Projects

Trustee Exemption Clauses

Project status: Complete

The project recommends that the trust industry adopt a non-statutory rule of practice and that this should be enforced by the regulatory and professional bodies who govern and influence trustees and the drafters of trusts. The Law Society and the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales have both introduced regulation for their members. … Read more >

Trustees’ Powers and Duties

Project status: Complete

The aim of this project was to review the law governing trustees’ powers to invest trust funds in default of the inclusion of express powers of investment in the will or trust instrument, and to consider, for England and Wales, a range of reforms, intended to facilitate more effective trust administration, including: collective delegation by trustees … Read more >

Unfair Terms in Consumer Contracts

Project status: Complete

The project This project updated and implemented a previous report on unfair terms, but only for contracts between consumers and businesses. In 2005, the Law Commission and Scottish Law Commission made recommendations to reform the law of unfair terms. The report and associated consultation paper can be found here. In May 2012, the Department for … Read more >

Unfair Terms in Contracts

Project status: Complete

In 2001, the Department of Trade and Industry asked the Law Commission and Scottish Law Commission to rewrite the law of unfair contract terms as a single regime, in clearer and more accessible language. We were also asked to consider whether the law should do more to protect businesses, particularly small businesses. The project responded … Read more >

Unfitness to Plead

Project status: Complete

The law relating to unfitness to plead addresses what should happen when a defendant who faces criminal prosecution is unable to engage with the process because of their mental or physical condition. The law aims to balance the rights of the vulnerable defendant with the interests of those affected by an alleged offence and the … Read more >

Updating the Land Registration Act 2002

Project status: Analysis of responses

An effective land registration law is essential for everyone who owns land, whether the land is a home, a business or an investment. Land registration also has wider importance for business and the economy; a recent report from the World Bank suggests that a “well-designed land administration system … makes it possible for the property … Read more >

Wildlife Law

Project status: Complete

Over the last decade, wildlife protection and the sustainable management of our natural heritage have become increasingly regarded as key policy aims for Government. However, the legal framework for wildlife management is overly complicated, frequently contradictory and unduly prescriptive. Consequently, the law creates unnecessary barriers to effective wildlife management, including the efficient implementation and enforcement … Read more >

Wills

Project status: Analysis of responses

A person’s will is an important document. People use wills to choose how to distribute their possessions and often to express preferences about what happens to their bodies after death. When someone dies intestate – without leaving a will, or with a will that is not valid – it can cause difficulties for the family, … Read more >