Duane Morris London

May 8, 2026May 8, 2026 by Oliver Kent

Our Own Rules: The UK Product Safety Consultation and the Risk of Regulatory Divergence from the EU

Product safety law is undergoing a significant overhaul on both sides of the Channel.

In the EU, the General Product Safety Regulation (EU) 2023/988 (“GPSR”) came into force on 13 December 2024, replacing the decades-old General Product Safety Directive 2001/95/EC and applying directly and uniformly across all 27 EU Member States.

In the UK, the Department for Business and Trade has recently published a consultation on an entirely new product safety framework. Whilst the Government is already using powers under the Product Regulation and Metrology Act 2025 to update technical legislation, the consultation makes clear that delivering the “significant step-change that will be felt by businesses and consumers alike” requires a fundamental reconsideration of the core safety framework.

For businesses selling into both markets, divergence means duplicated compliance, increased costs, and the risk that a product which satisfies the regulatory requirements of one jurisdiction may nonetheless be non-compliant in the other. Although the UK consultation acknowledges an intention to “support trade with the EU and globally,” it is equally clear that the new framework will be “our own rules, made in the best interests of UK consumers and businesses”.

April 15, 2026April 15, 2026 by Oliver Kent

Driving away drip pricing: How a £3 booking fee turned into a £5 million fine

Today, the Competition and Markets Authority (“CMA”) ordered the AA, which owns both AA Driving School and BSM Driving School, to refund more than 80,000 learner drivers over £760,000, and pay a fine of £4.2 million, bringing the total bill to nearly £5 million. The offence? A mandatory £3 booking fee that was not included in the headline price shown to customers at the start of their online journey.

This is the first financial penalty the CMA has imposed under new direct enforcement powers granted to it in the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024 (“DMCCA”). It will not be the last.

July 3, 2025July 3, 2025 by Oliver Kent

UK petition demanding video games consumer law change hits debate threshold

A UK government petition demanding changes to consumer law around the sale of video games has passed 100,000 signatures. This milestone triggers consideration for a debate in Parliament and throws the spotlight on a growing international issue.

The petition calls for a change in the law to prevent publishers from disabling or removing access to games after they have been sold, unless consumers are given the right to retain or repair them.

It is part of the wider Stop Killing Games campaign, a grassroots consumer movement gaining traction globally. Alongside the UK petition, a European Citizens’ Initiative has also surpassed the required one million signatures, meaning it will now be formally reviewed by the European Commission (subject to verification) and brought before the European Parliament for a public hearing.

May 6, 2025 by Mark Handley

Once More Unto the Breach – the UK’s anti-corruption enforcement charges back into life

The UK’s anti-corruption enforcement has, of late, not been as active as it once was. Over the last few weeks, however, the space has charged back into life with two new investigations by the SFO announced, 14 convictions secured, and new corporate guidance for DPAs. The below is a timeline of the activity from the last few weeks:

17 April – The Serious Fraud Office announced it has charged United Insurance Brokers Limited with failure to prevent bribery under the Bribery Act in relation to alleged bribes paid by US intermediaries in Ecuador in return for US$38million in contracts.

24 April – The Serious Fraud Office announced revised Guidance for corporate self-reporting and cooperation as means to achieve a deferred prosecution agreement rather than criminal enforcement. As a headline the Guidance states that a self-reporting company will be invited to enter into a DPA “unless exceptional circumstances apply”.

28 April – The Crown Prosecution Service secured four convictions for bribery in the construction sector, with the bribes valued at £600,000 paid between 2012 and 2018. Three of the convicted were sentenced to three and a half years in jail, and the fourth to two years.

29 April – authorities in Scotland secured four bribery convictions (two bribe payers and two bribe receivers). The bribes were valued at £88,000 and took the form of cash, gifts and hospitality. The value of the contracts obtained, involving numerous National Health Service rusts, was over £5.7m. Sentencing is due to take place in June.

30 April – The Serious Fraud Office announces raids and arrests as part of the investigation into the British company Blu-3 which is accused of paying £3m in bribes in relation to the construction of a data centre in the Netherlands.

1 May – The Crown Prosecution Service obtained six convictions for bribery offences for bribes paid between 2011 and 2015 in the form of money, cars, holidays and other benefits. The recipients started taking the bribes while at E.ON and continued to do so once they had moved to British Gas. The bribes were paid to secure contracts in relation to new build projects. The recipients were sentenced to 3 years and 10 months and 2 and a half years respectively, while the wife of one of the recipients was given a 13 month suspended sentence. The bribe payers were sentenced to four years, 2 years and five months and 12 months respectively.

January 31, 2025January 31, 2025 by Olivia Paton

Reforms to the Landlord and Tenant Act 1954 – the right to renew business tenancies

The Law Commission is currently consulting on the much-awaited reforms to the Landlord and Tenant Act (‘the 1954 Act’) and the security of tenure regime for commercial leases.

The new laws have the potential to affect a range of businesses. Whether it be a local retail shop in the town centre or a company who occupies a block of offices, it is very common for businesses to occupy their premises under tenancies, as opposed to outright freehold ownership.

December 2, 2024December 2, 2024 by Charlyn Cruz

FCA Crypto Roadmap Published

Following the keynote speech of Tulip Siddiq MP (Economic Secretary to the Treasury) at the Tokenisation Summit in London on 21 November 2024, the FCA published a crypto roadmap on the proposed policy publications on crytoassets in the UK.

October 2, 2024October 2, 2024 by Charlyn Cruz

Watch this (Digital) Space: The Property (Digital Assets etc) Bill and D’Aloia v Persons Unknown

September was an exciting month in the digital asset space with developments in both Parliament and the Courts. Both venues have made strides to establish digital assets as property in England and Wales. With these developments come a raft of property rights for the owners of such assets, such as the benefit of various consumer protection measures and availability of certain legal mechanisms, such as tracing, injunctive relief and enforcement.

August 16, 2024 by Charlyn Cruz

LAX SA v JBC SA – WFO applicant that could not fortify cross-undertaking ordered to give asset disclosure

A recent case in the Commercial Court in London saw the successful recipient of a worldwide freezing order (WFO) ordered to provide an asset disclosure when it could not provide fortification for a cross-undertaking. This is the first reported case of an order of this nature under English law.

Continue reading “LAX SA v JBC SA – WFO applicant that could not fortify cross-undertaking ordered to give asset disclosure”

May 21, 2024May 21, 2024 by Duane Morris

RTI Ltd v MUR Shipping BV: a party required to use reasonable endeavours to mitigate a force majeure need not accept non-contractual performance

By Helen Ryan, Trainee Solicitor, Duane Morris LLP

On 15 May 2024, the Supreme Court handed down judgment in RTI Ltd v MUR Shipping BV [2024] UKSC 18.

The appeal centred around the issue of whether a force majeure clause which required the affected party to exercise ‘reasonable endeavors’ to overcome the effects of the relevant event or state of affairs meant that the other contracting party had to accept an offer of non-contractual performance.

Continue reading “RTI Ltd v MUR Shipping BV: a party required to use reasonable endeavours to mitigate a force majeure need not accept non-contractual performance”

March 19, 2024 by Mark Handley

Does a limitation clause apply to a claim in debt? A recent English decision

A recent case turned on the question of whether a limitation clause limited liability just for damages or also for debt.

The clause read:

“the total liability of either party shall in respect of all acts, omissions, events and occurrences whether arising out of any tortious act, breach of contract or statutory duty or otherwise arising in any particular Contract Year in no circumstances exceed a sum equal [to zero on the facts]”.

Continue reading “Does a limitation clause apply to a claim in debt? A recent English decision”