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A bike courier with the delivery service City Sprint has won the right to be classed as a worker rather than as self-employed. Maggie Dewhirst, from London, worked for the firm for two years making healthcare deliveries. She is one of the growing number of people in the so called gig economy, being paid on
An accountancy firm has been ordered to pay more than $11m damages to a developer because of the flawed advice it provided on a major project. The case involved the developers of a large holiday resort. It hired a firm of accountants to provide business advice and ensure the project progressed on a sound financial
A landlord has been obliged to sell a commercial property because of the terms contained in a “badly drafted” lease agreement. The case involved a property that was let under a 10-year lease beginning in 2011. The company that granted the lease later sold the property to a new landlord. The lease granted the tenant
A property developer has been told he must honour an oral agreement to sell some land to former friends despite falling out with them during the course of the transaction. The case involved a developer who agreed in 2003 to sell a building plot and a meadow to some family friends for £200,000. The plot
The directors of 11 different companies across the UK have been disqualified after employing illegal workers. The disqualifications all follow investigations by the Insolvency Service. The businesses include four restaurants, three butchers, a café, a clothing manufacturer and a petrol station. The 11 directors have each been banned from being company directors or being involved
The very same commercial lease can be both a godsend or a noose depending on the terms struck between the parties at the outset. Will it provide a good foundation with which to give the business the opportunity to prosper or will it be a drain on profit with expenditure taking away any likelihood of
Being an entrepreneur is risky business, with start-ups in particular usually adopting a “learning by doing” approach. Experience is hard earned, with success or failure requiring a measure of luck as well as business nous, especially in those early days. Thankfully, as access to information became as easy as a click of a button, business
The decision to leave the EU has already hurt business finances and will quickly lead to a rise in corporate insolvencies, according to a survey of its members by the insolvency and restructuring trade body, R3. Its figures show that 72% of respondents believe the referendum result will cause corporate insolvency numbers to rise by
Directors are being urged by the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) to make sure their company practices comply with the law. Failure to do so could result in penalties and disqualification. The CMA has provided the following check list: Why should directors help companies avoid breaking competition law? Company directors have a special responsibility to
The government has announced plans to provide £7 billion to expand its affordable housing programme. Housing providers can now apply for a share of the fund, which was allocated an additional £1.4 billion in the Autumn Statement, to deliver 40,000 new affordable houses across the country. Alongside this extra funding, the government is expanding the