A woman has lost her appeal against being removed as an executor of her father’s will following a dispute with her brother. The case involved a father who died in 2008. He was survived by his daughter and son who were the executors and beneficiaries of his will. There were difficulties between the two of them and by February 2013, there had been no grant of probate – the process …Read More
Government publishes set of measures to boost housing market
The government has published a set of measures designed to boost the housing market and increase the number of homes to buy or rent. It’s hoped the proposals will remove some of the obstacles faced by local authorities and developers that prevent housing projects going ahead. The reforms are set out in the Housing White Paper. These are some of the main areas covered: Getting the right homes built in …Read More
Landlord loses appeal over service charges for improvements
The Court of Appeal has ruled that a landlord was wrong to use service charges to recover the cost of improvements to a property. The case involved a tenant who was a long lessee of a flat owned by the local authority. Under the terms of her lease, she was obliged to pay a service charge in respect of the costs of repairs. The authority served a notice of intention …Read More
Several changes to employment law came into effect on 1 April.
Apprenticeship Levy Employers with payrolls of £3m and above now have to pay a levy of 0.5% of their pay bill to help fund 3 million additional apprenticeships over the next five years. The aim is to increase job opportunities for people aged between 16 and 24. The annual pay bill is defined as comprising of total payments to employees that are subject to Class 1 secondary National Insurance Contributions. …Read More
Starter homes to be sold to first-time buyers at 20% discount
The government has announced plans to build thousands of starter homes on brownfield sites across the country. They will be built exclusively for first-time buyers between 23 and 40 years old and sold at a discount of at least 20% below market value. The scheme will be run by the Homes and Communities agency in a series of partnerships with local authorities. The first wave of 30 partnerships – selected …Read More
Husband wins appeal against divorce payments to former wife
A husband has won his appeal against financial remedy orders involving payments to his former wife after the court proceedings were held to be unfair. The case involved a husband and wife who had been financially supported by the husband’s extended family. After their divorce they became estranged from the family. The husband moved to Pakistan and did not attend the financial remedy hearings in the divorce proceedings. His attendance …Read More
Plumber wins ‘worker’s rights’ claim against employer
A plumber who carried out jobs on behalf of a plumbing company should be classed as a “worker” under the Employment Rights Act, not a self-employed contractor. That was the decision of the Court of Appeal in a high profile case involving Pimlico Plumbers and one of its operatives, Gary Smith. Mr Smith carried out plumbing work for the company between August 2005 and April 2011. He complained that, following …Read More
Disinherited son fails to overturn his father’s will
A disinherited son has failed to prove that his father didn’t understand what he was doing in the final weeks of his life and his will should therefore be declared invalid. The High Court heard that the father had originally made a will in 2008 that divided his estate between his son and his daughter. In 2012, he suffered a heart attack and was diagnosed with cancer. He made a …Read More
Husband committed to prison for failing to pay child maintenance
A judge was justified in committing a husband to prison for six weeks for breaching the child maintenance requirements set out in a divorce settlement. That was the decision of the Court of Appeal in the case of a couple who had divorced in 2013. The consent order provided for the couple’s properties in Monaco and Moscow to be transferred to the wife, with another property in Paris being held …Read More
Mother’s contact with son restricted to six times a year
A mother has been told she can only have contact with her son six times a year instead of the 12 times that she wanted. The case centred on the care of an eight-year-old boy. His parents had separated after the mother alleged that she had suffered domestic abuse by the father and his family. The father was granted supported contact with his son, who remained living with the mother. …Read More