, please call our Employment Lawyers for up to 30 minutes of free legal advice to guide you through the new challenges we are …

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Coronavirus – Answering the question ‘Can you go to work today?’

Posted on March 26, 2020 by Alice Heathfield

The answer is not necessarily a simple ‘yes’ or ‘no’; it could well be ‘maybe’. Government advice is constantly changing and we are left with what we describe as a ‘semi-lockdown’. Increasingly other countries are going into full lockdown. For …

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Coronavirus: Chancellor to announce support for the Self-Employed

Posted on March 25, 2020 by Alice Heathfield

However, the House of Commons Public Bill Committee has now sought to include protection for the self-employed under an amendment to the Coronavirus Bill currently before Parliament (which we expect to be passed swiftly). It proposes that freelancers and self-employed …

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Coronavirus Job Retention scheme – what it is and how can you apply?

Posted on March 24, 2020 by Alice Heathfield

There is still much uncertainty as to the particulars of this scheme and we encourage readers to regularly review the government guidance for employers and employees. Whilst we await further details, we set out below a brief Q&A summary of …

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Coronavirus: What protection is afforded to contractors?

Posted on March 23, 2020 by Alice Heathfield

As cases of COVID-19 increase throughout Europe and the UK, the adverse impacts on the construction industry are becoming a probable reality. For contractors and subcontractors who will usually be bound by time sensitive dates for completion of the contracted …

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Coronavirus crisis: the legal impact on the construction industry

Posted on March 23, 2020 by Alice Heathfield

Employment issues While it is important to discourage unauthorised absences, an employer’s primary duty in the event of a pandemic is to protect the health and safety of employees. This means ensuring good hygiene, good communication and that working practices …

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Coronavirus – Frustration and Force Majeure in Commercial Contracts

Posted on March 20, 2020 by Alice Heathfield

The below practical steps, explained in more detail below, should be taken by businesses in these unprecedented times: Review the terms of any applicable force majeure (or hardship) clauses in commercial contracts closely and consider whether they apply to the …

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Practical guidance for dealing with a Regulatory Decisions Committee action

Posted on March 17, 2020 by Alice Heathfield

This article sets out some guidance for any firm which finds itself on the wrong end of a Regulatory Decisions Committee (RDC) action, focusing on practical steps a firm can take to ensure the optimal outcome in this challenging situation. …

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An update of the latest developments in crypto regulations

Posted on March 11, 2020 by Alice Heathfield

How to classify and regulate cryptoassets? The debate around the regulatory classification of “major” cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin, Ether, Litecoin has been raging for years. The key issue is whether they should be classified at all and if so as …

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