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Adopting children from abroad can complete families and be of great benefit to all concerned. However, as a High Court case showed, it is fraught with legal pitfalls and should not be attempted without first taking specialist legal advice. The case...
Allowing yourself to be driven by someone who you know has been drinking is itself negligent and, if an accident occurs, your right to compensation is likely to be badly affected. The High Court made that point in the case of a young man whose life was...
The potential liability of criminals to pay compensation to their victims does not come to an end with their death. In a unique High Court case, that principle was applied to the estate of a paedophile who died leaving a net estate worth almost £4.7...
Investing in property is very far from being risk free but usually has the advantage that monies advanced are secured against real 'bricks and mortar' assets. The crucial importance of ensuring that enforceable security is in place before parting with your...
Family disputes frequently focus on inheritance and can inflict immense anxiety and pain on all concerned. A case concerning a young man who died tragically when he stepped in front of a train, however, showed that the best way to avoid such conflict is to...
Finger-pointing and protestations of innocence are commonplace in the aftermath of serious road accidents. However, as a High Court case concerning a head-on crash in which an elderly woman was badly injured showed, judges are adept at weighing up the...
The most straightforward means of minimising Inheritance Tax (IHT) payable on your estate is to give away your assets with warm hands when you are still hale and hearty. However, such gifts will bring no tax advantages at all unless they are absolute and...
Adopting children from overseas is fraught with legal pitfalls and those who attempt to do so without first taking expert advice expose themselves to heartbreak. In one case, however, the High Court came to the aid of a British woman who adopted a little...
Obtaining fair compensation for holidaymakers who are injured abroad can pose real difficulties. The case of a pensioner who was reduced to a shadow of his former self following a road accident in Spain, however, showed that English lawyers are well equipped...
Home renovations are a notoriously frequent source of dispute and, if you feel that you have been let down by a builder, you should consult a solicitor straight away. In a case on point, a householder won a £200,000 asset freezing order against a...
Home-made wills may save you a few pounds in the short term, but dispensing with legal advice greatly increases the risk of painful disputes arising after you are gone. That was certainly so in the case of a desperately ill man who left the whole of his...
Social media posts fired off in anger can have grave legal consequences even if they are swiftly taken down. In an extreme case on point, a man who revealed his niece's history of mental illness and self-harm to the world online was ordered to pay her...
Accident victims should never be put off seeking compensation merely because they are advanced in years. In one case, a man in his 70s whose autumn years were blighted by injuries suffered when he was knocked off his bicycle by a negligent driver received...
Prioritising prompt payment of your tax bills can be tough, particularly when there are other compelling and unforeseen demands on your limited resources. In a case on point, the First-tier Tribunal (FTT) came to the aid of a man who dipped into his tax...
It is not only in the realms of fiction that lovers choose to marry in secret, away from the gaze of their disapproving families. A highly unusual High Court case , however, showed the legal difficulties that can arise from such arrangements. The case...
The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) has published provisional statistics for fatal workplace injuries in Great Britain for the year 1 April 2019 to 31 March 2020. A total of 111 workers were fatally injured at work in Great Britain in 2019/2020, a...
Tenants should take professional advice before renting out their homes to short-term paying guests via Airbnb, Booking.com or other internet booking sites. In a case on point, a couple who failed to take that sensible step placed themselves in jeopardy by...
For many parents, the objective of a will is to ensure even-handed treatment of loved ones, particularly children. However, as a High Court case strikingly showed, some may be more needy than others and that too should be taken into account. The case...
Road accidents that happen in the blink of an eye can have consequences that last a lifetime, which is why it is so important that victims are properly compensated. In one case, a young woman who suffered devastating injuries in a crash which cost her...
It is easy to be tempted by exotic investment schemes that promise spectacular returns. However, as a High Court case strikingly showed , they are often too good to be true and it is always wise to get an independent professional to check them out before...
Vulnerable negligence victims sadly often fall into the clutches of unqualified people who hold themselves out as professionals with expertise in pursuing compensation claims. A High Court ruling served as a warning to all that practising law is for lawyers...
One of the most crucial aspects of a personal injury lawyer's work is to gather all the information required to build a successful case. The difficulty of that task was shown by a case involving a professional rugby player who claimed to have been injured...
Despite the drive towards achieving economic equality between the sexes, it remains common for women to give up their promising careers to support their husbands and devote themselves to child rearing and home-making. An important High Court ruling ...
Ramblers love footpaths, but the same cannot be said for landowners concerned to protect their privacy and security. That was certainly so in one case in which homeowners with a high media profile won the right to divert a footpath which crossed their...
Despite stringent health and safety rules, accidents at work remain a frequent occurrence and those who suffer injury should consult a solicitor without delay. In one case, a worker who tripped over a no entry sign, installed to deter employees from taking...
If you are an entrepreneur and own your own company, that is all the more reason why you should take professional advice regarding the consequences that might arise on your death. In an unusual High Court case on point , a farm contracting business was left...
No amount of compensation can fully recompense those whose lives are ruined by dangerous drivers, but it can at least give them security for the future. In one case, a grandfather who was struck down on a pelican crossing after a motorist shot a red light...
Few would quarrel with the long-standing rule of law that anyone who unlawfully kills another is barred from benefiting, financially or otherwise, from his or her crime. In a unique decision, however, the High Court waived that rule in the case of an...
In the throes of family breakdown, parents often focus on their own personal battles – but it is the best interests of their children that are always uppermost in family judges' minds. In a case on point, the wishes and feelings of two teenagers ...
Holidaymakers who suffer accidents abroad can face an uphill struggle to obtain just compensation, but specialist English lawyers are well equipped to rise to the challenge. In one case, a woman who was injured when she tripped over a sun lounger at a hotel...
Trusts can be an invaluable means of providing for vulnerable loved ones, but they need careful handling by a professional if they are not to have serious unforeseen consequences. In a case on point, the High Court came to the aid of a retired GP whose...
Thanks to telephone conferencing and video link technology, delivery of civil justice has continued almost unabated during the COVID-19 pandemic – but are remote hearings fair? A judge considered that fundamental issue in ruling that a clinical...
A temporary Stamp Duty Land Tax (SDLT) relief measure has taken immediate effect in England and Northern Ireland after being announced by Chancellor Rishi Sunak in his summer economic statement. The measure has been introduced by the Government to try and...
A fine imposed on a householder for parking her Land Rover on her own land put the conflict between private ownership and public access to the road network in high relief and provided the subject matter for an important High Court test case . For many...
In order to be divorced you obviously have to be validly married, and bigamy remains a surprisingly common occurrence. In one case, the High Court found that a couple's overseas wedding did not render them husband and wife – because she was already...
Psychiatric damage suffered by road accident victims can be just as serious, if not more so, than their physical injuries. In one case, a nurse who was traumatised for months following her involvement in a pile-up was awarded more than £40,000 in...
If someone upon whom you depend financially dies leaving you nothing in his or her will, judges have the power to ensure that you do not go empty-handed. As a High Court case showed, however, that power will only be exercised in your favour if your need for...
The COVID-19 pandemic represents a public emergency which is threatening the life of the nation. A High Court judge wrote those words in reaching the momentous conclusion that, whilst the crisis persists, derogation from certain fundamental human rights is...
Insurance cover under many motor policies is restricted to private vehicles which are used for social, domestic or pleasure purposes only – but what exactly does that mean? The High Court has provided an authoritative answer to that question. The case...
To say that parents bear a moral responsibility to ensure that their children behave themselves in public is uncontroversial – but are they also under a legal duty to do so? The High Court addressed that issue in ruling that the sins of an allegedly...
If a neighbour obtains planning permission for a building project to which you object, that does not always mean you just have to grin and bear it. In a case on point, objectors to a householder's plans to extend his garage succeeded in blocking his proposal...
Reforms to the law surrounding whiplash claims have been delayed by the Ministry of Justice as a result of the coronavirus pandemic. Originally due to be implemented this August, the reforms have now been postponed until April 2021. The forthcoming reforms...
If you die without making a will, there is a real risk that your loved ones may be left high and dry. In one case, a man who said that he was grieving over his partner's death found himself bereft of legal rights and locked out of the flat they once shared. ...
The law has a very long memory and will ensure that victims of misconduct by state agents are properly compensated, however long it takes. In a striking case on point, the High Court awarded six-figure damages to the loved ones of an innocent docker who was...
HMRC are scrapping cheques for the payment and repayment of Inheritance Tax (IHT) and temporarily accepting printed signatures on IHT returns, as a result of the coronavirus crisis. The introduction of new ways of processing IHT and returns is to reduce...
Most road accidents happen in seconds, and working out their exact causes after the event is exceptionally difficult. However, a case in which a woman who was knocked down by a lorry was awarded substantial compensation showed the lengths to which judges...
The Channel Islands may be separated from the UK mainland by miles of water, but they are not overseas countries. In an unusual case, that simple fact was enough to defeat a woman's claim for a pension-sharing order following her divorce in Jersey. After...
One of the benefits of building your own home is that you can claim back VAT paid on materials used in the project – but rebate applications have to be made within three months of the property's completion. That time limit came under analysis in a case...
Reconstructing road accidents which involve multiple vehicles and individuals, all of them coming together in complex sequences of events lasting seconds, poses an enormous challenge. In guaranteeing a gravely injured pedestrian substantial compensation,...
Even people of the greatest intellect can be affected by diminished mental ability in old age and that is one good reason why it makes sense to execute a professionally drafted will sooner rather than later. A case on point concerned an eminent former judge...
