The government has announced plans to prevent illegal immigrants renting properties. It will also crack down on rogue landlords who exploit immigrants and supply them with substandard accommodation. Ministers say measures in the forthcoming Immigration Bill will enable landlords to evict illegal immigrant tenants more easily, by giving them the means to end a tenancy
A landlord has won a legal dispute that could see 21 tenants eventually having to pay more than £500,000 a year each in service charges. The case illustrates the danger of entering into agreements that seem a good idea at the time but may have unforeseen consequences long into the future. The court heard that
A steel company has won damages of $7.4m plus interest from a supplier that failed to deliver materials on time. The High Court heard that there had been a contract between the companies for the supply of four consignments of steel billets from Ukraine to Morocco, where the buyer had a factory. Difficulties arose and
A couple who were plagued by nuisance neighbours after buying a farmhouse have been awarded £155,000 damages. The court heard that the farmhouse had originally been owned by the family causing the trouble. They had sold it when the father had reached retirement. They retained the next-door cottage. The farmhouse was eventually bought by a
Two brothers have been banned from being company directors after they breached their duty to creditors when their business went into liquidation. The two men ran a company that provided payroll services. The business got into financial difficulties and was wound up in October 2012. An Insolvency Service investigation found that two weeks after the
A court has been called on to determine who was responsible for the collapse of a building – the contractors who carried out renovation work, or the engineers who drew up the plans. The issue arose after a couple decided to convert their cellar into living accommodation. The project involved lowering the floor and then
A franchise company has been granted an injunction to stop two of its former franchisees damaging its business by making false claims to customers. The case involved a company that manufactured and sold postal franking machines, which were distributed in the UK through franchisees. In July 2014, its contracts with two franchisees were terminated following
A court has ruled that investors in a failed restaurant venture were entitled to get their money back because their names had not been placed on the lease as agreed. The case involved a businessman who identified an opportunity to lease and run a restaurant business. He secured an investment of £255,000 from five individual
The government wants to promote mediation as a way of avoiding costly and sometimes “absurd” neighbour disputes. The move follows concerns expressed by the Conservative MP Charlie Elphicke about the way such disagreements often spiral out of control and end up costing far more than the dispute is actually worth. Mr Elphicke introduced a Private
A commercial property company has won a claim that its insurers should pay for damage caused maliciously by tenants. The case involved business tenants who had failed to pay rent and carry out certain work required under the terms of the lease. The property company tried to terminate the lease but the court allowed the