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The courts have powers to deal with protests or other actions that disrupt the day-to-day activities of people and organisations, even when those responsible cannot be identified. Recently, the High Court granted a continued injunction against persons...
Court and tribunal hearings usually take place in public, as part of the principle of open justice. However, a judge can decide to hold a hearing in private if it is deemed necessary for the proper administration of justice. Recently, the Court of...
The High Court recently upheld a claim that an elderly man's final will was invalid on the grounds that he lacked testamentary capacity. The man and his wife had made mirror wills in 1985. After their eldest son sadly died in 2007, they made new mirror...
The Employment Rights Bill, which formed part of the legislative programme outlined in the King's Speech, has now been introduced into Parliament. Some of the key provisions included in the Bill are: Workers on zero-hours contracts will be entitled to...
The Family Court recently considered an application by the parents of a 15-year-old boy for authorisation to accept a gift of a share in a property on his behalf, in exercise of their parental responsibility. The boy's father owned a property in...
The High Court recently ruled on a claim by AGA Rangemaster , the manufacturer of AGA cookers, that a company which also supplies range cookers had infringed its trade marks. The company's cookers were fitted with an electric control system, which could...
The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) is proposing changes to the safeguarding regime that applies to payments and e-money firms, in order to better protect customers. Funds held by payments firms are not covered by the Financial Services Compensation...
Where a partnership's members include one or more companies, the profits of the partnership are calculated as if its trade was carried on by a company, by virtue of Section 1259 of the Corporation Tax Act 2009 . Recently, the Upper Tribunal (UT) ruled on...
The Employment Appeal Tribunal (EAT) has confirmed that where a provision, criterion or practice (PCP) puts people with a protected characteristic at a disadvantage, protection from indirect discrimination under Section 19 of the Equality Act 2010 can...
A homeowner has successfully argued before the Upper Tribunal (UT) that an application by the owner of adjoining land to modify a restrictive covenant should be refused . A small cottage had originally stood on the adjoining land, but had been badly...
A man who let a house to a company which in turn let rooms in it to tenants has succeeded in his appeal against a rent repayment order after the Upper Tribunal (UT) concluded that he was not the tenants' immediate landlord and therefore no such order could...
When deciding whether it is in a patient's best interests to continue life-sustaining treatment, the courts will look to the patient's views and beliefs, where known, as well as the medical evidence. In a sad case concerning a 66-year-old man in a state of...
A company that provides installation services for home improvement products has been issued with a monetary penalty by the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) after making thousands of unsolicited marketing calls to numbers registered with the Telephone...
The High Court has recently ruled that a man is entitled to benefit under a family trust despite finding that he was not the biological child of the settlor. The trust had been set up by a businessman in 2003 and included as its beneficiaries 'the...
An Employment Tribunal (ET) has confirmed that a construction company which made deductions from an employee's wages in accordance with a court order did not do so unlawfully ( Rainford v Stepnell Ltd ). The employee was the subject of an attachment of...
A pre-nuptial agreement (PNA) will be taken into account when a couple divorces, as long as it has been freely entered into and it is fair to hold the parties to it. Recently, the Family Court was called upon to decide how the terms of a PNA affected the...
The Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) has issued a reprimand to the Electoral Commission after hackers gained access to the information on the Electoral Register. Hackers gained access to the Electoral Commission's server in August 2021 by...
Individual taxpayers often rely on advisors to handle their tax affairs, but it is wise to make sure they are doing everything that needs to be done. In a recent case, a man whose accountant failed to file tax returns on his behalf was refused permission to...
Employment Tribunals (ETs) have a duty to give sufficient reasons for their decisions so that the parties to a claim can understand why they won or lost. In a recent case, the Employment Appeal Tribunal (EAT) overturned a finding of indirect disability...
When prospective tenants are asked to pay a holding deposit, they should ensure that they disclose any information that might affect a landlord's decision whether to offer them a tenancy. Recently, the First-tier Tribunal (FTT) dealt with an application for...
