The formalities that must be met when making a will are strict and failing to adhere to them to the letter can result in your wishes being frustrated after your death. That is exactly what happened in one case in which a generous mother’s final
Businesses in which women are under-represented in senior roles invite speculation that the imbalance results from discriminatory sexual stereotyping. However, as a case in the context of the banking sector showed, Employment Tribunals (ETs) are required to base their decisions not on surmise but on
Tenants who suffer substantial interference in the exercise of their rights are entitled to compensation – even if they have not in fact suffered any financial loss. The High Court so ruled in a case concerning sporting rights over farmland on which a wind farm
Many marketing and promotional campaigns offer ‘free’ goods to customers. A tax tribunal’s decision has, however, established the truth of the popular saying that there is no such thing as a free lunch, or for that matter a free bottle of wine. The case concerned
Contract adjudicators work under pressure and their decisions can sometimes bring to mind a curate’s egg. However, as a case concerning a £33.5 million construction project showed, judges have the power to sever the good from the bad, thus ensuring that swift and cost-effective justice
There is a risk that well-meaning or light-hearted marketing or advertising campaigns may inadvertently stray into the realms of discrimination. A brewery fell into that trap when it marketed a cut-price beer only to those who identified as women in a satirical attempt to highlight
There are roads and there are highways, but is there any real distinction between the two that can be legally defined? The High Court addressed that important issue in a case of interest to property and planning professionals. A property developer obtained outline planning permission
So-called squatters’ rights are a constant bone of contention because they can result in property being wrested from the ownership of those who have paper title to it. That was certainly so in an unusual case concerning a burial vault in which members of a
Professionally drafted restrictive covenants in employment contracts are a legitimate means of protecting businesses from unfair competition – but only insofar as they do not amount to an unreasonable restraint on an individual’s freedom to work. In an important test case, the Supreme Court considered
Discrimination in favour of one section of society over others can in some cases be justified as a proportionate means of achieving a legitimate aim. In a guideline ruling, the Court of Appeal found that that exception applied to a social housing charity that preferred
