The High Court has set aside a trust settlement that was drawn up in error and would have resulted in a woman having to pay a large, unexpected tax bill. The case involved a woman who made a settlement on the advice of her father to protect her assets from her former boyfriend. Most of
A father has been told he must stop recording videos of his daughter being handed over to her mother because it was abusive and did not provide any useful evidence in family court proceedings. A non-molestation order was made against him. The case involved a couple who had separated when their daughter, now aged six,
A son who was once very close to his mother but was then disinherited has failed to overturn her will, even though she had suffered from dementia towards the end of her life. The court heard that the woman had originally made a will leaving her estate equally to her two sons, Timothy and Stephen.
The government has announced plans to prevent illegal immigrants renting properties. It will also crack down on rogue landlords who exploit immigrants and supply them with substandard accommodation. Ministers say measures in the forthcoming Immigration Bill will enable landlords to evict illegal immigrant tenants more easily, by giving them the means to end a tenancy
A company that sacked an employee who made abusive comments on Facebook and claimed he’d been drinking on duty had not acted unfairly. That was the decision of the Employment Appeal Tribunal in the case of Scottish Canals and one of its employees. The issue arose after the employee posted comments that he had been
The government is setting up a £26m fund to help developers speed up the process of providing starter homes for first-time buyers. The homes will be offered exclusively to buyers aged under 40 with a discount of 20% on market values. The £26m will be used to identify and purchase sites and prepare them over
The number of unmarried couples in the UK has more than doubled in the last 20 years, according to figures released by the Office for National Statistics. Many cohabitants believe that they have the same legal protection as married couples but, unfortunately for them, this is not the case. They have few automatic legal rights,
A brother and sister have been removed as executors of their mother’s will because they could not work together and no longer trusted each other. The two siblings had been appointed as executors by their mother and were the main beneficiaries of her will. The brother lived in the same street where his mother had
Under the Matrimonial Causes Act 1973, a husband or wife can seek a divorce from their spouse if they can show that there has been an “irretrievable breakdown” of their marriage. This “irretrievable breakdown” has to be proven on one of five facts, either: 1. Adultery;2. Unreasonable behaviour;3. Desertion;4. Separation of two years with consent;
A woman who was written out of her mother’s will because she eloped with her boyfriend when she was 17 has won her appeal to inherit a share of the family estate and been awarded £163,000. It’s considered an important ruling by legal experts and could influence the way some wills are drawn up in