Insights

The Scottish Law Commission is undertaking a thorough review of the system of land registration in Scotland. Two discussion papers have already been published: Land Registration – Void and Voidable Titles (No 125) and Land Registration - Registration, Rectification and Indemnity (No 128). The third and final paper has now been published, dealing with a variety of issues.

The Family Law (Scotland) Act 2006 was passed by the Scottish Parliament at the end of last year and received Royal Assent on 20 January 2006.  Of course the Act deals predominantly with matters of family law such as marriage, divorce, cohabitation, aliment and legitimacy but there are some provisions which are relevant to conveyancing practice, in respect of matrimonial homes and special destinations in property titles.

Declaration to replace an affidavit

Almost 3 years after the Agricultural Holdings (Scotland) Act 2003 received Royal Assent, the Executive has finally produced Explanatory Notes to the Act.

French Connection Limited has retained the right to use its controversial FCUK trade mark after the UK Trade Mark Registry ruling of 20 December 2005 which rejected claims that the application of the trade mark should be declared invalid as contrary to principles of public morality.

In July 2004, the UK High Court ruled that the promotion and sale of Messiah2 chips (a type of "mod chip" or "modified chip") constituted a breach of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 (UK) ("CDPA") in the case of Sony Computer Entertainment, Inc v Ball [2005] F.S.R.

PLENARY BUSINESS

Wednesday 25 January 2006

Time for Reflection - Mrs Alison Twaddle, General Secretary of the Church of Scotland Guild

Parliamentary Bureau Motions

Stage 1 Debate: Abolition of NHS Prescription Charges (Scotland) Bill

Business Motion

Parliamentary Bureau Motions

Decision Time

Members’ Business – Debate on the subject of S2M-3825 Iain Smith: NHS Fife Waiting Times

Thursday 26 January 2006

Parliamentary Bureau Motions

On 13 December 2005, the European Court of Justice ("ECJ") ruled that Marks and Spencer plc ("M&S") could claim group tax relief from UK tax authorities in relation to the losses incurred by its European subsidiaries.

An updated version of the Turnbull Guidance on Internal Control was published by the Financial Reporting Council on 13 October 2005 and will apply to financial years beginning on or after 1 January 2006.  The amendments are limited as the Turnbull Review Group concluded that no significant changes to the guidance were required.

Amendments include:-

The judgement of the House of Lords delivered on 15 December 2005 in
Percy v Church of Scotland Board of National Mission has overturned the
Court of Session, Employment Appeal Tribunal and Employment Tribunal to
hold that for the purposes of the Sex Discrimination Act 1975 a
minister of religion was an "employee".

The Fire (Scotland) Act 2005 deals with the law relating to fire prevention and safety, replacing old legislation, and modernising the operation of the Fire and Rescue Service. Those parts of the Act that relate to the powers and duties of the Fire and Rescue Service came into force in August this year, but of more direct relevance in commercial terms is Part 3 of the Act, originally planned to come into force next spring, but which will not now take effect until October 2006 at the earliest.

The Scottish Executive has published practical guidance for
professionals on the application of the provisions of the Tenements
(Scotland) Act 2004, and certain of the provisions of the Title
Conditions (Scotland) Act 2003 in relation to the management and
maintenance of common property.  Although primarily aimed at
professionals advising owners of flats in tenements, it will also be of
value to those dealing with commercial tenement properties, or those in
mixed use, as the Tenements (Scotland) Act applies to all tenemental

The Civil Partnership Act 2004 came into force on 5 December 2005 amid significant publicity, not to mention celebrity. Civil partnership provides a means of legal equalisation for same-sex couples, giving legal recognition to partners of the same sex, who want to enter into long-term interdependent relationships.  The change in the law has implications for property transactions, as well as tax, inheritance and succession, pensions, social security and family law.