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VAT Registration Threshold Increased

Following changes announced in the UK's Spring Budget Statement, the VAT registration threshold for small businesses is set to be increased. Secondary legislation will amend the Value Added Tax Act 1994 to increase the VAT registration and deregistration...

Incoming Bill Will Crack Down on Unfair and Anti-Competitive Practices

New legislation aimed at stamping out unfair practices and promoting competition in digital markets is set to come into effect later this year, after moving to committee stage in the House of Lords. The Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Bill, which...

Nature of Confusion Considered in Pet Insurance Trade Mark Dispute

The likelihood of 'actual confusion' occurring between two trade marks was put under the spotlight recently in a case coming before the High Court . The case centred on two pet insurers. The claimant alleged that their registered trade mark –...

HSE Bidding to Reduce Asbestos Exposure in the Workplace

Reducing asbestos exposure in the workplace is a major thrust of a new awareness campaign launched by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE). Asbestos: Your Duty aims to improve understanding of what the legal duty to manage asbestos involves. Asbestos...

Evasion of Import Duty - Rolex Watches Seized at Stansted Airport

Misdescribing goods consigned to the UK with a view to evading import duties is a very serious matter. An American company trading in second-hand luxury watches found that out to its cost when five Rolex time pieces, valued at $59,000, were seized at...

Antiquated Contracts and Commercial Coherence - High Court Ruling

Where commercial agreements have been operating for many years, one party or another may well feel that they have become hopelessly out of date and unfit for purpose. However, as a High Court ruling showed , even very old bargains will be upheld if they are...

New Code Aims to Boost Music Streaming Licensing Transparency

In a world first, the UK's Intellectual Property Office (IPO) has published a Code of Practice on Transparency in Music Streaming. The voluntary Code has been developed and agreed by 12 music industry bodies representing music creators, record labels,...

Work From Home Dispute Raises Key Issue for the Modern Workplace

As the employment landscape continues to shift in the post-pandemic era, employees and employers can find themselves at odds when it comes to expectations of flexible and remote working. The issue was brought to light at Employment Tribunal (ET) proceedings...

Post-Brexit Biosecurity Border Controls Come Into Effect

New post-Brexit border controls introduced by the government have now come into effect for animals, plants and plant products imported to Great Britain from the EU. The controls – known as the Border Target Operating Model – apply to products...

Bank Relieved of Compensation Bill Despite Employee's Unfair Dismissal

Financial institutions are entitled to expect their staff to display a high level of probity. An Employment Tribunal (ET) made that point in denying compensation to a bank employee despite having found that his dismissal was unfair ( Johnson v Santander UK...

Court Ruling Underlines the Importance of Biodiversity in Planning Decisions

One of the positive effects of the green revolution is that biodiversity is now a vital factor in many planning decisions. As a High Court case showed , however, it is perfectly possible for an otherwise inappropriate commercial or industrial development to...

Reasonableness of Exclusion Clauses in Hire Purchase Contracts Under Fire

In a ruling of particular importance to the motor sales industry, the reasonableness of exclusion clauses in hire purchase contracts which seek to avoid liability in respect of goods that are not of satisfactory quality has been thrown into doubt by a Court...

A Fair Redundancy Process Requires Consultation at a Formative Stage

A fair redundancy process requires consultation of affected employees at a formative stage when there is at least the potential for them to influence the outcome. The Employment Appeal Tribunal (EAT) succinctly made that point in finding that a recruitment...

Under-Insured Commercial Property Occupier Wins Seven-Figure Damages

Fire is an ever-present threat to occupiers of commercial property and, all too often, they only discover after the ash has settled that they are under-insured. In one such case, however, the High Court came to the aid of a gifts retailer which lost...

How are 'Refer a Friend' Schemes Treated for VAT Purposes? Guideline Ruling

With a view to generating new client introductions, many public-facing businesses operate so-called 'refer a friend' schemes. In an important decision, the First-tier Tribunal (FTT) pondered the consequences of such arrangements in terms of VAT . An energy...

Latest HSE Statistics Highlight Prevalence of Work-Related Stress

Stress, depression and anxiety account for a large proportion of work-related illnesses experienced in Great Britain, according to the latest statistics from the Health and Safety Executive (HSE). Annual statistics on work-related ill health and workplace...

Business Use of Residential Property - Upper Tribunal Strikes the Balance

Any proposal to make business use of a purpose-built residential property is likely to draw objections. However, as a case concerning the planned utilisation of an urban dwelling as a privately run home for children in care showed , neighbours' concerns,...

Are Bonus Clawback Provisions an Unreasonable Restraint of Trade?

Employment bonuses are commonly awarded on the basis that they must be repaid if recipients leave their jobs within a given period of time. In an important ruling, the High Court considered whether such clawback arrangements are capable of amounting to an...

Football Club's Crowd Control Challenge to Development Kicked Into Touch

Commercial property owners are often concerned that residential developments may prejudice their longstanding use of their premises. In a High Court case on point , a football club argued that planning consent was granted for thousands of new homes without...

Selling a Company? Put Lipstick on a Pig at Your Peril

When marketing a company, it may be perfectly legitimate to paint its business and prospects in the best possible light. However, as a High Court ruling showed , the thick application of lipstick to a pig may enter the realms of fraud. The case concerned...

Resignation in the Heat of the Moment - EAT Sets Out the Legal Principles

When an employee utters words of resignation in the heat of the moment, employers are often left in doubt as to whether they should take them at face value. In an important ruling, the Employment Appeal Tribunal (EAT) has for the first time drawn together...

Where in a Supply Chain Does VAT Come Home to Roost? Guideline Ruling

In deciding where in a supply chain VAT liabilities come home to roost, tax tribunals look to the economic reality of commercial relationships. That was certainly so in a case of critical importance to the burgeoning online trade in academic papers . The...

Gender Transition - Deadnamed Employee Wins Substantial Compensation

Those who undergo the challenging process of gender transition are entitled to their employers' full understanding and support in establishing their new identity. A local authority which woefully failed in that obligation by persistently deadnaming a...

Applications for Fresh Commercial Tenancies - Court of Appeal Guidance

How does one decide whether a commercial tenant 'ought not' to be granted a new tenancy under Part II of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1954 ? The Court of Appeal addressed that and other important issues in a guideline case. The tenant of two newsagents'...

Director of Counterfeit COVID-19 Face Masks Supplier Cleared of Fraud

The corporate veil affords no protection to directors who have behaved fraudulently. However, as was made plain by a case concerning the frenzied market in the supply of face masks during the COVID-19 pandemic, there is a great difference between...

Treating Every Employee in the Same Way May Itself Be Discriminatory

Anti-discrimination laws are often viewed as requiring employers to treat all their staff in the same way. However, as an Employment Tribunal (ET) ruling made plain, the positive duty to make reasonable adjustments to cater for disabled workers' needs may...

Quarry Owner Hit Hard in the Pocket for Causing Noise and Dust Nuisance

Some industrial processes simply cannot be carried on without producing noise and dust. As a High Court ruling showed , however, commercial property owners may be required to pay a high price if their activities enter the realms of nuisance. When a couple...

Registering a Trade Mark is the Best Way to Protect Your Valuable Brand

Having worked hard to establish the reputation of your product, there is nothing more annoying than a competitor marketing rival goods under a confusingly similar name. As a High Court ruling showed, however, registering a trade mark is a highly effective...

Contract Adjudicators' Decisions Must Be Honoured Promptly - No Ifs, No Buts

Those who willingly submit contract disputes to adjudication must, save in very exceptional cases, honour the outcome without delay – no ifs, no buts. The High Court resoundingly made that point in a guideline ruling . The case concerned highway...

Not Every Procedural Defect Will Render a Dismissal Unfair - Guideline Ruling

Deficiencies in a workplace disciplinary procedure will very often render a dismissal unfair – but not always. The Employment Appeal Tribunal (EAT) made that point in finding that a hospital supervisor's dismissal was fair ( Greater Glasgow Health...

Retail Tenant Forced to Relocate Receives Compensation for Permanent Loss of Profit

When retail premises are compulsorily purchased by public authorities and forced to relocate, to what extent should compensation be paid for any resulting permanent loss of profit? The Upper Tribunal (UT) considered that issue in a guideline case . ...

Suppression of Takings - HMRC Rains on Takeaway Pizza Company's Parade

Companies that suppress their takings, thereby evading tax, may live on the fat of the land for a while. However, as a tax tribunal ruling showed , the corporate veil often affords limited financial protection to their directors when HM Revenue and Customs...

'Reckless' Travel Company Director Ordered to Compensate Customers

Those who manage companies in a reckless or incompetent manner can expect to be banned from holding directorships in future – but should they also be ordered personally to compensate customers who are left out of pocket? The High Court addressed that...

Disability Discrimination - Corner Shops Owe the Same Duties as Multinationals

Small businesses not blessed with human resources departments can find it hard to accommodate disabled members of staff who need to take time off work. However, as an Employment Tribunal (ET) ruling showed, when it comes to catering for their needs, a corner...

Landlord of Converted Office Block Pays Price for Breaching Fire Safety Rules

To what extent should landlords who have breached fire safety rules be entitled to recover the costs of remedying such breaches from tenants by way of service charges? The Upper Tribunal (UT) considered that important issue in a case concerning a former...

Oil Major Fends Off Shareholder Bid to Reform its Climate Change Strategy

So-called 'activist' shareholders have a perfect right to seek to influence the strategy of companies in which they hold a stake. In a guideline ruling, however, the High Court shut the door on an environmental charity's novel attempt to make the board of a...

Employment Status, Control and Mutuality of Obligation - Guideline Ruling

There is no reason in principle why someone who is a shareholder and controlling director of a company cannot also be its employee. However, as an Employment Tribunal (ET) ruling made plain, the assessment of whether an employment relationship does or does...

Local Authority Pays the Price for Privacy and Data Protection Breaches

For good administrative reasons, public authorities hold a mass of personal data concerning almost every UK resident. However, as a High Court ruling showed , judges are always alert to the danger of such data being misused. In the course of possession...

Education Charity Overcomes Restrictive Covenant in College's Title Deeds

Restrictions on the use to which properties can be put are often to be found in their title deeds and, in some cases, can have a dramatic impact on their value. A High Court case on point concerned the future of a further education college that was already...

School Inspector Sacked for Touching Pupil Succeeds in Unfair Dismissal Claim

It is obviously impractical for employers to have in place disciplinary policies that set out each and every form of frowned-upon conduct. However, as an Employment Appeal Tribunal (EAT) ruling showed, employees are generally entitled to some forewarning of...

Business Interruption Insurance and COVID-19 - the Latest Legal Chapter

Did business interruption insurance cover financial losses arising from the COVID-19 lockdowns? Few questions have been the subject of more litigation in recent times but, as a High Court ruling showed , there is regrettably no standard answer. The case...

Outdoor Advertising, Light Pollution and a Legal Battle Over a Bus Shelter

Light pollution generated by hi-tech digital advertising displays can be a source of bitter complaint. However, such concerns were insufficient to persuade the High Court to overturn permission granted for the inclusion of one such display in a proposed...

Retail Worker Sacked for Smoking at Work Succeeds in Unfair Dismissal Claim

Even where employees have committed gross misconduct, dismissing them may be unreasonable. An Employment Tribunal (ET) made that point in the case of a store supervisor who was sacked for smoking on company premises ( Williams v Wilko Ltd ). The woman...

High Court Aids Professional Firm Targeted in Ransomware Cyberattack

For businesses dealing with confidential client data, malware attacks by those intent on blackmail can represent an existential disaster. However, as a High Court ruling showed, there is a great deal that the law can do to help them. A firm providing...

Authorised Push Payment Frauds - Bank Succeeds in Supreme Court Test

Banks are contractually bound to follow their clients' instructions and are not obliged to concern themselves with the wisdom or risk of their payment decisions. The point was made in a Supreme Court decision of great importance to the financial services...

Commercial Landlords Hit Hard in Gym Clubs' COVID-19 Restructuring

The COVID-19 pandemic has prompted the restructuring of numerous businesses and that can mean commercial landlords having to take severe financial haircuts. That was certainly so in the case of a once successful chain of gyms whose business was devastated...

Does Aesthetic Treatment of Physical Appearance Amount to 'Medical Care'?

Aesthetic treatments can transform clients' psychological wellbeing, boosting their self-esteem and confidence in their appearance – but do they amount to 'medical care' for VAT purposes? The First-tier Tribunal (FTT) addressed that issue in a...

Did European Works Councils Survive Brexit? 'Yes' Rules the Court of Appeal

Under European law, substantial undertakings operating within the EU are required to set up European Works Councils (EWCs) to facilitate employee consultation – but did EWCs previously established by UK companies survive Brexit? In an important ruling,...

Renewal of Commercial Leases - It Can All Come Down to Judicial Discretion

A commercial landlord may, for any number of reasons, be keen to see the back of a tenant. However, as one case showed, the question of whether a business tenancy should be renewed can in the end come down to an exercise of judicial discretion. A company's...

Share Sales - Skeletons in the Corporate Cupboard Must Be Disclosed

Skeletons in the corporate cupboard may dramatically reduce the value of shares but their existence must generally be fully disclosed prior to a sale. The vendor of a care home business found that out to his cost when he was ordered to pay more than...

Lexis Nexis Family Law Awards 2023

Biscoes Solicitors are thrilled to announce that Sarra Gravestock has been nominated for Family Law Associate Solicitor of the Year at the Lexis Nexis Family Law Awards 2023. Sarra has said: ' I am honoured to have been nominated and humbled to have...

Phone Call to Disabled Postman on Sick Leave Ruled an 'Act of Harassment'

Treating an employee on sick leave with distrust rather than sympathy is to positively invite Employment Tribunal (ET) proceedings. That was certainly so in the case of a disabled postman who was at home, suffering from work-related stress, when he received...

Landmark Golf Course's Status as Asset of Community Value Upheld

When a property is registered as an asset of community value (ACV) under the Localism Act 2011 the result can be a major headache for would-be developers. However, as a case concerning the future of a much-loved former golf course showed , overturning...

Selling a Business? Warts and All Disclosure is Vital

Share purchase agreements (SPAs) almost always contain warranties that require vendors to disclose any potential challenges or legal difficulties facing the relevant company of which they are aware. As a High Court ruling showed, any lapse in such disclosure...

UPDATED PRESS RELEASE

  Having become aware that several media outlets have published articles in relation to the recent dismissal of an employee of this firm, Biscoes responds to the specific allegations publicly made by or on behalf of a former employee of the firm by the...

Is a Matchmaking Agency Providing Consultancy Services for VAT Purposes?

High-end matchmaking agencies do far more than simply introduce lonely clients to prospective life partners. In a guideline case, however, the Court of Appeal has ruled that – at least for the purposes of VAT – their services are not equivalent...

PRESS RELEASE

PRESS RELEASE   Biscoes Solicitors are aware of an article that’s in the press from GMB Union regarding an ex-employee, the allegations are strenuously denied, and we await notification of the tribunal proceedings.   ENDS  ...

Lending Money to Your Company? How and When Will You Be Repaid?

Shareholders and directors commonly lend money to their companies with a view to providing working capital or otherwise assisting their businesses. However, as a Court of Appeal ruling made plain , it is vital to formally record in writing the basis on...

Want to Stop a Key Employee Joining a Competitor? Consult a Solicitor Today

If you are concerned that a former employee is preparing to work for a competitor in breach of a restrictive covenant in their employment contract, enforcement of your rights may well depend on how quickly you consult a solicitor. The potential consequences...

Hard-Up Landlord's Rent Repayment Order Slashed

Any residential landlord who lets out a property without a required licence commits a criminal offence and can expect to be hit hard in the pocket. The law is not a blunt instrument, however, and the Upper Tribunal (UT) emphasised in a guideline case that...

Directors' Duties are a Quid Pro Quo for the Privilege of Limited Liability

In return for the privilege of being able to do business with the immeasurable benefit of limited liability, company directors must observe a range of duties and obligations that are designed to protect the public interest. A High Court ruling provided a...

Coarse Language in the Workplace - ET Upholds Harassment Claim

Even if the kind of coarse language used in traditionally male-dominated workplaces was once acceptable, it certainly is not today. An Employment Tribunal (ET) made that point in awarding substantial damages to an office administrator who was harassed by her...

Supplies of Land v Supplies of Services - Tax Tribunal Draws the Distinction

The difference between a supply of services and facilities and a supply relating to an interest in land is important because only the latter is exempt from VAT. A tax tribunal ruling, however, showed that distinguishing one from the other is often a highly...

Direct Marketing Company Pays Price for Relaxed Approach to Personal Data

Direct marketing companies that take a relaxed approach to data handling have only themselves to blame if they fall foul of the law. A home improvements company on the receiving end of numerous nuisance call complaints found that out when it was hit with a...

Property Information Forms - Inaccurate Answers Cost Developer

Property vendors are nowadays routinely required to fill in lengthy information forms, giving answers to a multitude of questions that may be important to a purchaser. That task may seem mundane but, as a High Court ruling showed , it is vital to perform it...

Disability Discrimination and Hypothetical Comparators

Workplace disability discrimination claims often hinge on arguments that a disabled person was treated less favourably than a hypothetical comparator. As a guideline Employment Appeal Tribunal (EAT) decision showed, the circumstances that are imputed to such...

Talk is Often Just Talk - Commercial Contracts Need to Be in Writing

Claims that binding contracts have been reached orally or on a shake of hands are commonly made, but are very hard to prove. A Court of Appeal ruling in the context of the drinks industry underlined the critical importance of engaging professionals to...

Is Posting on Social Media 'Work'? Guideline Furlough Ruling

Making posts on social media for marketing purposes may not yield an immediate financial reward, but it is nevertheless 'work'. A tax tribunal made that point in finding that a company director who made sporadic, work-related Facebook posts during the...

Redundant Automotive Industry Worker Succeeds in Unfair Dismissal Claim

A redundancy process may be genuine and necessary, yet procedurally unfair. An Employment Tribunal (ET) made that point in the case of an automotive industry worker who would have kept his job had a selection criterion not been carelessly and mistakenly...

Assessing Development Potential is Not Just Crystal Ball Gazing

Development potential is often a critical factor when it comes to calculating amounts of compensation payable to landowners whose property is compulsorily acquired to make way for public infrastructure projects. As an Upper Tribunal (UT) ruling made plain ,...

Creators of John Lewis Dragon Advert Cleared of 'Copying' Allegation

Creative people often live in fear of allegations that they have copied someone else's work. However, as a High Court case concerning a CGI dragon featured in a John Lewis TV advert showed, the law provides a route to vindication for those on the receiving...

Do You Understand the Ramifications of Entering Into a Contract Adjudication?

Anyone who engages in contract adjudication proceedings would be wise to assume that the outcome – regardless of whether it is right or wrong – will be legally binding and swiftly enforceable on a 'pay now, argue later' basis. As a High Court...

Workaholic Director's Careless Approach to VAT Liabilities 'Not Dishonest'

Workaholic directors who are not good at delegating may take a slapdash approach to paperwork – but that does not make them dishonest. The First-tier Tribunal (FTT) succinctly made that point in relieving a businessman and his company of substantial...

National Minimum Wage Rates in Force for 2023

The National Minimum Wage (Amendment) Regulations 2023 came into force on 1 April and provided for the following changes to the National Living Wage (NLW) and the National Minimum Wage (NMW) rates: The NLW, which applies to those aged 23 and over,...

Business Interruption Insurance Disputes - Is Arbitration Obligatory?

Many commercial property occupiers whose businesses were interrupted during the COVID-19 pandemic remain in dispute with their insurers regarding to what extent, if any, they were covered against such losses. In an important ruling, the High Court found...

What to Do with a Deadlocked Company? High Court Gives Guidance

What is to be done when a company falls into paralysing deadlock, with equal shareholders unable to agree about anything? A judge addressed that issue in a case concerning a former husband and wife whose business and personal relationships had descended...

Whistleblowing and the Importance of Proving Motive

Establishing that an employee has made a protected disclosure is the first step on the path to success in any whistleblowing claim. However, as a case concerning a dismissed care homes manager showed, it is often much harder to prove that detrimental...

Compulsory Purchase - What Happens if a Landowner's Identity is Unknown?

Many nationally important infrastructure projects would simply not get off the drawing board were public authorities not equipped with the power to compulsorily purchase private land for the public benefit. When it comes to paying compensation, however, what...

Seen One Television Drama? You've Seen Them All - Copyright Ruling

All dramatic works draw on the common human condition and similarities between them, in terms of plotlines and the language used, are inevitable. The High Court made that point in rejecting a screenwriter's claim that her original works were copied by the...

Reclaiming VAT on Company Cars - It's Certainly Not Easy

When companies purchase a vehicle, they can reclaim VAT on the transaction only if they can show that they have no intention of making it available for private use. As a case concerning the provision of a high-end Audi car to a director showed , that...

Plan to Redevelop Debenhams Department Store Receives High Court Boost

The nation's high streets are changing and moves are afoot to demolish many once thriving department stores and replace them with new homes. As a High Court ruling showed , however, such developments are often highly controversial. A developer wished to...

Veteran Care Worker Succeeds in Constructive Unfair Dismissal Claim

Employers are often contractually entitled to require their personnel to move from one place of work to another. However, as one case showed, doing so without consultation is a positive invitation to Employment Tribunal (ET) proceedings ( Pye v Bolton Cares...

New UK Version of GDPR Progressing Through Parliament

The Data Protection and Digital Information (No. 2) Bill has received its first reading in the House of Commons, with MPs set to undertake a second reading on Monday, 17 April. The government intends this new UK version of the GDPR to 'reduce costs and...

Minority Shareholder in Family Business Succeeds in 'Unfair Prejudice' Claim

Minority shareholders may have limited managerial influence but they are very far from powerless and have rights that must be respected. The High Court made that point in coming to the aid of a man whose dividends were unjustifiably suspended after he was...

Waste Transfer Station Occupier Succeeds in Slashing Business Rates Bills

Commercial property occupiers who are dissatisfied with the valuation put on their premises for business rates purposes can do a great deal more than just grin and bear it. In a case on point, the tenant of a waste transfer station succeeded in slashing its...

Manager's 'Limitations' Comment Leads to Disability Discrimination Finding

Employers should take careful note of a case in which a manager's reference to the 'limitations' of a bar attendant who suffered from osteoarthritis was adjudged to be unfavourable treatment giving rise to disability discrimination ( Taylor v Hoddom Castle...

Fast Fashion Retailer's Founder Sees Off 'You Stole My Idea' Allegation

Disappointed people often claim that others have made themselves rich by usurping their brilliant business ideas. However, as a High Court ruling in a case concerning a thriving online fashion company showed , proving such allegations can be an uphill...

Company Director Relieved of Six-Figure VAT Returns Inaccuracy Penalty

Directors whose companies fail to make accurate VAT returns can expect to receive stiff financial penalties – but only if such failures are deliberate. In a guideline case, a tax tribunal adopted a narrow interpretation of that word in relieving an...

'Minor Human Errors' Stymie Bid for Multi-Million-Pound NHS Contracts

In public procurement exercises, the tricky business of uploading bids to e-tendering sites can be rendered more hazardous by leaving it to the last moment. In a case on point , a series of minor human errors led to a missed deadline and the loss of a...

Commercial Property Owner Charged for Non-Existent Drainage Services

A commercial property owner who for years shelled out for drainage bills that it was never obliged to pay must be reimbursed every penny. That was the effect of an important High Court ruling in which utility companies were found to have been unjustly...

Writing a Job Reference? It's Important to Choose Your Words Carefully

Business owners and managers tend to view writing job references as an important but relatively routine task. However, the need to choose words carefully – and to take professional advice where necessary – was underlined by a High Court ruling in...

Design Rights - Supermarkets Battle Over 'Strikingly' Similar Gin Bottles

Fierce competition between retailers, particularly during the Christmas period, has a tendency to spill over into intellectual property disputes. Exactly that happened in a High Court case concerning design rights in festive bottles of gin . A supermarket...

Council Planning Committee Fends Off 'Closed Minds' Allegation

Official decision-makers are often accused of acting with closed minds. However, as a Court of Appeal ruling in a planning case made plain , there is a great difference between unlawful predetermination and a legitimate pause for thought. The case...

Businessman Establishes a 'Reasonable Excuse' for Delaying VAT Payments

Traders who choose to put tax at the bottom of their payment priorities are asking for trouble. However, in one case, a businessman persuaded a tax tribunal that he acted reasonably in delaying VAT payments so that he could pay his hard-pressed staff in...

College Student Required to Work Late Succeeds in Age Discrimination Claim

Mentions of age discrimination may bring to mind images of grey-haired employees being treated less favourably than their younger colleagues. As a case concerning a teenage college student showed, however, young people enjoy the same legal protection as...

Administrators Appointed to Salvage Sanctioned Air Freight Company

Tough sanctions imposed in response to Russia's invasion of Ukraine have left many Russian-owned companies in a state of zombie-like paralysis. However, as a High Court ruling showed, insolvency practitioners are working hard to ensure their orderly...

Supreme Court Lays Down the Law on Commercial Property Service Charges

Many commercial leases appear to confer on landlords a wide and unilateral power to calculate and demand payment of service charges. An important Supreme Court ruling , however, indicates that they may not enjoy quite such a whip hand in future. A...

Cooling Off Periods and Retraction of Oral Resignations - Guideline Ruling

Large employers often have 'cooling off' policies in place that address the common situation of employees orally announcing their resignation in a stressful moment and subsequently having second thoughts. As an Employment Tribunal (ET) ruling showed,...

Tenacious Hotel Owner Achieves 70 Per Cent Cut in Rateable Value

Business owners who feel that their non-domestic rates bills are unfairly high should seek professional advice without delay. The point was powerfully made by the case of a determined hotel owner who successfully argued that the valuation of his premises...

In Business With Your Life Partner? Don't Neglect the Legal Formalities

When life partners are in business together, they all too frequently pay scant regard to the legal requirements involved in running a company. As a High Court ruling showed , however, such an informal approach can have serious and unforeseen consequences in...

Community Football Pitch Must Make Way for Strategic Stadium Development

Community open spaces and leisure facilities are heavily protected by planning law. However, as a High Court ruling showed, even they must sometimes make way for strategic developments that are considered to serve the wider public interest. The case...

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