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Businesses will be able to protect their intellectual property rights more effectively across Europe and the rest of the world as new legislation comes into effect. The Intellectual Property Act received the Royal Assent on 14 May. One of its key features is that it enables the UK to implement the Unified Patent Court Agreement,
A pressure group has lost an appeal to prevent wind turbines being built next to an area of natural beauty. A planning inspector had approved an application from a developer to build the turbines. He found that they would provide a useful contribution to the area which had a shortfall of renewable energy. He was
Late payments are the cause of 20% of insolvencies of small to medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) according to a recent study. SMEs can be vulnerable if their customers don’t pay them on time, with cash flow problems potentially leading to major problems such as being unable to pay staff or buy essential materials. In a survey
Wednesday 2nd July 2014 7.45am-9.30am, Putteridgebury Conference Centre, Room 6, Hitchin Road, Luton. 2014 has been a busy year for changes in employment law. With these changes coming in to force the need to keep up to speed with how these affect you, and your workforce, is becoming more of a challenge. What about the
What is defamation? A defamatory statement is where one person damages a person’s good name without lawful justification or excuse. When a defamatory statement is in writing it is libel and when a defamatory statement is made orally, it is slander. The changes brought in under the Defamation Act of 2013, including the new requirement
There are 3 million people in the UK who combine work with care. This is set to rise significantly due mainly to an ageing population. 1 in 5 adults has seen their work impacted as a result of their caring obligations, especially those aged 45 to 64. Productivity, attendance and stress levels can suffer when
This is a brief summary of the main points: ACAS and Tribunal claims Employees wishing to bring claims before the Employment Tribunal must first contact ACAS, which will offer a conciliation service. The measure, effective from 6 May, is designed to help the claimants and employers reach an agreement without having to go to a
Up to one million small to medium-sized enterprises (SME) in Europe fail to recover cross-border debts. The average amount of debt written off by these companies is €600. This means that €600m is lost to cross-border debts every year. Due to the relatively small figure that the average SME is owed, they often find it
The tenant had a 25-year lease and wanted to activate the break clause. The clause stated that any notice exercising the right to break “must be expressed” as being given under the Landlord and Tenant Act 1954 s.24(2). The tenant complied with all aspects of the clause including serving notice within the appropriate time period
The firm was employed to design and build a road outside an airport. Construction work was slow and repeatedly delayed because of bad weather and unexpected issues. The main interruption was because of soil and groundwater contamination on site. When already two years behind schedule, the construction firm stopped working on the road in December