TUPE regulations protect the interests of employees when their employment is transferred from one organisation to another. But to what extent should the new employer be bound by future national, collective pay agreements over which it has no control or influence? The Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) has decided that it would
A woman has been awarded £15,250 compensation after hot tea was spilt on her in a restaurant. The 21-year-old Chinese university student had visited the restaurant with some of her classmates. A waiter was carrying a tray of hot tea when he was knocked by another member of staff. Some of the tea spilt on
When drawing up a contract for consultancy work it is important that both sides agree what the objectives are and what will constitute success. If there is no clear understanding, disputes can arise over fees, as shown in a recent case before the High Court. It involved a company that engaged a consultant to advise
The High Court has ruled that a commercial tenant that continued to occupy its premises after the lease expired had effectively created a new annual periodic tenancy and so was liable to pay 13 months’ rent. The issue arose after the tenant’s lease expired in 2009. No new lease was signed but the tenant remained
The Court of Appeal has ruled that a restaurant did not discriminate against a disabled girl when it refused to allow her to eat its food outside its recognised seating area. The issue arose when the girl, who has Down’s syndrome and suffers from autism, visited a restaurant at a theme park with her family.
A teaching assistant who was sacked because she wanted to remain in contact with her sex offender son has been awarded £28,000 in compensation for unfair dismissal. Tracy Hodgkinson’s son was jailed in May 2010 for sexual offences with a girl under 14. He was 18 at the time. Ms Hodgkinson says she was dismissed
An insurance firm has been granted an injunction preventing a former employee from revealing some of its valuable and confidential information. The court heard that the employee had been unhappy at the firm for some time before she finally handed in her notice. During her employment she had sent confidential documents to her personal email
The Supreme Court has delivered a landmark ruling that divorcing husbands cannot protect their assets by signing them over to companies – a practice described as a “cheat’s charter” by some lawyers. The case involved the high profile couple, Michael and Yasmin Prest. Last year the High Court ordered that Mrs Prest should receive £17.5m
The celebrity chef Marco Pierre White has lost a claim for damages against two former business partners in a dispute centred on an oral contract. As is often the case with oral contracts, the details of what was agreed were hotly disputed by the two sides. Mr White said he had entered into an agreement
A recent case before the Court of Appeal highlights the need for landlords to ensure that they have protected deposits from former fixed term tenants who went on to acquire statutory periodic tenancies. Failure to do so could result in penalties and prevent the landlord from serving notice for possession. The case involved a tenant