Ballantyne Grant recently received instructions to act on behalf of a developer client which had been served with prohibition notices on several properties which it owned.
All four properties were situated in a fashionable and expensive area of London.
The notices had been served by the local authority which claimed that the properties posed a health and safety risk to occupiers. The notices could have had serious implications for the use of the properties and any subsequent sale value.
An appeal against the orders were lodged and the application was heard in London over 2 days.
All four prohibition orders were quoshed with the tribunal finding the the local authority had exaggerated the risks posed by the properties.
The Housing Act 2004 poses real risks for unsuspecting landlords. If you find yourself on the receiving end of a prohibition notice you will need to act quickly and take expert advice. Contact Andrew Grant on 01244 394 230.
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The 1st February 2012 will see an increase in the amounts payable under employment legislation. The following changes wil be made -
1. The maximum amount of a weeks pay for redundancy purposes increases from £400 to £430.
2.The compensatory award for unfair dismissal increases from £68,400 to £72,300.
3. The statutory guarantee payment increases from £22.20 to £23.50.
For information on these and other increases please contact Andrew Grant on 01244 394 230.
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Please note that this firm will close at 12 pm on the 23rd December 2011 and re open for business at 9 am on the 28th December. We close for new year on Friday the 30th December and re open at 9 am on the 3rd January 2012.
We would like to wish all of our clients and professional colleagues a merry christmas and a happy and prosperous New Year.
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The Supreme Court decision in the case of Jones v Kernott was delivered yesterday. The case concerned the property rights of an unmarried couple after separation. Whilst some may take comfort from the decision the better advice is to make sure you deal with matters properly in the first place !.
In Jones v Kernott the justices decided that where an unmarrried couple had separated and were arguing over their respective shares in jointly owned property the court could , in appropriate circumstances , decide what the parties intentions were and reach a conclusion that achieved the fairest outcome.
What this means in fact is that if matters concerning property ownership are not discussed and agreed then the court will decide who owns what interest !. This is both unsatisfactory and uncertain as it leaves the matter to be decided by lawyers and takes control from the parties.
To avoid this happening is easy, decide the respective interests in property at the outset and if the interests change record that fact.
This article is for general interest and is no substitute for specific legal advice.
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Please note that as of the 26th October 2011 we will be moving to new offices in the centre of Chester. From the above date our new offices are located at 1 Kings Buildings , King Street , Chester , CH1 2 AJ. Our telephone numbers remain unchanged.
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Further to my post in January of this year the government have now announced that as of the 6th April 2012 an employee must have been employed for two years before they can bring a claim for unfair dismissal.This increases the qualifying period by a further 12 months. They have also indicated that as of the 6th April 2013 a claimant will have to pay a fee in order to bring their claim.
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The Agency Workers Regulations 2010 come into force on the 1st October 2011.
The new regulations will be important to agency workers , recruitment agents and end users.
Putting matters simply these regulations are designed to ensure that after a qualifying period temporary workers are entitled to the same basic terms and conditions of employment as an employers own employees.
There are sanctions for non compliance.
If you would like advice on matters referred to in this note then please contact Andrew Grant on 01244 394 230.
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The most recent statistics released by HM Courts and Tribunals Service make interesting reading. Surprisingly single claims appear to have fallen by 15% in the year April 2010 to March 2011 with the number of claims for unfair dismissal and redundancy also reducing. This runs contrary to the perceived view that claims were increasing.
However,one area of growth which has seen significant increase ( 32%) is claims based upon age discrimination which far exceeds claims for other types of discrimination.
The average award for age discrimination is £12,697 whereas awards for other types of discrimination being around £5000 – £6000.
It is a useful indicator of current trends. If you have any queries relating to an employment matter please contact Andrew Grant on 01244 394 230.
]]>The case involved the Supreme Court having to decide whether an arbitration clause in an agreement that provided for the appointment of 3 members of the Ismaili community to act as arbitrators contravened the regulations thus rendering the arbitration agreement void.
It seems to have tested the court somewhat as at first instance the court found that the regulations did not apply to the appointment of arbitrators. An appeal to the court of appeal then reversed that decision which found that the arbitration clause did breach the regulations thus resulting in a further appeal to The Supreme Court.
The Supreme Court found that the Regulations did not apply to the appointment of Arbitrators thus the agreement was valid.
This is an interesting case which probably will not affect a large number of claims but is useful for the clarification given by the court as regards the status of arbitrators.
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Ballantyne Grant today publishes the next in its series of legal guides explaining various aspects of contentious legal work. This time focussing on the legal options available to people with problems who are still at in employment and also the remedies available to people who have been dismissed the Employment Tribunal Proceedings guide gives an overview of this vast and highly-charged area of the law.
You may download your free copy of the guide by either clicking on the images or by clicking this link which will open the guide in a new window. Our guides are only designed to give a brief overview so should you have an employment issue please seek individual legal advice. Ballantyne Grant are employment litigation experts and are happy to provide an initial free discussion without obligation with a senior partner. If you would like to speak to someone in confidence please click here to email.
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