Tax law is a major consideration for all retail businesses. Getting the right tax result is a vital part of managing returns and avoiding pitfalls which could lead to increased tax, penalties or enquiries from HM Revenue and Customs.
By applying a practical and tailored approach to tax issues, we can provide our clients with workable commercial solutions and clear guidance on complex and ever-increasing tax legislation. Our advice is fully integrated with our corporate, property and employment teams to advise on tax issues raised by commercial deals.
Advising a multinational luxury brands retail group on its corporate acquisition of an online beauty retail business for an undisclosed sum, working with the client (based in mainland Europe) on the tax aspects of the legal documents, and the scope of tax-related warranty and indemnity insurance which was being sought on the deal.
Advising a UK national retailer on VAT and SDLT issues on a complex redevelopment project of a flagship London store, involving short-term leases to allow for the redevelopment, and a longer-term lease for the client to take up its new premises at the store.
Delivers comprehensive advice on taxes related to property, national and cross-border M&A. Noteworthy expertise in handling VAT and SDLT matters. Frequently provides tax advice on employee and management share incentives.
The Browne Jacobson team has always been very responsive when we have had UK corporation tax queries in connection with property matters. They explain difficult issues in a clear and concise manner enabling decisions to be made with confidence.
The whole team is responsive – there is always someone there to assist or ensure that the query is passed quickly to the relevant team, and we have been pleased not to have been inundated with compliance paperwork for every instruction given.
National law firm Browne Jacobson has advised long standing retail client, Wilko on the sale and leaseback of its Nottinghamshire distribution centre in Worksop to logistics specialist DHL for £48m.
The war on plastic is being taken to a new level, and businesses that don’t consider sourcing recycled packaging materials could face costly implications.
Earlier in the year a number of fashion retailers, boldly announced the introduction of a charging fee for returning any product purchased via their online store. Yet, despite this commercial, and perhaps somewhat controversial decision, at least one major fashion giant that adopted this approach has recorded ‘historic highs’ in its September profits. Browne Jacobson partner, Cat Driscoll who heads up the firm’s commercial team in Manchester and is also head of its Fashion & Beauty sector discusses whether this change has put the average consumer off and whether the days of free returns are long gone.
Every AI will have its own terms of use. DALL·E 2’s Terms of Use dated 3 November 2022 specify that as between a user and Open AI, a user owns their prompts and uploads. Open AI also assigns to the user all rights in any images generated by DALL·E 2 for that user (subject to the user complying with those Terms of Use, and to a licence to use inputs and output to develop and improve the services).
This article is the second in a series to help firms take a practical approach to complying with the ‘cross-cutting rules’ within the new ‘Consumer Duty’ (CD) framework. The article summarises what it seems the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) is seeking to achieve from the applicable rules (section 2 below) and potential complications arising from legal considerations (section 3).
An engineering company in Tyne and Wear was fined £20,000 after a worker fractured his pelvis and suffered internal injuries after falling through a petrol station forecourt canopy, whilst he was replacing the guttering.
The fashion industry has a mountain to climb when it comes to sustainability. More than 8% of greenhouse gas emissions come from the apparel and footwear industries, and approaching three-fifths of all clothing ends up in incinerators or landfill within a year of being made.
Schedule 13 of the Finance Act 2020 has introduced new provisions empowering HMRC to issue a Joint Liability Notice on individuals for amounts payable by a company (including an LLP) to HMRC.
Throughout the pandemic, many businesses have made good use of the HMRC-administered Covid-19 relief schemes. Such support has helped them survive the difficult economic conditions and manage staffing and revenue issues as a result of the strict lockdown rules.
Yesterday the Chancellor outlined the much-anticipated budget for 2021 which set out a financial recovery roadmap to coincide with the easing of Lockdown 3.0 over coming months.
Catch up on our Private Sector Development Club on-demand video where we covered a variety of topics including managing construction projects during a global pandemic, tax and planning.
The government announced on 24 September 2020 that the temporary 5% reduced rate of VAT for the tourism and hospitality sectors has been extended to the end of March 2021.
On 2 September HMRC announced a change in its policy on the VAT treatment of compensation and damages payments in the context of early contract termination.
The Treasury is looking to simplify and extend VAT recovery for ‘section 41’ organisations, the consultation remains open until 18 November 2020.
Can an employee, who has been in breach of their contract in the past, successfully bring a claim for breach of contract by their employer following their dismissal?
With IR35 changes moving ever closer, this webinar will take you through the changes and give you clear advice on how to get ready.
Andrew discusses changes to IR35 tax rules which are due to be implemented in April 2020
In the UK, a great number of organisations engage self-employed IR35 contractors to complete work on their behalf
On 31 October 2019, the UK could leave the EU without a signed withdrawal agreement. Read here for key points your business should consider.
Browne Jacobson’s Manchester team has advised nmcn, the national provider of design, offsite manufacturing and construction services in the water sector, on its acquisition of water treatment system manufacturer Lintott Environmental Technologies and its wholly owned subsidiary, Lintott Control Systems (LCS).
Where a start-up or SME company is looking for external investment, and one or more individuals are looking for investment opportunities which can provide significant tax advantages, it is well worth considering the Enterprise Investment Scheme (“EIS”) or the Seed Enterprise Investment Scheme (“SEIS”).
Share options granted under the Enterprise Management Incentive Scheme (usually referred to as EMI options) are a popular choice for SME and start-up companies who want to reward and incentivise employees in alternative ways to simply paying them more amounts of cash.
Our banking & finance partners, Paul Ray and Jonathan Edwards, give an update on an important legal development that has been proposed in the finance sector.
When individual employees or directors sell shares in a trading company, or a holding company of a trading group, they may be able to claim entrepreneurs relief ('ER') from CGT on the sale of their shares in that company.
