Latest Posts
The highly anticipated Domestic Abuse Bill has recently passed its final stage in the House of Commons and will now be debated in the House of Lords before bringing into force a variety of new measures that will change the landscape for those who have been...
Chancellor Rishi Sunak has today announced a temporary change to Stamp Duty Land Tax (SDLT) which will now not be payable on properties sold for under £500,000. The amendment forms part of the latest support from the Government in response to the...
The Government has further announced that the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (CJRS) has been extended to the 31 st October 2020, with additional changes to the existing rules from 1st July 2020. In essence, the revised rules ("flexible...
We spend most of our adult lives at work, and it is the responsibility of our employer to ensure our health and safety when we are in the workplace. A recent survey by Fletchers Serious Injury has shown that 27% of people who have suffered a serious injury...
Over the coming months, it is likely we will begin to see businesses being bought and sold in the aftermath of the coronavirus pandemic. When a business is bought with the employees as part of the purchase, those employees need to be transferred over...
The long awaited changes to the divorce regime which seek to remove the need to attribute blame to one party will come into force next year as the Divorce, Dissolution and Separation Bill has received Royal Assent. Sam Miles , Partner in our Family...
On 23 March 2020, the Government announced a lockdown for the United Kingdom in order to fight the outbreak of coronavirus. This meant that hundreds of thousands of businesses, large and small, were forced to close their doors to both their staff and the...
There has been much in the news recently about the support available from the Government for businesses in an attempt to save the high street and the economy, but little has been said about the effect on commercial landlords. Jenny Colvin in our ...
Our Employment Law team here reviews the case of Royal Bank of Scotland v AB, and explain how serious a judgment against an employer can be when discriminatory treatment causes psychiatric harm. AB worked for the Royal Bank of Scotland...
Our Employment Law team here review the case of J Austin v The Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust and advises how ignoring the background issues behind an employee’s pattern of behaviours led to tribunal. Ms Austin was an employee of the...
On 26 May, the Government launched the Coronavirus Statutory Sick Pay Rebate Scheme (CSSPRS). This scheme was implemented to help employers of small and medium sized businesses cope with the increase in staff claiming Statutory Sick Pay (SSP) due to...
Insensitivity towards an employee's disability can be costly for employers, as demonstrated in the recent case of N Williams v Boots Management Services Ltd . Our Employment Law team review the case and advise how employers can avoid...
Whilst the last few months have mainly focused on the impact of Covid-19, it is important that landlords are still aware of changes that are coming into force this year. Mollie Leak , a Solicitor in our Litigation and Dispute Resolution team , explains...
Over the recent months there have been many changes in light of the Covid-19 pandemic. These have included changes for individuals, businesses, landlords and tenants. Recently, further guidance has been released from Government on the stay of evictions for...
Discrimination is a hot topic at the moment and a recent case has highlighted how a change in behaviour towards an employee could lead to tribunal. Our Employment Law team review the case of Allen v Paradigm Precision Burnley Limited and Carl...
As employers begin to open up the conversation with their employees about returning to the workplace, there are several ways that they can be providing a safe working environment for their employees; one of which being testing for coronavirus. There...
With over 6 million employees having been on furlough leave over the last few months, it is inevitable that some of those may have already been working their notice when their employer placed them on furlough leave. If you have made this decision as an...
The coronavirus pandemic has changed the world that we live and work in and unfortunately, in spite of the level of support from the Government, it is inevitable that some businesses will be required to consider making redundancies. Our Employment Law...
Many businesses are continuing to struggle financially due to the restrictions in place following the coronavirus pandemic and, even though those restrictions are beginning to ease and in spite of the range of Government support on offer, there are still...
If you or your employees are required to provide witness evidence in a tribunal claim, it is also important that they are willing to appear in tribunal. This was highlighted in the recent case of T Bond v J Large t/a Lads and Dads Barbers which...
We are regularly hearing of redundancies in the news in the aftermath of the coronavirus pandemic, and it is vital that should you be considering making redundancies in your business, you carry out the process fairly and without bias. A recent legal...
The Prime Minister announced in his speech on 10 May 2020 the updated position with regard to lockdown and stated that those who cannot work from home and who can travel to work without public transport should return to their workplace where possible. As...
After several months of employers utilising the furlough leave initiative launched in March 2020, on Friday 29 th May Chancellor Rishi Sunak announced reforms to the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme. While there will be confirmations to follow...
Workplace gossip and so called "banter" are an employers nightmare, and there is a fine line before it can become the foundations of a tribunal claim. The Employment Law team here review the case of Lawson v Virgin Atlantic Airways...
The case of Barclays Bank plc v Various Claimants has, over a number of years, been seeking to establish whether companies are vicariously liable for the actions of independent contractors. Our Employment Law team here review the case in further...
Carrying out investigations into allegations of misconduct against an employee is unfortunately part of most employer's routines. The case of Leigh Andrews v St Mungo’s Community Housing Association is a good example how the past can come...
The case of Anne Giwa-Amu v Department for Work and Pensions illustrates precisely the way not to handle a grievance around racism and ageism. Miss Giwa-Amu was an administration officer working for Caerphilly’s Department for Work and Pensions....
For those parents who are facing Court proceedings over their children, the coronavirus pandemic will be bringing additional stresses to an already emotional situation. If you are currently in the midst of proceedings or the Local Authority have...
With the UK currently on lockdown due to the coronavirus pandemic, there have understandably been a lower number of accidents on our roads and at work as people are required to stay at home, only making journeys for essential trips. For those who were...
The coronavirus pandemic has brought with it much devastation in our family lives, including the rise in domestic abuse . Findings have shown a higher than average number of people suffering domestic abuse since the introduction of lockdown and...
The coronavirus crisis is redefining lifestyles and the boundaries of our interactions; a situation that can challenge even the strongest bonds. For couples who are struggling in their relationship, or were in the process of divorce or Family...
We are all currently adjusting to a new way of life since the coronavirus pandemic led to country wide lockdown, and it is vital that parents are there to support their children through these troubling times. This can be difficult if you are no longer...
On 1 st April 2020, the latest stage of the Minimum Energy Efficiency Standards was implemented, making it unlawful for landlords to continue domestic residential tenancies where the property has a rating of F or G on its Energy Performance Certificate...
All businesses are facing different challenges as we find our new normal in light of the coronavirus pandemic, but one area of life that has continued as normal is the fact that some of our employees still require maternity, paternity and adoption...
Employers who made an offer of employment prior to the coronavirus pandemic may be considering whether a start date can be postponed or the offer can be withdrawn. There could be several reasons; you may be required to save costs if there is a...
As we enter a new Financial Year, we are also welcoming the promotion of Conveyancing Executive, Wendi Coupland , to an Associate member of the firm. Wendi joined the firm in January 2018 as we were opening our new office in Chandler’s Ford after...
When an employee hands in their notice, do you allow them to have a cooling off period? This topic was up for discussion in the recent case of Robert S Rae v Wellhead Electrical Supplies Limited . In early 2019, Robert Rae, founder and former...
Many business are struggling to keep all of their employees, including their apprentices, working at present due to the coronavirus outbreak. As such, businesses have placed many individuals on furlough leave. Our Employment Law team here reviews how...
When dismissing an employee, it is vital that employers do so using a fair procedure and are transparent about the reasons behind the dismissal. In the case of S Sparks v DB Cleaners and Launderers Ltd, the employer used redundancy opposed to...
The case of Morrisons v Various Claimants has been one we have reported on several times as it has moved from the High Court to the Court of Appeal, and now the Supreme Court has ruled that an employer cannot be held to be liable for a data breach where an...
The Government recently announced a business rate holiday for all leisure, hospitality and retail businesses in the UK due to the impact on the sector caused by the coronavirus pandemic. There is no such relief however for businesses who have not been...
In light of recent Government guidance restricting moving home while we fight the coronavirus pandemic, our Residential Conveyancing team has been facing questions regarding whether similar restrictions apply to other areas of property, such as ...
Increasing numbers of staff are working from home or away from the office which could make confidential information and personal data more vulnerable to data breaches; particularly where cyber-criminals are increasing their fraudulent scams. Data which...
Due to the coronavirus outbreak and the subsequent guidance from the Foreign Office against all but essential travel abroad indefinitely, you may find affected employees seeking to cancel their annual leave and use it once the restrictions have been...
Having an up to date Will is one of the most important legal documents you will make during your lifetime, particularly if you are an unmarried couple living in a property you own, or if you are divorced and have children from previous marriages. We...
If your divorce has recently been finalised and as a result you are either reliant on or are obliged to adhere to a Financial Order, we understand that you may have questions due to the uncertainty now created by the coronavirus pandemic. Sam...
