A gay couple booked to stay at a B&B in Berkshire. Upon arrival they were refused their room by the owner, Mrs Wilkinson. It has been ruled that they were discriminated against and they were awarded £1,800 each for "injury to feelings"....
Clients should always consider whether they or an elderly relative need to draw up a Lasting Power of Attorney....
Economists and demographers commented following the 2011 census data that the increasing life expectancy of the UK population and the declining number of births means that there will be fewer workers to shoulder the burden of supporting the elderly. In order to maintain current population levels, an average fertility rate of 2.1 is required. However, the current fertility rate excluding female i...
The High Court considered in Netjets Management Limited v CAC and another [2012] EWHC 2685 what territorial limits exist on the Central Arbitration Committee`s (CAC) jurisdiction to consider a request for union recognition....
The DWP has brought into effect section 87 of the Pensions Act (PA) 2008, repealing the stakeholder pension designation requirements from 1 October 2012....
Chancellor, George Osborne, has announced legislation which will introduce a new ‘owner-employee` contract....
Two recent cases have shown the challenges that a successful Defendant can face when unable to recover costs from an impecunious Claimant. The general principle employed by the court is that a non-party to the proceedings, but who has funded the litigation, may incur a personal costs liability if they have a financial interest in the outcome of those proceedings....
Thank you to everyone who participated in our online survey on the Government`s Consultation on the current law regarding collective redundancies. We received responses from a diverse cross section of businesses with employee numbers ranging from 40 to 2,500. We have included the results of the survey, together with feedback from a variety of employers that we have spoken to in our formal response to the consultation....
In the case of Taiwo v Olaigbe and others it was held that a claimant could pursue a claim of post-employment victimisation under the Equality Act 2010. It was noted that section 108 of the Equality Act 2010, which renders post-employment discrimination and harassment unlawful, expressly did not apply to acts of victimisation. However, this appeared to be a drafting error. Applying a purposive ap...
From 6 April 2012, a new inheritance tax relief is available....
Some overseas students have been queuing all night in order to comply with a requirement on their student visa to register with the police with 7 days. Failure to do so is a breach of their immigration conditions and could result in their removal from the UK. Due to the large number of students commencing studies at this time of the year, the police are struggling to cope with the demand....
A recent case, Patsystems Holdings Ltd v Neilly, has highlighted some of the important factors courts will use to determine the enforceability of restricted covenants in employment contracts. Often when employees gain promotion their employment contracts will remain on the original terms, which might be out of date. In this case a junior employee was given inappropriate restrictions in his c...
Construction projects are technical in nature and are often hugely complex. The contract needs to reflect this complexity and will involve some negotiation even where a standard form contract is to be used....
New laws have come into force today, 1 October 2012, that require UK employers to automatically enrol eligible workers into a pension scheme and make mandatory minimum contributions on their behalf. The reforms are being implemented gradually, with only large employers that employ 120,000 or more staff having to comply from today, and those employing 50,000-119,999 staff having to comply by 1 Nov...
Where an employee is absent from work from one employer due to a temporary cessation of work and then starts work with an associated employer, is the employee continuously employed for purposes of bringing an unfair dismissal claim? The facts In Holt v EB Security Ltd UKEAT/0558/11/CEA, Holt ("the Claimant") was employed at a pub from July 2007 until it closed and his employm...
The Legal 500 directory has just announced their 2012 results, with outstanding listings again for Clarkslegal:...
David Cameron appeared on the Late Show with Letterman last night to promote British business following the Olympics. The Prime Minister soon became unsettled when Letterman asked him questions from the Citizenship test that migrants to the UK are required to sit. Having answered a few questions incorrectly, the Prime Minister is quoted as saying "...You have found me out", "...That is bad" and "...
The case of Neijjary v Aramark Ltd confirms that employers need to be careful when dismissing on misconduct grounds where a number of allegations are made, not all of which may be upheld on appeal. It also deals with the issue of contributory fault. In this case, Mr Neijjary was employed as a hospitality manager by Aramak, a hospitality services company, at a Goldman Sachs site. He was summarily...
On 14 September Vince Cable announced the Ending the employment relationship consultation which covers ways to encourage the use of compromise agreements, to be renamed "settlement agreements", as a way for parties reaching mutual agreement where the employment relationship has broken down Proposals The consultation, which closes on 23 November 2012, has sought views on proposals that aim to al...
In November last year the Department for Business Innovation and Skills (BIS) called for evidence on the effectiveness of the Transfer of Undertakings (Protection of Employment) Regulations 2006 (TUPE). Following this, Clarkslegal held a round table discussion with various employers affected by TUPE to gather views and evidence on the questions raised by BIS. Based on this discussion, we sub...