With tax returns due to be submitted soon (if you want HMRC to calculate your tax for you), a word of warning seems appropriate.    If you have a Direct Saver account with the Alliance and Leicester, it is worth checking your...

In principle, the notion of self-defence is straightforward. A person is entitled to use reasonable force to defend themselves against attack and in certain other circumstances. Self-defence is a valid defence against prosecution when the circumstances...

The Employment Equality (Age) Regulations 2006 make direct and indirect age discrimination illegal in an employment context, unless the treatment can be objectively justified. The legislation applies to discrimination against young as well as older...

According to a recent report in the Sunday Times, HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) are to breach the centuries-old principle of anonymity of Swiss bank accounts by ‘piggy-backing’ on a deal between the German and Swiss authorities which allows the...

If an employer seeks, unilaterally, to make changes to the terms and conditions of an employee’s contract of employment and the employee is not in agreement with them, it is generally a breach of contract. In serious cases, the employee can have the...

Under the Points Based System (PBS) for immigration, most people applying to come to or remain in the UK to work or study who are not nationals of the European Economic Area or Swiss nationals will, in addition to having to meet the criteria set by the PBS...

Following a recent decision of the Law Lords that the Human Rights Act 1998 (HRA) does not apply to care homes which are run privately, the Government has announced it is to change the law. The case involved an elderly woman who was...

The law relating to covenants, easements and ‘profits à prendre’ over land is a relatively complex area given that such rights are common – the Land Registry has suggested that nearly two thirds of properties have some sort of...

On 18 August, two new driving offences came into force. These are causing death by careless driving and causing death by driving while unlicensed, uninsured or disqualified. The effect of the changes is to increase the likely penalty...

Employees, or their dependants, are entitled to claim damages for injury caused by a workplace accident if:   there was a duty of care owed to the injured person; that duty was not performed; and ...

A judgment by the Court of Appeal illustrates that when someone dies without making it clear who should inherit their estate, this can result in a prolonged court battle and an outcome that may be very different from what the deceased person intended and...

When one member of a cohabiting couple dies, it can come as an unpleasant surprise to the bereaved partner to discover that not all of their late partner’s estate will pass to them in the absence of a will. It is only when this happens that many people...

The European Court of Justice (ECJ) has handed down its ruling ( Coleman v Attridge Law ) on whether the Disability Discrimination Act 1995 (DDA) properly implements the EU Equal Treatment Framework Directive . Sharon Coleman, who...

A recent case found the court considering whether a hot-air balloon, which carried passengers on pleasure trips, was an aircraft under the law. The case involved a man who was injured in 2003 when the balloon he was travelling in landed heavily. ...

The new Independent Safeguarding Authority (ISA) is due to commence operations in October 2009 and will be responsible for vetting the millions of people seeking to work with children or vulnerable adults. The ISA was established in January 2008 by the...

Under Section 57A of the Employment Rights Act 1996 , all employees are entitled to take a reasonable amount of unpaid time off work to deal with emergencies involving a dependant, and not to be dismissed or victimised for doing so. The emergency must...

Tax law in the UK permits a person (or a couple who are married or civil partners) to have only one home designated as their ‘Principal Private Residence’ (PPR). The importance of this is that any gain on a PPR is exempt from Capital Gains Tax...

Under the Points Based System (PBS) for immigration most people applying to come to or remain in the UK to work or study who are not nationals of the European Economic Area (EEA) or Swiss nationals will, in addition to having to meet the criteria set by the...

Divorce can be highly confrontational and can involve a great deal of negotiation conducted by correspondence on the part of solicitors and their clients. This necessarily takes a great deal of time and can make, what is already a stressful process, even...

Following persistent criticisms of Home Information Packs (HIPs), Housing Minister Caroline Flint has announced new proposals 'to improve the quality and flow of information consumers receive through the HIP'. A ...

The Court of Appeal has overturned the High Court’s ruling that a boy who suffered brain damage after he was kicked in the head while playing on a bouncy castle should be awarded compensation that could have amounted to £1 million. ...

Much has been made of the Capital Gains Tax (CGT) changes, regarding the taxation of business assets, due to the abolition from 6 April 2008 of ‘taper relief’. However, the CGT position regarding non-business assets has also changed significantly...

A marriage carried out under foreign law will not be recognised as valid in England and Wales if it could not have been validly contracted under English law. This was the conclusion of the court after a Bangladeshi couple sought an order...

Rogue debt collectors face tough new rules in a Government bid to improve consumer protection in this contentious area. This is because of changes to the Consumer Credit Act 2006 (CCA) which have recently come into effect. Chief...

The danger of cohabiting without making an express agreement as to how the title to property is to be held has again been underlined by a recent case. It concerned a woman who had lived with a man for several years in a house which was...