MSHB

The impact of COVID-19 and the subsequent lockdowns has resulted in an unprecedented shift by employers towards adapting a more flexible working policy. Whilst many companies have now enacted formal hybrid working policies and appear to be moving away from the traditional office unit set up, Scottish commercial property has had its best first half of the year for investment volumes since 2018.^[1] As we move forward from the pandemic, we consider its continued impact on the commercial property market.

Marriage is always topical in our team but especially so as of late – no, we’re not talking about J.Lo and Ben – our very own Gabrielle tied the knot on 15 July 2022 (see picture)! The revelation however that J.Lo made the change to become Mrs Jennifer Affleck lead to a discussion on name changes in Scotland so we have put together a brief ‘how-to’ guide for changing your name – and reverting! 

Last week, after securing her restricted practising certificate, our current Litigation and Family trainee solicitor, Anna Fox, made her first two court appearances. Anna appeared (virtually) at Paisley and Greenock Sheriff Courts.

The Money Laundering, Terrorist Financing and Transfer of Funds (Information of the Payer) Regulations 2017 introduced a requirement that trustees of trusts which have a tax liability (such as Inheritance Tax, Capital Gains Tax, Land and Buildings Transaction Tax etc) register specific information about their trust with HMRC - e.g. the names and dates of birth of the Trustees and Beneficiaries, contact details and the National Insurance Number of the lead trustee etc. Registration is completed online through HMRC’s Trust Registration Service (TRS) and it is the responsibility of the trustees themselves to identify whether their trust requires to be registered.