Employees who are in the habit of using their personal mobile phones or other electronic devices to send and receive work-related messages would be well advised to change their ways in the light of a ground-breaking Court of Appeal ruling. The case concerned a claim for damages brought by a…
Creating a Family Trust? Are You Sure It Reflects Your True Intentions?
Rather than giving money to your children directly, you may choose for a variety of good reasons to provide for them by way of a discretionary trust. Such a step is a serious matter, however, and as a High Court case underlined, it is extremely difficult to alter a trust…
Parents Pursue ‘Secondary Victim’ Claims After Daughter’s Shocking Death
If you have suffered psychiatric injury due to witnessing a loved one’s shocking injury or death, you may be entitled to compensation and should contact a solicitor straight away. A case on point concerned a couple whose beloved daughter collapsed and died following a negligent failure to diagnose a life-threatening…
Cyber-Attack Puts Airline on Receiving End of Massive Compensation Claim
If people felt unable to entrust their personal data to operators of mobile phone apps and websites, the wheels of e-commerce would simply cease to turn. Hackers are, however, ever present and, as a High Court case showed, they pose a constant threat to both individuals and online traders. The…
Equality and Diversity Training Needs Regular Refreshment to Be Effective
The provision of workplace equality and diversity training can afford employers a powerful defence in employment proceedings. As one case showed, however, such training is wont to become stale in employees’ minds over time and is unlikely to be viewed as effective unless regularly refreshed. The case concerned a senior…
Supreme Court Puts Limits on Serious Fraud Office’s Extra-Territorial Powers
In a decision which placed territorial limits on the powers of the Serious Fraud Office (SFO), the Supreme Court ruled that it had no right to compel a foreign company to assist in an investigation by producing documents it held outside the UK. An executive vice-president of a US-registered company…
Salvaged $43 Million Silver Hoard – It’s Not as Simple as ‘Finders Keepers’
Salvagers of submerged treasure would no doubt be delighted if the nursery school rule of ‘finders keepers’ applied to them. However, as was shown by a High Court case concerning the fate of 2,364 silver bars worth $43 million, the law is a great deal more complex than that. A…
Sensible Divorcees Put Personal Animosity Aside – Court of Appeal Ruling
Any lawyer will tell you that it is far better for divorcing couples to agree how their assets should be divided, rather than fighting it out in court. However, a Court of Appeal case showed that where personal animosity persists, it is only too easy for the terms of such…
High Court Acts to Break Hostile Impasse Affecting Family Trust
Many long-established and prosperous businesses are held in trust for the benefit of current and future generations of families that created them. As a High Court case showed, however, the many advantages of such ownership models ultimately depend on continuing good personal relations between trustees. The case concerned a trust…
Tribunal Excludes Furnished Lettings Business from Inheritance Tax Relief
In a ruling of interest to anyone engaged in renting out furnished properties, the First-tier Tribunal (FTT) has taken a restrictive approach to the circumstances in which such enterprises may qualify for Business Property Relief (BPR) from Inheritance Tax (IHT). The case concerned a house set in scenic grounds which…