In the landmark case of Democratic Republic of the Congo & Ors v FG Hemisphere Associates LLC [2011] HKEC 747 the Court of Final Appeal of Hong Kong (the Court) for the first time in its history sought clarification of provisions of Hong Kong’s Basic Law from the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress (the SCNPC) on behalf of the Chinese Government.

On 30 March 2010, the European Commission adopted the 13th update of the list of airlines banned in the European Union. Since the adoption of the first list on 22 March 2006, updates have been issued with reliable regularity at six monthly intervals.

The Government has, today, published finalised Guidance on the Agency Workers Regulations 2010, which come into force on 1 October 2011.

The GRC and UICC were adopted by the International Conference on Air Law held at Montreal in April and May 2009. Under the UICC strict liability is imposed on aircraft operators for third party damage caused by an aircraft as a result of an act of unlawful interference.

The Money Laundering Regulations 2003 came into effect on 1 March 2004. They now apply not only to professionals offering investment advice or arranging mortgages, but also to practitioners carrying out estate agency work and dealers in goods of any description where this involves accepting payment in cash of £10,000 or more (for example auctioneers).

On 4 September 2008, Attorney General Kokott of the European Court of Justice issued her much awaited opinion on the “Allianz SpA (formerly Riunione Adriatica Di Sicurta SpA) and Others v West Tankers Inc. “ case.

It is well established following the House of Lords' decision in Spring v Guardian Assurance (1995), that an employer who provides a reference regarding a former employee is under a duty to take reasonable care in making the reference and will be liable to the employee in negligence if the reference is inaccurate and the employee suffers loss as a result.

The recent decision by the Court of Appeal in O'Hanlon v Commissioners for HM Revenue & Customs will be welcomed by employers, in light of the implications it has for sick pay policies. The Court of Appeal held that, when Mrs Hanlon's entitlement to sick pay had been exhausted under HM Revenue & Customs' sick pay policy, the employer's failure to continue to pay Mrs O'Hanlon was neither a failure to make a reasonable adjustment nor disability discrimination.

The closure of UK airspace following the volcanic eruption in Iceland is causing significant disruption, which could worsen if the situation persists.

One of the recognised, but limited, exceptions to the obligations of an Issuing Bank or a Confirming Bank to make payments under an irrevocable letter of credit is where the bank is aware that the beneficiary of the credit is acting fraudulently in presenting documents under it.

The Equality Tribunal in the Republic of Ireland has recently published its decision in "Cunningham v BMS Sales Ltd" - an age discrimination claim brought against a recruitment company - which is likely to be relevant in the UK.

At the centre of the case of “Bartoline Limited v Royal & SunAlliance Insurance plc and Heath Lambert Limited” was the following question: are environmental clean up costs covered under public liability insurance policies?

The dispute concerned the interpretation of the laytime and demurrage terms under a CIF contract. Suek AG v Glencore International AG (2011).

Where collective redundancy consultation obligations kick in, the consultation must take place with "appropriate representatives".

At the Conservative Party conference yesterday, the Chancellor announced two significant changes in relation to tribunal claims, following the consultation "Resolving Workplace Disputes", which was published at the beginning of the year.

The Employment Appeal Tribunal (EAT) has handed down its decision in the case of British Airways v Mak.

Proposals to make sweeping costs reforms in civil litigation received significant fresh impetus yesterday. The Government has announced that it intends to consult on implementing Lord Justice Jackson's recommendations on the reform of funding arrangements.

In the recent case of Thomas Sanderson Blinds v English, the EAT considered the situation where an individual who alleges harassment deals similar offensive banter out themselves.

The well-established principle of state immunity was re-examined in the context of the Marine Shipping Act 1993 when the question arose of whether a governmental organisation should pay its proportion of a salvage operation from which it had benefited.

The High Court has recently examined the criteria for granting a worldwide freezing injunction in support of foreign arbitration proceedings.