If you feel that your human rights have been violated by a public authority’s misuse of power, you should consult a solicitor without delay. The point was made by the case of a traditional salmon fisherman who won more than £180,000 in damages after an
Many divorcing couples are attracted to arbitration as a swift and relatively cheap alternative to resolving financial issues in court. However, as a High Court ruling made clear, arbitrators’ decisions, even if not perfect, are final. An arbitrator to whom a couple had submitted the
Many companies are labouring under crushing pension scheme deficits and directors whose actions or defaults worsen the situation can be held personally liable. Exactly that happened when a tribunal opened the way for a director of a collapsed retail group to be issued with a
Employees who engage in tax evasion may put more money in their pockets each week – but only at the price of sacrificing their employment rights. An installation engineer found that out to his cost after accepting cash and free and discounted goods in lieu
Judges have power to overturn arbitration awards if the proceedings have been infected by serious irregularity – but does that extend to a failure to give adequate reasons? In a guideline decision of interest to anyone engaged in commerce, the High Court has answered that
For many businesses, the whole point of using the services of agency workers is to cater for peaks and troughs in their demand for labour. The Court of Appeal made that point in rejecting arguments that agency workers have a legal entitlement to work the
Large infrastructure projects almost always require compulsory land acquisitions and that can also mean the extinction of thriving businesses. However, one company which suffered that fate reaped the benefits of professional advice when it was awarded more than £8 million in compensation. The company operated
Raising mortgage finance to buy a home can be seriously challenging for those who do not enjoy high earnings or a perfect credit rating. However, the risks involved in overcoming that difficulty by putting someone else’s name on the title deeds were underlined by a
Judges frequently apply commercial common sense in interpreting contracts – but that does not mean that they will employ hindsight to relieve one side or the other from the consequences of what turns out to be a bad deal. The High Court made that point
What is the difference between an annexe and an extension? That may seem a very narrow distinction, but the tax regime is replete with such fine points and it made a crucial difference to an educational charity in its successful appeal against a VAT demand.
