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The Court of Appeal has ruled that a director was unfairly dismissed after raising concerns about company practices in a whistleblowing case. The director worked for a firm of estate agents. He alleged that the employer was manipulating the accounts to reduce the level of commission payable. He claimed that it affected 100 senior managers’
Claims by employees of wrongful dismissal and victimisation should be taken seriously but that did not mean that tribunals should be afraid to throw out unworthy claims without having to go to a full hearing. That was the advice from the Court of Appeal in a case involving British Airways and one of its ground
A company has been granted the right to examine a former employee’s computer and electronic devices after he admitted taking a copy of its list of clients. The employee had been the managing director of the company, which specialised in maritime insurance claims. The company’s case was that he had asked his assistant via email
A disabled employee who reduced his hours from full-time to part-time before taking ill health retirement was not treated unfavourably in the calculation of his pension rights. That was the decision of the Court of Appeal in the case of man who retired at the age of 37 after longstanding medical issues. The court heard
The law governing the writing of wills needs to be updated to reflect modern understanding of dementia and mental capacity. The government should also consider the introduction of electronic wills and reduce the age for making a will from 18 to 16. Those are some of the recommendations from the Law Commission in a public
More than 30 of the government’s biggest suppliers have voluntarily committed to pay 95% of invoices within 60 days – and to work towards adopting 30 days as the norm. The commitments are part of the Prompt Payment Code (PPC) initiative, which aims to ensure that small businesses are paid on time. The PPC sets
A developer who failed to co-operate in seeking additional planning permission for a proposed tower block has been ordered to pay damages to the company selling the site. The seller had obtained planning permission to construct a 34-storey tower on a large site. The grant was subject to a s.106 agreement, under which the seller
The High Court has enabled a family to take over the ownership and running of a company after the owner died. The case involved a cleaning services company in Lancashire. The owner had left the business in his will to his family. After his death, the company continued as a going concern under instructions from
The government has published guidance on the future of intellectual property laws after Britain leaves the European Union. These are some of the key points: Trade marks While the UK remains a full member of the EU then EU Trade Marks (EUTM) continue to be valid in the UK. When the UK leaves the EU,
A company director has won his appeal against penalties imposed by HMRC for failing to submit a self-assessment tax return on time. The tribunal held that it was not the responsibility of a director to register for self-assessment and send a personal self-assessment tax return each year unless there was a prompt or reminder from