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Two homeowners have won a claim against Network Rail after the company failed to keep Japanese knotweed under control on its land. The plant grows very fast and can damage the structure of buildings due to its widespread roots. Some of the weed growing on Network Rail land spread to the properties of both Stephen
A father has been committed to prison for 18 months after separating his children from their mother while on holiday and refusing to return them. The Court of Appeal was told that the children had not seen their mother for five years and were not living with either of their parents. The case involved a
If a landlord doesn’t want to carry out repairs on a commercial property unless he has a tenant waiting to move in, is he entitled to have the rateable value reduced? A recent case saw landlord Christopher Shaw appeal after a valuation tribunal refused to reduce the rateable value of one of his business units.
A quarter of UK companies say they’ve suffered a hit to their cash flow and longer-term finances because of the insolvency of a customer over the last six months. The research by the insolvency and restructuring trade body, R3, found the financial impact of the insolvency of another business was described as “very negative” by
There has been a 39% rise in claims before the Employment Tribunal since the Supreme Court ruled last year that the fees charged to bring claims were unlawful. The fees were introduced in 2013, with employees having to pay up to £1,200 to bring a claim. Following a challenge by the union Unison, the Supreme
A director breached her legal duties when she transferred company assets to herself during a period of financial difficulty. Julie Anne Davey ran a company called Angel Group Ltd or AGL, which had three subsidiaries. The businesses specialised in development and lettings. They had gone into administration in late 2012/early 2013 and into liquidation in
The National Landlord’s Association (NLA) has criticised government proposals to introduce 3-year minimum tenancies. Ministers say 3-year tenancy terms, with a 6-month break clause, are necessary to help renters put down roots, and to give landlords longer term financial security. The average amount of time tenants stay in a property is four years, according to
A director has been banned for seven years after repeatedly failing to pay his workers the minimum wage. Shakil Ahmed was a director at Euro Contracts Services Limited (ECS), which supplied labourers to farms. The farms paid a fee to ECS, which was then responsible for paying the labourers. An investigation by HMRC in 2009
A developer has been ordered to pay an extra £750,000 for land that was sold subject to the condition that the price would increase if planning permission for houses was granted. The issue arose after the developer purchased property from a landowner to redevelop for residential use. The contract provided that the extra money would
Barclays bank has been held liable for sexual assaults committed by a doctor it hired to carry out medical examinations on employees. The bank required its employees to attend a medical assessment as part of its recruitment process. Between 1968 and 1984, the assessments took place unchaperoned at the doctor’s home. The doctor died in