Do you have any burning questions about campaigning in the run up to the general election? You might be wondering: Do we need to register with the Electoral Commission to run our campaign? Charities have to be politically neutral – how do we navigate our staff standing for election? What about social media? How much responsibility do trustees and boards have to take for monitoring people’s personal accounts? If so, join us at our next Ask us anything webinar and bring your questions to ask our top-ranked Politics, Elections and Campaigning team who will provide practical tips for campaigning ..read more

Philip Kirkpatrick, Partner in our Charity & Social Enterprise team, has spoken with Pioneers Post about the positive impact that embedding social purpose into a company can have but the need for better accountability mechanisms to ensure the value of doing so in the long term. Anglian Water, a UK water utility company, amended its articles of association in July 2019 to embed public interest and social purpose into its constitution, however it has since come under scrutiny for its failure to uphold its social and environmental impact commitments following a report from the Environment Age ..read more

Bates Wells today announces that the firm has partnered with leading societal change charity, Making The Leap, on the provision of assessment centre preparation and support for aspiring solicitor apprentices. Candidates who have been invited to the firm’s competitive apprenticeship assessment centres have been offered the opportunity to join Making The Leap for two days of intensive preparation. These sessions will include mock interviews, communication skills training, and advice and guidance on executive presence and operating effectively in a professional environment. The offer of assessmen ..read more

Ethics washing, greenwashing, bluewashing, ethical laundering, eco washing… the list of terms continues to grow, and with it grows the risk of charities coming under scrutiny if what they do doesn’t align with their stated values. Simple mistakes, inaccuracies or misleading claims can have big consequences, risking lasting reputational damage among key stakeholders, loss of income and even regulatory intervention. We can help you protect your charity’s good name and avoid ethics washing based challenges, and have put together our top tips in this guide to help you minimise the risks. We can al ..read more

Do you have a burning trade mark question that needs an answer? Sign up for our ‘Branding and Trade Marks – ask us anything!’ webinar.   Bates Wells’ trade marks team focusses on helping responsible businesses and charities protect their intellectual property, and enforcing it responsibly and properly. We love talking about what we do, and would love to hear from you.   This one hour session, on the 23rd May,  is an opportunity to put your branding queries to our industry-leading Chartered Trade Mark attorneys – either ahead of time, on the registration form, or by using the Q&a ..read more

In this session, we will cover recent people, HR and immigration developments which directly impact your role and organisation. It will include: practical commentary on case law and legislation developments, plus consultations and guidance issued. those developments which are of the most practical application. This webinar aims to provide you with a host of action points, and ideas to help you add extra value to your organisation. Sign up here. The post Employment law update | 21 May | 3pm appeared first on Bates Wells ..read more

Hybrid working continues to generate a substantial increase in flexible working requests. The increasing shift to flexible models of work have gained further momentum due to very recent changes in the law. The right to flexible working is one that has evolved over time. Enshrined in the Employment Rights Act 1996, employees can make a written request specifying the change or changes that they are seeking to their working arrangements. The new law (and accompanying guidance) strengthens existing rights and is likely to increase the volume of flexible working requests.   Importantly, in add ..read more

“Climate change” and “climate crisis” have become synonymous with young people and their futures. But climate change is happening right now. A problem with talking about climate change in terms of young people only, is that it gives energy companies, unscrupulous governments and others who wilfully contribute to climate change, a reason to kick the can down the road and treat it as an issue for the future. Which is why the success of Verein KlimaSeniorinnen Schweiz (Swiss Climate Senior Women Association) – a group of older women suing Switzerland to demand climate action – is so welcome, as i ..read more

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What is happening? For nearly a decade, migrants in the UK have been issued with a plastic ID card called a Biometric Residence Permit, which they can use to prove their residence rights – this is now all about to change. By the end of the year, the Home Office is seeking to phase-out physical immigration documents including Biometric Residence Permits, Biometric Residence Cards and other paper-based documents in favour of online UKVI accounts. Lexology reports that holders of UK Biometric Residence Permit (BRP) cards have already started receiving emails from UK Visas & Immigration (UKVI ..read more