The Legal Aspects of TNE

23 Jan 2020, 10:00 - 15:00

Farrer & Co LLP
20-23 Lincoln's Inn Fields 
London 
WC2A 3LH

Book now

In 2017-18 UK universities reported students on TNE programmes in 225 locations, each with its own regulatory and legislative framework. Building capacity in the management of the regulatory aspects of TNE is key to the success of TNE partnerships and operations.

In this full-day event in partnership with law practice Farrer & Co we will explore the legal dimensions essential to successful TNE operations including contracting, HR and immigration, duty of care, equality and diversity, trademarks and IP, data protection, brand protection, taxation.

We will explore:

How recent legislative changes may affect your TNE provision
How your institution can conduct due diligence checks on TNE partners
Case studies of successful (and less successful) legal practice associated to TNE
Adapting swiftly to regulatory changes in the UK and beyond

Who should attend?	Testimonials Attendees at last year's events said:
Pro Vice-Chancellor, International Director/Head of International Director/Head of Legal/Legal Management/Legal Services Registrar Head of Partnerships and Global Opportunities Partnership Manager Global Engagement Officer Financial Manager International Tax, Planning and Reporting	“All the speakers were excellent in their presentations and it was a very useful networking event” “Well paced and very informative.” “Good resource, timing and experience with worthwhile peer interaction.” “Lots of best practice to reflect on and revisit our existing models.” “The catering for the event was fantastic. A big thank you from me.”

Receive the latest UUKi TNE news by subscribing to the UUKi TNE e-group.

Agenda

10.00	Registration and refreshments
10.30	Introduction Eduardo Ramos, Head of TNE, Universities UK International
10.35	Setting solid foundations: due diligence, scoping and contracting Hear from David on the challenges universities face at the initial stages of establishing TNE activity, key legal pressure points, and how universities can ensure smooth, well-planned and financially viable operations. David Copping, Partner, Farrer & Co
11.00	The regulation of overseas activities of registered English providers by the Office for Students This session will set out the Office for Students’ approach to the regulation of overseas activities of registered English higher education providers, starting from the statements on transnational education already published by the OfS in the regulatory framework and regulatory advice 15: monitoring and intervention. Dr Nick Holland, Competition and Registration Manager, Office for Students (OfS)
11.20	Coffee break and networking
11.50	Dealing with intangibles: Brand protection, intellectual property and data protection considerations Jeremy will provide a practical overview of how to protect your university’s trade marks internationally, how to deal with any intellectual property used and/or generated in TNE collaborations, and a high level overview of how the UK Data Protection Act/GDPR impacts on sharing personal data in a TNE scenario. Jeremy Isaacson, Associate at Farrer & Co
12.20	The HR experience of operationalising internationalisation – Lessons from Lancaster Lancaster University’s strategy of internationalisation to be a globally significant university has been heavily underpinned through the development of its TNE provision. This is supported through the collaborative development of its Strategic International Partners. HR has been a key facilitator in supporting the development and operationalising these projects. This presentation gives context to Lancaster University’s internationalisation agenda and explores the key challenges facing HR in supporting to deliver these projects. Sean Connor, Assistant HR Partner – International, Lancaster University Russ Quigley, Deputy HR Director, Lancaster University
12.50	Equality & Diversity: Impact of the UK Equality Act on TNE Kathleen will lead a short session on how universities can best reconcile TNE activities in overseas jurisdiction with UK statutory requirements and best practice guidance around equality and diversity issues. Kathleen Heycock, Partner, Farrer & Co
13.05	Lunch
13.50	Handling complaints and appeals - spotlight on TNE This session will help higher education providers make sure that all students, including those on TNE courses, have access to fair and effective complaints and appeals procedures. We’ll explore the requirement that providers make students aware of their ability to access the independent student complaint scheme run by the Office of the Independent Adjudicator, focusing on how this should work in the context of TNE arrangements. We’ll also explore some of the key issues providers may need to consider when dealing with complaints from students studying under TNE arrangements. Gemma Slade, Provider Liaison Officer and Barry McHale, Student Liaison Officer at the Office of the Independent Adjudicator for Higher Education (OIA)
14.20	Tax and TNE – the taxation implications of overseas delivery In this session, Grant Thornton will share their experience of advising UK universities on the tax law implications of operating overseas. We’ll walk through the lifecycle of a university engaging in TNE from a tax perspective, from recruiting students to providing services to setting up an entity. What taxation issues are raised by having employees working overseas for different periods of time? Come along to find out. David Field, Senior Tax Manager, Grant Thornton
14.50	Closing remarks Eduardo Ramos, Head of TNE, Universities UK International
15.00	Close

Speakers

	David Copping Partner, Farrer & Co David is Head of the Higher Education Group at Farrer & Co. He advises UK universities and HEIs in relation to their collaborative ventures (including some of the UK’s largest TNE projects), technology transfer arrangements and IT procurement projects.
	Dr Nick Holland Competition and Registration Manager, The Office for Students (OfS) Nick has over 20 years experience of working in a range of roles for a number of English higher education providers. He joined the monitoring and intervention team at OfS in May 2019.
	Jeremy Isaacson Associate, Farrer & Co Jeremy advises many of the UK’s leading universities on research funding, collaborative activity, data protection, freedom of information and consumer law. He is an experienced education lawyer, and advises universities on sensitive matters such as student disputes and regulatory compliance.
	Sean Connor Assistant HR Partner - International, Lancaster University Sean joined Lancaster University in April 2017 to support the international staff working abroad, specifically around the development and set up of the new China campus in partnership with BJTU. Further to this Sean has lead the HR team in the development of structured Global Mobility Programmes for staff working at Lancaster University’s Strategic Partners. Prior to Lancaster Sean worked for 5 years in the Nuclear industry in Reward, Project and Policy Development roles.
	Russ Quigley Deputy HR Director, Lancaster University Joining Lancaster University in June 2018 as Deputy HR Director, Russ transferred into the Higher Education sector after 15 years in Defence Sector with Bae Systems and 4 years in Oil and Gas with Centrica. Russ has enjoyed various Generalist HR leadership roles, leading HR Service and operations Teams, and HR Partnering activities in complex, multi-site, Unionised organisations as well as having supported International Projects in Kazakhstan and Saudi Arabia.
	Kathleen Heycock Partner, Farrer & Co Kathleen works with universities on complex employment matters such as senior management team terms and conditions, high value employment tribunals claims, restructures and international ventures. She also advises universities on how to set up protocols and structures to safeguard students and vulnerable adults and works with the university when a safeguarding incident occurs.
	Gemma Slade Provider Liaison Officer, Office of the Independent Adjudicator for Higher Education (OIA) Gemma joined the OIA as a Case-handler in 2014. She became the Provider Liaison Officer within the Outreach & Insight Team when the team was formed in the summer of 2017. The Outreach & Insight Team focus on the OIA’s good practice dissemination strategy and engagement with providers, student complainants and student representative bodies, ensuring the learning from this engagement informs continuous improvement within the OIA and the wider sector. Before joining the OIA Gemma worked for a university, having previously worked in a range of student services positions for an international language school and an FE college.
	Barry McHale Student Liaison Officer, Office of the Independent Adjudicator for Higher Education (OIA) Barry joined the OIA in 2010 as an Assistant Adjudicator. He took up his current role as Student Liaison Officer in June 2017. Barry previously worked as an Investigator at the Scottish Public Services Ombudsman and as a Case Manager at the Healthcare Commission.
	Eduardo Ramos Head of Transnational Education, Universities UK International Eduardo manages the Transnational Education programme of work at UUK, leading on the development and implementation of strategies that contribute to positioning the UK as a leading transnational education provider and global partner of choice. The programme creates new initiatives in focus regions, supports the development of effective TNE partnerships, and delivers good practice support for strategic leaders and practitioners in UK universities. Eduardo worked on education internationalisation for Spanish agency ICEX-Invest in Spain, Audencia Business School in France and St George’s, University of London. He holds degrees from the Autonomous University of Madrid and the UCL Institute of Education.

In partnership with:

News and Blog

HESA data shows another year of growth in international student numbers

16 January 2020

There were 485,645 international students in the UK in 2018/19

Erasmus+ negotiations will not be included in Withdrawal Agreement Bill

9 January 2020

On 8 January 2020, MPs voted against New Clause 10 to the Withdrawal Agreement Bill, which would have required the Government to seek to negotiate continuing full membership of the Erasmus+ programme.