Update from Sarah-Kate Jackson, Partner and Head of Litigation
Draft statutory guidance on the arbitration process for determining pandemic related commercial rent arrears under the soon to be enacted Commercial Rent (Coronavirus) Bill, has been published by the Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy. Details can be found here.
The draft guidance provides an explanation of the provisions of the draft bill which are relevant to Arbitrators, including the pertinent provisions of the Arbitration Act 1996. It sets out how arbitrators should undertake the statutory arbitration process. This includes an initial explanation of the concept of “viability of a tenant’s business” and guidance on how arbitrators should approach an assessment of viability.
The purpose of the draft is to obtain stakeholder engagement in developing the guidance and the complete statutory guidance will be published after the Bill has received Royal Assent.
For more information on the draft Commercial Rent (Coronavirus) Bill see our previous article. Progress of the draft bill can be tracked here.
To discuss the Commercial Rent (Coronavirus) Bill further, or for specific information on property litigation matters, please email me or contact the team on 020 8858 6971.