News

• Will of grandmother with Alzheimer’s disease is upheld by court
  The High Court has dismissed a challenge to the validity of a will made by a woman while she was suffering from early onset Alzheimer’s disease.
  
  
• Equality Bill could make employers reveal pay structures
  The Government plans to create more equality in the workplace by obliging employers to disclose their salary structures so any unjustified discrepancies in pay rates for men and women will become apparent.
  
  
• OFT approves estate agents redress scheme
  A redress scheme is being set up to allow consumers to refer complaints about estate agents to an ombudsman.
  
  
• Buy to let rises above the credit storm
  Buy to let is one of the few areas of the economy to defy the downturn caused by the credit crunch and all the indicators suggest that it is actually benefiting.
  
  
• Appeal Court grants cohabite a share of house
  A woman has won her appeal that she should be granted a half share in the house in which she lived with her former partner.
  
  
• Elderly sisters lose battle to change inheritance tax rules
  Two elderly sisters have lost their battle in the European Court of Human Rights to change Britain’s inheritance tax rules.
  
  
• More parents to get the right to request flexible working
  The right to request flexible working is to be extended to parents who have children up to the age of 16.
  
  
• Father granted unsupervised contact with his son
  A father has won the right to have unsupervised contact with his son even though he had abducted the child in the past.
  
  
• Say ‘I do’ to making a will
  With summer now upon us thousands of couples intending to get married will be making the final preparations for their wedding day.
  
  
• Sanctions against employing illegal workers start to take effect
  British companies are already feeling the effect of tougher sanctions against employing illegal foreign workers following the introduction of the Points Based System (PBS) for controlling immigration.
  
  
• Court ruling makes it easier to evict tenants with criminal records
  Landlords will find it easier to evict tenants with criminal records for serious matters such as sex offences following a ruling by the Court of Appeal.
  
  
• Service charge certificates must follow lease provisions
  Landlords need to ensure that any service charge certificates they issue comply with the terms of the lease.
  
  
• Court sets aside liability for inheritance tax
  The executors of a man’s will have succeeded in removing the need for inheritance tax to be paid on some of the assets he transferred to other people a few years before he died.
  
  
• HIPs are having a ‘major impact’ on the housing market
  Home Information Packs (HIPs) are having a major impact on the housing market, according to figures released by the Government.
  
  
• Agency workers to get equal treatment after 12 weeks
  Agency workers will be entitled to the same treatment as permanent staff after 12 weeks in employment under a deal agreed between the Government, the unions and the CBI.
  
  
• Most HMO landlords have now applied for licences
  New research has found that 78% of landlords that let Houses of Multiple Occupation (HMOs) have applied for the necessary licence.
  
  
• More women setting up businesses but they still lag behind the men
  An increasing number of women are setting up their own businesses to get more flexibility between work and family life, according to research for the Government.
  
  
• Violent Crime Reduction Act 2006
  The VCRA inserts s.53A into the Licensing Act 2003 allowing the police to request a summary review of a premises licence in ‘serious cases of crime or disorder’.
  
  
• Consultation regulations extended to more firms
  Firms employing 50 or more people must now comply with the Information and Consultation of Employees Regulations 2004.
  
  
• EPCs extend to business properties above 10,000sq metres
  Energy Performance Certificates are now required for the construction, sale or rent of commercial properties with a floor area of more than 10,000sq metres.
  
  
• Retailers warned as police seize 44,000 pints from underage drinkers
  The police seized more than 44,000 pints of alcoholic drinks from underage drinkers as part of a clampdown during the February school half term.
  
  
• HIPs now needed for all new build properties
  Home Information Packs (HIPs) are now required on all new build homes.
  
  
• More Companies Act measures come into effect
  More provisions of the Companies Act 2006 which are designed to reduce the administrative burden on private companies have now come into effect.
  
  
• New regulations could spark increase in sexual harassment claims
  New measures introduced by amendments to the Sex Discrimination Act 1975 to bring it into line with the European Equal Treatment Directive could see an increase in harassment claims.
  
  
• The contract clause that cost a developer more than £3.5m
  The need to make sure that contracts are completely watertight has been illustrated in a recent case where a dispute over the meaning of a single clause cost a property developer more than £3.5m.
  
  
• Houses of Multiple Occupation come under Government review
  The government has begun a review aimed at improving the management of Houses of Multiple Occupation (HMOs) and the conditions of people living in them.
  
  
• HIPs needed for shared ownership sales
  It’s now nearly a year since Home Information Packs (HIPs) were introduced but they are still raising questions among people buying and selling homes.
  
  
• ‘Straight’ bouncer wins compensation in discrimination case
  A woman who worked as a bouncer at a gay nightclub has won more than £6,000 compensation after claiming that she had been bullied by other staff because she was heterosexual.
  
  
• Appeal Court puts fairness above equality in divorce settlement
  The desire to achieve fairness in divorce settlements was illustrated in a recent case before Court of Appeal.
  
  
• Father wins appeal over supervision order for his daughter
  A father has won his appeal against a judge’s decision to place his daughter under a supervision order for three years.
  
  
• Extra time granted to make the most of tax benefits from trusts
  Families have been granted an extra six months to rearrange their “income in possession trusts” without becoming subject to the new Inheritance Tax (IHT) regime.
  
  
• Wife succeeds in getting husband’s will overturned
  A wife has succeeded in getting her husband’s will overturned because the court accepted that he had not made reasonable financial provision for her.
  
  
• Court of Protection can help when loved ones lose mental capacity
  The law changed last year making several improvements to the power of attorney system which allows people to appoint someone to act on their behalf if they lose mental capacity.
  
  
• Family court decides where child should attend school
  A family court has had to decide whether a child should live with her father and attend school in England or live with her mother and attend school in Germany.
  
  
• New regulations will help enforce child maintenance payments
  The Government’s campaign to make more non-resident parents pay child maintenance takes another step forward with officials being given the right to extract more information from banks, credit reference agencies and the DVLA.