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The High Court has ruled that a will made by a man who was suffering from delusions caused by late-onset schizophrenia was invalid for want of testamentary capacity. In late 2013, the man had become concerned that someone was trying to break into his home...

The Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) provides guidance for the public on data protection and information rights on its website. Guidance is available on the following topics: making a Subject Access Request to find out if an organisation is...

The Supreme Court has ruled that a hotel company could not deduct input VAT on professional fees relating to the sale of a subsidiary company. The company received management fees from a wholly owned subsidiary which operated a luxury hotel in Birmingham....

The Employment Appeal Tribunal (EAT) has allowed a woman's appeal against a decision of the Employment Tribunal (ET) that she was not entitled to compensation for unfair dismissal because, had the employer followed a fair procedure, she would have been...

When disagreements arise between neighbours about the ownership of land, it is invariably best to try to reach an amicable solution rather than engage in litigation. In an unusual case concerning the ownership of a driveway , the Upper Tribunal (UT)...

The Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) has issued a reprimand to the Post Office following a data breach in which it published the personal data of postmasters involved in group litigation relating to the Horizon IT scandal. In April 2024, it was...

In a recent ruling on a wife's application for a financial remedy order , the Family Court accepted that her caring responsibilities for the couple's son justified a departure from the sharing principle. The Court handed down its judgment as an indication...

The government has announced that the allowance for Business Property Relief (BPR) and Agricultural Property Relief (APR) will be £2.5 million when it is introduced on 6 April 2026, rather than £1 million as originally proposed. The government...

A man who illegally acted as a company director while bankrupt has been handed a suspended sentence. He had been declared bankrupt in October 2021. However, investigations by the Insolvency Service revealed that he had operated as a director of four...

The law affords testators a high degree of freedom to pass on their estates to whomever they wish, and the fact that the terms of a will may seem unfair to relatives is not enough to successfully challenge it. This point was illustrated by a recent case in...

The Court of Appeal has upheld a ruling of the Employment Appeal Tribunal (EAT) that a man who volunteered as a coastguard with the Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) was a 'worker' for the purposes of Section 230(3) of the Employment Rights Act 1996 ...

As announced in the Autumn Budget 2025, the van benefit charge and the car and van fuel benefit charges will increase from 6 April 2026, in line with the Consumer Price Index. The van benefit charge applies where an employer provides an employee with a...

The courts are alert to the risk of divorcing couples being less than honest about their assets and liabilities in financial remedy proceedings. Recently, the Family Court rejected a husband's assertion that he owed £1.6 million to a company owned by...

The Court of Appeal has allowed a local planning authority's appeal against an award of costs made against it by the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government after it withdrew its support for a planning application. A developer had...

Under Section 21 of the Housing Act 1988 , landlords may evict tenants who have an assured shorthold tenancy which is a periodic tenancy or a fixed-term tenancy that has expired by giving at least two months' notice. However, a Section 21 notice cannot be...

A woman who was subjected to defamatory posts on Facebook has succeeded in having them removed after taking legal advice. The woman and her husband had started to feed and look after a cat that had been coming into her garden. The cat subsequently...

Under Section 188 of the Trade Union and Labour Relations (Consolidation) Act 1992 , employers that are proposing to dismiss as redundant 20 or more employees at one establishment within a period of 90 days or less must consult appropriate representatives...

The Family Court recently granted a local authority permission to withdraw an application for a care order in respect of a two-year-old girl, after the local authority concluded that, in the light of the medical evidence, it would not be able to meet the...

When seeking investment, businesses should ensure that any information a prospective investor might rely on when deciding to invest is accurate. Recently, the Court of Appeal dismissed a company director's appeal against an award of damages to two...

People have a great level of freedom to leave their estates as they choose and disappointed relatives must overcome a high hurdle to successfully challenge a will. Recently, the daughter of a woman who made a will leaving her entire estate to one of her sons...