Insights

October 11, 2024

Key Dates To Note Following Completion Of A Commercial Lease

Completing a commercial lease is a significant step for both landlords and tenants. The process leading up to completion can at times be very stressful and more challenging than purchasing a property.

October 4, 2024

Winding-Up Petitions – the pros and cons

Winding-up petitions, otherwise known as ‘Compulsory Liquidation’, are an important tool available to individuals or companies as a means of debt recovery when debts of £750.00 or more remain unpaid.

September 30, 2024

Inheritance tax planning and gifts out of income

With the threshold for inheritance tax (known as the ‘nil-rate band) being fixed at £325,000 since 2009, and inflation steadily rising, inheritance tax is becoming more and more of a concern for those with even modest estates.

Employment

September 18, 2024

Homeworking – Best Practice

Employers have seen a rise in the numbers of employees requesting homeworking or hybrid working (dividing time between the workplace and a remote location) as their preferred method of employment.

July 26, 2024

Can I dismiss an employee who is pregnant or on maternity leave?

In the UK, employers must fulfil their legal responsibilities towards pregnant women and women who are on maternity leave.

July 19, 2024

Heads Of Terms And The Crucial Part They Play In Lease Negotiations

When entering into a lease for a commercial property, establishing clear and comprehensive heads of terms is a crucial initial step. These serve as the blueprint for the formal lease document, are essential for both landlords and tenants.

July 8, 2024

Employee Ownership Trusts (EOT’s)

We have seen a growing number of Employee Ownership Trusts (EOT’s) as an exit strategy for selling shareholders.

June 25, 2024

The Party Manifestos: What’s potentially new in Employment Law?

The Liberal Democrats have gone all out on employment law pledges in their Manifesto. In recruitment, they aim to extend the use of name-blind processes and simplify the Access to Work scheme.

June 17, 2024

The (fixed) costs of doing business: Changes to the recoverability of costs on the Fast Track and Intermediate Track under the Fixed Recoverable Costs Regime

The general rule in civil ligation is that the winning party pays the losing party’s costs. In practice, the ability of a successful party to recover their costs depends on which track the claim is allocated to by the Court.

Lasting Powers of Attorney

June 7, 2024

With great power comes great responsibility: Lasting Powers of Attorney (LPA)

Lasting Powers of Attorney (LPA) are an important legal document in which a person appoints attorneys to act on their behalf if they are unable to make decisions for themselves, for example if they lose mental capacity...

Corporate Law

May 24, 2024

Changes to UK Company Law: Companies House Have A New Pair Of Boots And They’re Walking

What's the law? The Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act 2023 (“ECCTA”) has introduced changes by arming Companies House with enhanced scrutinising powers by amending certain points of the Companies Act 2006 (“CA 2006”)...

Employment

May 15, 2024

Mental Health Awareness Week

1-in-4 people will experience a mental health problem of some kind in England each year. Mental health issues have a significant impact on the person they affect but they are also an economic issue, with the research done for the Centre...

Dispute Resolution

May 10, 2024

Tired of chasing? How to tackle unpaid invoices (and be compensated for it)

The Late Payment of Commercial Debts (Interest) Act 1998 applies to contracts entered into after 1 November 1998 and gives businesses a statutory right to claim interest on a specified date if another business pays its bills late...

Employee Rights

April 23, 2024

You can’t have her! The rules on who can and cannot accompany an employee in internal proceedings

The employee’s right to be accompanied at formal disciplinary and grievance proceedings was formally introduced in 1999 and might be thought to be well understood. However, from time to time, queries are still raised as to whether an...

Discrimination Cases

March 4, 2024

What's so special about discrimination cases?

A sensible question but one that has many potential answers! The first key point is that there is no qualifying service requirement to bring a discrimination claim. This is sometimes described as a day one right, however the right to...

Construction Contracts

February 23, 2024

When things go wrong: Oral construction contracts

In an ideal world, parties to construction contracts would spend time carefully mulling over the form of contract, specification and scope of works. They would rush off from site to carefully document agreements regarding additional work...

Employment Law

February 6, 2024

Avoiding employment law issues: A guide for owner managed and small businesses

As an employment law solicitor, I am only too aware of some of the pitfalls facing employers across the private sector. Many of these pitfalls can be avoided however with a little planning and care. So what does my inbox tell me?

Code of Practice

January 15, 2024

New code of practice on fire and rehire

To misquote Heraclitus “the only thing certain in life is change”. This applies equally to the workplace where changes to terms and conditions for many private sector employers can be a matter of business survival.