New measures to reduce burden of red tape for businesses
There will be a moratorium to exempt start-up businesses and firms with fewer than 10 employees from new domestic regulations for three years. There will also be a public audit of nearly 22,000 statutory instruments currently in existence to see if they are still useful or necessary. Businesses will be invited to voice their opinions…
Law Society campaigns for will writers to be regulated
It says that wills contain some of the most important financial and personal decisions that people ever have to make. In spite of this, will writers who are called upon to help people make those decisions don’t need to have any qualifications and are not subject to any regulatory control. The Law Society president, Linda…
Additional paternity leave rights for fathers comes into effect
The new rights apply to fathers whose partners gave birth on or after 3rd April this year. They allow fathers to take up to 26 weeks leave to care for their child providing they fulfil certain conditions. The additional paternity leave can only begin 20 or more weeks after the birth of the child and…
Director banned from revealing information about his former company
The issue arose after the director became embroiled in a dispute with his company that involved court action. The judge found in favour of the company and referred the director as having an “attitude of blatant disregard for the truth, for the accuracy of public records, for the validity of company resolutions and for the…
Budget provides a boost for first time buyers
The move was announced by Chancellor George Osborne as part of his budget speech. The new FirstBuy scheme applies to new build homes and is designed to help people who have been unable to buy a property because of the need to provide a large deposit. The Government and the house builders will provide loans…
Volunteers are not protected by anti-discrimination law
That was the ruling of the Court of Appeal in the case of a volunteer who worked for the Citizens Advice Bureau (CAB). When the CAB told her it no longer wanted her services, she claimed it was discriminating against her because of her disability. However, the Court of Appeal held that an unpaid volunteer…
Divorcing couples must consider mediation before court action
This rule already exists for couples using legal aid. Now it will be extended to all couples. From 6th April onwards, the person disputing the divorce terms will have to go to a professional mediator who will then contact the other spouse and arrange a mediation awareness session. The divorcing couple can attend individually or…
Recession sparks rise in landlord and tenant disputes
Figures compiled by the legal publishers Sweet & Maxwell show a 43% increase in disputes in the High Court in London involving landlords and tenants of commercial property. The numbers rose from 28 in 2008 to 40 in 2009, the latest year for which data is available. However, these figures only cover cases involving sums…
Dismissal of nurse for lewd remark was unfair
The court heard that the nurse made a sexual comment while helping to restrain a patient. A complaint was made six weeks later and she was summarily dismissed by her NHS Trust. An employment tribunal held that although the comment could be described as lewd, most people would consider it merely humorous. It held that…
How disputes can arise when there is no written will
The case involved a couple who each had sons through previous relationships. The couple had made an oral agreement for mutual wills. The agreement was that on the first death, the estate would pass to the surviving partner. The surviving partner would then be bound by an irrevocable trust to leave the estate when they…
Company closed down because of misleading claims
The winding up petition was granted even though there had been no complaints from the public and even though an investigation by the Serious Fraud Office had not led to any proceedings. The company was set up on December 9th 2009 and began trading in February 2010. Its business was to find buyers for hard…
Government confirms scrapping of Default Retirement Age
Under the current system, employers can oblige staff to retire at 65 regardless of their circumstances. Ministers have decided the rules must change because people are living longer, more active lives and should have more choice over when they stop working. The DRA will be phased out between 6th April and 1st October this year….
Contraceptive Implants hit by bad press
It has recently been revealed that more than 500 women in the UK using the Implanon contraceptive implant became pregnant which is understood to be 99% safe. A number of those women subsequently miscarried. Others elected to terminate the pregnancy and many have experienced relationship breakdown and psychological problems. It is estimated that over 1…
Television presenter wins ageism case against BBC
Miriam O’Reilly, one of the former hosts of the TV show Countryfile, has won her claim of age discrimination against the BBC. Ms O’Reilly lost her job in 2008 when Countryfile was moved to a primetime slot. The BBC replaced her with younger presenters. Ms O’Reilly took the case to an employment tribunal. She won…
New Year’s resolutions to protect yourself and your family
Make a will or bring your existing will up to date Making a will is one the easiest and best things you can do to protect the interests of the people you care about, it’s also the only way of ensuring that your wealth is passed on in the way you want. Unfortunately, many people…
It’s Snow Joke!
We are currently in the midst of one of the harshest winters on record with more snow forecast. This will inevitably raise a variety of issues in the workplace for employers to deal with. It is important for employers to maintain consistency and fairness in their dealings with staff. Failure to do so may expose…
A BIG ‘NO’ FROM SIMON COWELL AND THE EMPLOYMENT TRIBUNAL
Miss Czikai, who suffers from fibromyalgia (a condition which causes widespread pain and fatigue), appeared on the ITV show in 2009 in a bid to win the £100,000 prize money and a place on the Royal Variety Performance. However, following her failed audition she declared that the reason for her poor rendition of Westlife’s ‘You…
Boy left scarred after road accident awarded £30,000
A 14-year-old boy has been awarded £30,000 compensation for injuries he sustained in a road accident. The boy was only two years old when the accident happened in 1998. He was travelling unrestrained on the back seat of a car when the driver lost control and swerved off the road. The boy was thrown through…
Rogue employers to be named and shamed
Employers are to be named and shamed if they deliberately flout minimum wage laws. Starting from 1st January next year, the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) will publicise cases involving employers who break the rules. The rogue firms will then be given three months to “put their house in order” before further action…
What can you do if you are left out of a will?
It can be devastating to be left out of a will. It’s not just the loss of an inheritance but also the thought that a loved one such as a parent actually decided to cut you off or leave you far less than you were expecting. There are several reasons why this might happen. The…
Children ‘not too young’ to choose mother instead of father
A woman has won the right to keep her children with her in England after a court ruled that an eight-year-old and a six-year-old were not too young to have their views taken into account during a parental dispute. The case involved a couple who had three children during their marriage. The family had lived…
Man used ‘undue influence’ to gain interest in partner’s property
The Court of Appeal has ruled that a man had used undue influence over his partner when he persuaded her to give him a joint share in her bungalow. The woman already owned the bungalow when the couple began their relationship. She transferred the property into joint names and the couple then bought an adjacent…
New tax regime could ‘impact on trusts and wills’
Recent changes in the tax regime could have an adverse effect on many trusts and wills. The new Government’s first budget increased Capital Gains Tax (CGT) to 28% for higher rate taxpayers. The Law Society has warned that this new rate “will charge any gains made while an estate is being administered and also gains…
Government confirms October start date for Equality Act
The Government has confirmed that the Equality Act will start to come into effect in October. The Act, which brings together nine separate pieces of legislation under one umbrella, was introduced by the previous Labour administration. There was some speculation that the new coalition was not committed to the Act but the Government Equalities Office…
Neighbour dispute settled by assessing the lie of the land
That was the ruling of the Court of Appeal in the case of two neighbours who both believed they owned the stream that separated their properties. Both properties were originally owned by the same person. When the land was split into two and sold separately, the plans and legal documents didn’t make it clear where…
Housing Trust’s appeal to strike out nuisance claim issued by tenant fails
This case could have real implications for landlords so is one to watch carefully. The tenant claims to have been suffering from nuisance on a paved area just outside their reception room for nearly four years (as well as nuisance from the communal areas). They issued proceedings against their landlord for failing to take reasonable…