The government has announced new measures to speed up the development of derelict and unused land for new homes. Housing and Planning Minister Gavin Barwell said local authorities across the country will have to produce and maintain up-to-date, publicly available registers of brownfield sites. The new registers will help housebuilders identify sites quickly, helping to
A father has won his appeal against a court order allowing his estranged wife to take their three children to live in Germany. The couple had married in 2010 and separated in 2015. The father was British; the mother was German with extended family in Germany. They had three children aged between one and five
A building firm has won a dispute over a £700,000 payment after the High Court upheld a decision made by an adjudicator. The firm had been contracted by some developers to provide pre-construction services for a proposed retirement village. Once the work was complete, it submitted an invoice but didn’t receive payment. The firm then
The Court of Appeal has ruled in favour of a landlord who was in dispute with his local council over accommodation for students in two houses in multiple occupation (HMO). The landlord had been granted HMO licences by the authority in relation to the two properties. Each property had a bedroom in the attic, but
The increasing demand for powers of attorney have enabled the government to reduce costs. It means the fee for applying to register a lasting power of attorney (LPA) or an enduring power of attorney (EPA) has been reduced from £110 to £82. The fee for resubmitting an LPA for registration has been cut from £55
The family lawyers group, Resolution, is calling on the government to introduce a no-fault divorce system as soon as possible. It says the momentum gathering for change should not be delayed because ministers may be preoccupied by major issues like Brexit. The move follows the high-profile case involving Tina Owens and her husband Hugh. Mrs
A woman has lost her legal battle with three charities over how much she should be allowed to inherit from her mother’s estate. The high profile case involved a mother and daughter who had been estranged from each other for more than 20 years. The rift happened after Heather Ilott eloped with her boyfriend at
A woman has lost her appeal against being removed as an executor of her father’s will following a dispute with her brother. The case involved a father who died in 2008. He was survived by his daughter and son who were the executors and beneficiaries of his will. There were difficulties between the two of
The thought of trying to get on the property ladder as a first-time buyer can be daunting, particularly with the ever-increasing house prices, paying rent or saving for a deposit. This coupled with the acceleration of residential property prices over the last couple of years has made it increasingly harder for first-time buyers to get
A mother has been told by the High Court that she cannot take her two-year-old daughter to live with her in Canada. The case involved a couple who began their relationship in England in 2013. The father was British and the mother had dual British/Canadian nationality. They never married and it appeared that they had