Read our latest articles, news briefs and legal updates across all our different services.
A property management company effectively validated a break clause notice by accepting it as an email – even though the lease required more formal notification. The case involved a tenant who leased commercial premises for a term of ten years starting on 1st March 2005. The break clause allowed for termination of the lease after
The number of companies going out of business in England and Wales fell dramatically last year, according to figures from the Insolvency Service A total of 4,905 businesses went into receivership or administration, or entered into company voluntary arrangements in 2010. That was a fall of 23% on 2009, which was the record year for
Great care is needed when drawing up restrictive covenants; if they are not tight enough they may not be effective, but if they are too restrictive the courts may not enforce them. A recent case gives a good insight into how the courts may view certain anti-competition clauses. It involved an estate agency and one
Landlords who rent out a holiday home on a regular basis will soon need an Energy Performance Certificate or risk facing a fine. Until now, the certificates have not been necessary for short holiday lets where there is no intention to create a tenancy. That will change on 30th June when certificates will be needed
The moratorium on new employment laws for small firms has now come into effect but business groups say that EU regulations will remain a major burden. The moratorium was announced in the Budget and covers start-up businesses and small firms with fewer than 10 employees. HMRC is defining a start-up firm as a business that
Tesco has been fined £48,000 for risking the safety of some of its staff. The company admitted that in 2009 it had failed to provide a safe working system relating to the loading and unloading of vehicles at its store at Warfield near Bracknell Forest in Berkshire. It had also failed to provide information, instruction,
Buying and selling businesses can be fraught with difficulties as highlighted in a recent case before the High Court. It involved a company that wanted to sell one of its subsidiaries. A Chief Operation Officer was appointed to oversee the sale and a purchaser was found. The officer prepared an information memorandum which described the
The High Court has ruled that a limited liability partnership had no right to expel one of its partners because there was no binding agreement giving it the necessary powers. The case involved a recruitment agency in which the three members had marketed themselves as partners since 2004. They then started to consider becoming a
The Government has shelved plans to extend the Time to Train regulations to smaller firms. Employees with organisations employing more than 250 people have had the right to request time for training since April 2010. The previous Labour Government had planned to extend that right to small and medium-sized businesses in April this year. However,
New research has revealed that businesses are becoming increasingly worried about the twin problems of rising debts and falling profits. Surveys carried out by the insolvency trade body R3 show that one in five businesses (19%) are worried about the amount of debt they owe to their creditors. At the same time, more than 850,000