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When a landlord granted a lease over a maisonette to a tenant then subsequently alleged that the lease was drafted incorrectly, it took the intervention of the court to decide who was to pay how much for repairs to the property. The landlord claimed that...
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Under proposals put to the European Parliament’s Committee on Civil Liberties , Justice and Home Affairs, data protection law looks set to be reformed such that the use of ‘pre-ticked’ boxes will no longer be permitted as a way of showing...
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The Court of Appeal has ruled ( Charles v Tesco Stores Ltd. ) that the Employment Tribunal (ET) erred when it struck out an employee’s race discrimination claim on the ground that it had been lodged too late. In ruling that the claim was out of time,...
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When a tenant’s lease has a break clause, normally all rent due must be paid in full before the break clause can be activated – even if the rent paid runs beyond the break date. If a tenant decides to pay only the rent ‘due’ until...
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A case has been decided which arose because accounting errors were made by a company which was bought by another company. Some of the management of the company which was sold invested in the buying company, so that the eventual result was a management...
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A patent can only be granted when there is novelty in the thing for which the patent is sought. This is why it is critical that one’s novel designs do not become public knowledge: once they do, a patent application can be defeated on the ground of...
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West Midlands logistics company Nightfreight (GB) Limited has been fined £300,000 for breaches of health and safety law after one of its drivers was killed by a runaway lorry at its depot in Earls Barton, Northamptonshire. Russell Homer, 44, had just...
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A major principle on which the legal system in England and Wales relies is that the communication between a client and his or her lawyer is private. The courts cannot force the disclosure of the communications passing between client and lawyer, whether...
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When a road or pathway is regularly used by people and the owner takes no active steps to prevent this or assert control over the land concerned, an ‘easement by prescription’ can be created under which the right of access becomes lawful and the...
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The Office of Fair Trading (OFT) can take a very strong line when it discovers that price information is passing between competitors with the result that the competition between them is diminished. This can include situations in which information about...
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The Agency Workers Regulations 2010 (AWR), which implement the EU Agency Workers Directive, came into force on 1 October 2011. Under Regulation 5 of the AWR, agency workers have the right to the same basic terms and conditions of employment as if they had...
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The Internet is throwing up a number of examples of cases in which information is ‘recycled’ in breach of copyright and a legal action results. In one such case, the court ruled that if the actions of an organisation ‘inevitably’ lead...
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Insolvent tenants can be a major headache for landlords. For example, when a corporate tenant goes into administration, the landlord needs to obtain the consent of the administrator, or of the court, to forfeit the lease. This is because administration is...
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When a shipyard worker was injured in an accident, he received a £7 million settlement from his employer. The ultimate cause of the accident was a defect in the design of equipment (a platform) that he was using, which had recently been installed at...
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The Court of Appeal has overturned the decision of the Employment Appeal Tribunal (EAT) and ruled that a lap dancer at a London club owned by Peter Stringfellow was not an employee ( Stringfellows Restaurants Ltd. v Quashie ) and was not therefore entitled...
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The Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) has issued a statement re-emphasising that awareness of Internet ‘cookies’ has increased to such an extent that it is now ‘appropriate...to rely on a responsible implementation of implied...
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In the context of a dispute between parties to a building demolition contract, the High Court has ruled that an adjudicator was not entitled to change his mind after reaching a final decision and that, subject to further litigation or arbitration, the...
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There are many potential benefits of buying a franchise, such as having access to well-established business and accounting systems, centralised marketing and a proven business model. Being part of a well-known national brand also has an appeal for many...
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If you employ a nanny, gardener or other household staff, from April 2013 you are required to join the ‘real time information’ (RTI) scheme set up by HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC). At the same time, the simplified deduction scheme for PAYE will...
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HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) have had a rethink as regards the law governing National Insurance Contributions (NICs) and announced that sleeping partners and inactive limited partners are liable to pay Class 2 NICs as self-employed earners and Class 4 NICs...
