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The number of first-time home buyers in 2014 was at its highest level for seven years, according to the Halifax bank. This was in spite of the fact that house prices rose by an average of 8.5% last year. The Halifax says that 326,500 people bought their first home last year – a 22% increase
A woman has won a legal dispute with a charity over the meaning of her mother’s will. It means she will inherit an extra £325,000. The case involved a woman who made a will leaving her daughter all the tax-free money from her estate. The remainder was to go to the Woodland Trust charity. When
We tend to associate flexible working with women but it should also be available to men on an equal basis. Otherwise male workers may be entitled to bring a discrimination claim as happened in a recent case before the Employment Tribunal. It involved a man who was employed by a large accountancy firm. He had
The emergence of E-cigarettes has set a new challenge for employers who need to ensure they have clear rules about how they might be used in the workplace. The electronic cigarettes have become a popular replacement for many smokers, but there are some health professionals who warn they could still be damaging to health. Smoking
The European Court of Justice (ECJ) has ruled that obesity can constitute a disability in certain circumstances if it impairs a person’s ability to work. The ruling will have major implications for employers in the UK who may have to make adjustments for overweight employees or run the risk of discrimination claims. The court made
The Court of Appeal has ruled that a judge got it wrong when calculating the divorce settlement for a woman who gave up a lucrative career to look after her children. The case of Julia Hammans will now be re-tried by another judge to ensure that she is treated fairly. The court heard that Ms
A judge’s decision to separate two teenage brothers from their mother and also from each other was based on her own personal opinion of the boys and has therefore been overturned. The residence of the brothers came into dispute ten years after the separation of their parents. They had always lived with their mother and
Two sisters have been appointed to manage the estate of their mother who is suffering from dementia. The appointments were made by the Court of Protection despite an objection from a brother of the two sisters. The case involved a woman who had not drawn up a lasting power of attorney stating who she wanted
A landlord has been prevented from serving a possession notice because the tenant’s deposit had not been placed in an authorised protection scheme. This was in spite of the fact that that the deposit had been paid before the Tenancy Deposit Scheme (TDS) regulations came into force. The case involved a tenant who had started
A contractor that was left more than £100,000 out of pocket when a customer cancelled a building project has been awarded damages by the High Court. The compensation was awarded even though the firm didn’t have a signed contract. The issue arose after the firm won a tender to build an extension to a house.