Read our latest articles, news briefs and legal updates across all our different services.
Sotheby’s auction house has won a $10m contract dispute over the sale of a painting because experts could not agree if it were genuine. The case involved a painting believed to be the work of Frans Hals, the Dutch Golden Age painter. The owners arranged for it to be sold through Sotheby’s to a private
The terms of a tenancy agreement entitled a landlord to add grounds maintenance to the services for which it could charge. That was the decision of the Court of Appeal in a case involving Curo Places Ltd and Anthony Pimlett. Curo Places was a registered provider of social housing. It had entered into a tenancy
First-time buyers interested in new-build homes can now apply for the new Help to Buy: Equity Loan scheme. With a Help to Buy: Equity Loan, the government lends homebuyers up to 20% (40% in London) of the cost of a newly built home. Customers pay a deposit of 5% or more and arrange a mortgage
The government has provided brief but useful advice on Lasting Powers of Attorney (LPA) and how they can be used to help people who are no longer able to make decisions for themselves. An LPA is a legal document that you can draw up when you’re fit and healthy authorising someone you choose to make
A husband has failed to persuade the court to overturn a divorce settlement he described a “grossly unfair”. The case involved a couple who had married in 1987 and divorced in 2010. The husband was a successful property developer and the wife was a homemaker. A consent order for financial remedies was made in 2010,
All non-contentious probate applications where there is a will in place must now be made online. The service, known as MyHMCTS, was set up by the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) to streamline applications, enabling probate professionals to issue, pay for and manage applications within civil and family courts and tribunals. It went live on 2
P14 MEDICAL LIMITED v EDWARD MAHON [2020] The High Court has recently provided helpful guidance on post terminations and confidentiality restrictions in employment contracts in the case of P14 Medical Ltd v Edward Mahon. In this case an employer had sought to restrict a former employee with very extensive restrictions including a very wide definition
The Court of Appeal has rejected a local authority’s plan to have a two-year-old girl placed for adoption. The girl, referred to in court as LC, had two older brothers, aged eight and seven. The mother had learning difficulties and mental health issues. There were concerns that the children had suffered neglect, had been exposed
The High Court has ordered that an 11-year-old boy who was abducted by his father should be returned to his mother. The case involved a couple who had married in 2009. The mother was Italian and the father was part Italian with dual nationality. The family lived in Italy in a house opposite the home
The government is reviewing the planning system to make it as easy as possible for people to build their own home. There are currently about 15,000 of these types of homes built every year – an increase of 50% in two years. It’s estimated that the self and custom build industry is worth almost £4.5