Insights

As a result of the Procurement Act 2023, the UK procurement regime  changed on 24 February 2025. To read about the key changes, please see our article Understanding the UK’s New Procurement Regime in 2025.

As they have on each previous anniversary, the EU and UK released new sanctions against Russia on February 24, 2025, to mark the three-year anniversary of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. For the first time, the United States did not do the same, electing to issue a limited set of Iran-related sanctions on the anniversary instead. The EU package was more fulsome than the UK package, including new port and airport restrictions, additional trade restrictions (including an aluminium ban), enhanced military end-user restrictions, and additional asset freezes and vessel designations.

The UK’s new Procurement Act 2023 (the “Act”) takes effect from 24 February 2025. Our view is that while there are a small number of important differences, which we discuss below, the majority of the processes outlined in previous legislation, remain unchanged, despite some changes in terminology.

In response to the ongoing conflict in Ukraine and to exert further pressure on Russia, the EU enacted its 14thsanctions package against Russia on June 24, 2024. The new package comes after months of negotiations between Member States, and follow, but in many ways expand upon, those passed by the United States and the UK last week (see Crowell’s Alert on those developments here). 

In R (on the application of PACCAR Inc & Ors) v Competition Appeal Tribunal & Ors [2023] UKSC 28, the U.K. Supreme Court has declared litigation funding agreements based on a cut of damages to need to comply with the Damages-Based Agreements Regulations 2013, while the Court of Appeal in Evans & O’Higgins v Barclays [2023] EWCA Civ 876 expands the scope of likely competition opt out litigation approval.

Following a meeting of the G7 Summit Leaders, on May 19, 2023, the United States and the United Kingdom announced a new round of sanctions and export controls against the Government of the Russian Federation (“Russia”) to continue their efforts against key sectors of Russia’s military-industrial base. These actions target procurement and evasion networks to curtail the flow of necessary resources Russia needs to maintain and fund its campaign against Ukraine. In this alert, Crowell & Moring attorneys based in our U.S. and UK offices provide a comprehensive overview of the recent multi-jurisdictional actions taken by the respective countries’ government agencies.

The last two years have seen three landmark decisions of the UK Supreme Court on arbitration agreements and procedure. This alert summarizes those decisions and their implications.

Shortly after its important decision on the governing law of arbitration agreements in Enka Insaat Ve Sanayi AS v OOO Insurance Company Chubb [2020] UKSC 38 (as covered in our recent alert here), the U.K. Supreme Court has handed down another judgment long awaited by arbitration participants and practitioners – namely, Halliburton Company v Chubb Bermuda Insurance Ltd [2020] UKSC 48, which is set to become the leading authority on arbitrators’ duties of impartiality and disclosure. 

In a landmark decision set to become the leading authority on the governing law of arbitration agreements, the U.K. Supreme Court recently handed down judgment in Enka Insaat Ve Sanayi AS v OOO Insurance Company Chubb [2020] UKSC 38. The judgment brings some much-needed certainty on how English courts will determine the law applicable to arbitration agreements in future cases. 

Only four months after the the United Kingdom’s Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation (OFSI) issued a £20.47 million penalty against Standard Chartered Bank (SCB) for alleged violations of the U.K.’s Ukraine- and Russia-related sanctions (see our alert here), another bank is in the news for regulatory breaches. This time it is the London arm of Commerzbank AG (Commerzbank), which was hit by the United Kingdom’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) on 17 June with a fine of £37.8 million ($47.4 million) for failures in its anti-money laundering controls.

The 13 March 2020 Queen’s Bench Division Media and Communications List judgment in Alexander Aristides Reid v Katie Price [2020] EWHC 594 (QB) has added to the body of case law on damages for breaches under data protection legislation. Mr Reid was awarded £25,000 under the Data Protection Act 1998 (DPA 98) and other causes of action.

The COVID-19 pandemic is unprecedented in modern times, and its economic impact is likely to be measured in years rather than months.  Against that backdrop, in our recent bulletin, An English Law Perspective on COVID-19 and Contractual Disruption, we provided guidance to businesses on invoking and responding to force majeure clauses.

The UK’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has today provided guidance to insurers on its expectations with respect to insurers’ conduct in relation to business interruption (BI) insurance. The FCA noted that, based on its conversations with the industry to date, most policies have basic cover, do not cover pandemics, and therefore would have no obligation to pay out in relation to the COVID-19 pandemic. In contrast, under policies where it is clear an insurer has an obligation to pay, the insurer must assess and pay valid Covid-19 claims without delay or face scrutiny from the industry watchdog.1 

We are in extraordinary times.

In a much anticipated judgment, today the United Kingdom Supreme Court ruled in WM Morrison Supermarkets plc v Various Claimants [2020] UKSC 12. Judgment was given by Lord Reed, with whom the remaining members of the panel agreed.

As everyone is aware, the recent COVID-19 outbreak has been declared a global pandemic by the World Health Organization and business disruption is accelerating around the world.

It is clear from the announcements issued by the U.K. Government over the last few hours and days that we are living through incredibly challenging times. It goes without saying that we hope that you, our clients, are well and that you continue to be. This note is an offer of help as it is entirely clear that to weather this storm, we need to work together like never before.