In an employment relationship, the identity of the employer is usually very clear; however, where an employee works for a group of companies, it can sometimes be trickier to identify which of the group companies is the true employer. This can sometimes cause issues, particularly from a tax perspective, when it comes to identifying where
On 07 January 2021 the Housing Secretary Robert Jenrick announced proposals that mean leaseholders will be able to extend their lease by 990 years instead of the current 90 years allowed by the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993, and for those with lease lengths below 80 years, removal of marriage value which
As we enter Lockdown 3 and the closure of schools, there has been a lot of talk in the media about options that are available to parents who have childcare responsibilities including the possibility of furlough on either a full-time or flexible basis. The guidance on furlough confirms that employees can be furloughed for this
A woman who found offensive remarks about her in a WhatsApp group used by work colleagues was the victim of harassment due to her sex, race and religious belief. That was the decision of the Employment Tribunal in a case involving Ms Muna Abdi and Deltec International Courier Ltd. Ms Abdi, who is black of
As we enter into the New Year with a new Covid variant leading to increasing social restrictions and rising case numbers and sadly deaths, it is tempting to be drawn into the cycle of despondency that confronts us all as soon as we open a paper or watch the news or click on social media.
Network Rail has won a £13m contract dispute that centred on the meaning of the word “default”. The issue arose after Network Rail engaged ABC Electrification Ltd to carry out some major works. Under the contract, ABC was entitled to payment based on the “”total cost””, which was defined to exclude “”disallowed cost””. ABC had
The government has extended the ban on business evictions until the end of March because of the continuing Covid pandemic. There will also be a review of commercial landlord and tenant legislation, to address concerns that the current framework does not reflect the current economic conditions. This final extension to protections from the threat of
The High Court has convened meetings for four separate classes of creditors to consider the proposed restructuring of a group of three failing companies. The case involved Deepocean 1 UK Ltd, which comprised of three companies providing sub-sea services. The group had underperformed for several years due to uneconomical charter rates, large and complex projects,
Businesses struggling with debt due to the Covid-19 crisis have been given extra breathing space to help them avoid insolvency. A temporary measure introduced by the Corporate Insolvency and Governance Act restricting the use of statutory demands and winding-up petitions, which was due to expire on 31 December 2020, has been extended to the 31
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