The Court of Appeal has overturned a judge’s ruling which allowed a father increased contact with his daughter. The judge granted the father extra unsupervised contact, despite also insisting that he undergo a psychological assessment to determine that the child would be safe in his care. A report produced by CAFCASS, the agency that protects
The Law Society says the Government decision not to regulate will writing puts the public at risk of being exploited by unqualified and unscrupulous practitioners. Many legal services are strictly regulated but will writing is not. The Law Society and the Legal Services Board have long campaigned for stricter controls to protect the public but
The Court of Protection is often called upon to decide whether a person suffering from a debilitating medical condition has the mental capacity to make important decisions. A recent case involved a 37-year-old woman who suffered from bipolar disorder. The woman was a high-achieving information technologist but her condition led to her compulsory detention at
Trusts set up many years ago can sometimes contain provisions which seem out of step with the way people live their lives today. Thankfully, when problems arise, the courts can often help to correct any anomalies. A recent example involved a child who would have been unable to benefit from a trust fund because his
The Supreme Court has delivered a landmark ruling that divorcing husbands cannot protect their assets by signing them over to companies – a practice described as a “cheat’s charter” by some lawyers. The case involved the high profile couple, Michael and Yasmin Prest. Last year the High Court ordered that Mrs Prest should receive £17.5m
Four thousand people reserved a home through the Help to Buy scheme in the two months since it came into effect in April. The Home Builders Federation is delighted with the response and says the industry will have to significantly increase the output of new homes. The Help to Buy: equity loan scheme applies to
A father who abducted his two children and brought them back to the UK has been ordered to return them to their mother. The case involved a British couple who moved to Canada to start a new life with their two children, aged two and four. They separated within a few months of arriving and
An accountant must pay £943,000 damages to a client after giving him negligent advice about saving tax during the sale of a business. The case involved a successful entrepreneur who was in the process of selling his company for £8.5m. He was liable to Capital Gains Tax (CGT) on 10% of that figure. He engaged
A bus driver has been awarded nearly £60,000 compensation after an employment tribunal found that he was unlawfully dismissed when he developed diabetes. David Hoggett had worked at Abellio London Ltd for eight years. In April 2012, he was diagnosed with Type 2 Diabetes and took several months off work as he responded to his
The money that goes to the Treasury from people who don’t make a will has nearly doubled in the space of just a year. The Times newspaper has published research carried out by lawyers which shows that £38.5m flowed into the Treasury coffers last year from the estates of people who died without a will