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Sporting and other community facilities are obviously desirable but, as a guideline High Court ruling showed , there are effective legal steps you can take if they become a magnet for anti-social behaviour that amounts to a statutory nuisance. Three...
Motorway collisions commonly involve multiple vehicles and it can be a very difficult forensic task to discern where responsibility for them lies. The High Court, however, rose to the challenge in ruling that a bakery van driver was solely to blame for one...
Family judges are often called upon to make agonising decisions concerning medical treatment of those who have lost the ability to express their own choices. However, as one case showed, they bend every sinew to discern what their wishes might be and to...
Employers are required to perform risk assessments and to have policies in place to ensure the reasonable safety of their staff. As a Court of Appeal ruling concerning a pupil's assault on a teacher showed, however, it can be very difficult to prove that...
It is commonplace for parents to put their hands in their pockets to help their children set up in business. As a High Court ruling in a bitterly contested inheritance case showed , however, a failure to formally document the precise legal basis on which...
Few would quarrel with the principle that, where personal injury claims are tainted by fundamental dishonesty, they should be dismissed in their entirety. As a High Court ruling showed, however, there must always be a fair opportunity to answer such grave...
No one should be surprised to hear that, when a same-sex couple have a child following lawful IVF treatment, each of them has a right to be registered as the child's legal parent. However, as a High Court case showed , whilst the law has generally kept pace...
It is an established fact that certain foreign powers resort to violence and the use of surveillance software to target dissidents in the UK. In a ground-breaking ruling, the High Court considered whether the principle of state immunity precludes them from...
When interpreting wills, judges focus on the actual words used and that is one good reason why professional drafting really matters. As a guideline case showed , only in the event that the wording of a will is meaningless or ambiguous will extraneous...
The debate over whether there should be 'no-fault' damages awards for injuries caused in road accidents has been raging for decades. The law, however, currently requires proof of negligence and – as a Court of Appeal ruling showed – that means...
There are few things more concerning than a proposal by your neighbours to extend their property in a way that may threaten the structural integrity of your home. As one case showed, however, voicing your opposition to such a proposal via the planning system...
Some divorcees drag their feet in a misguided attempt to put off the hour when they must divide their assets with their ex-partners. However, a case involving a husband who caused costly delay when he asserted that he had COVID-19 showed that family judges...
The acrimonious end of intimate relationships is sadly often marked by the making of wounding accusations. However, as a High Court case made plain , anyone involved in such personal disputes should think long and hard before resorting to defamation...
The vast majority of accident victims are entirely honest, but there are sadly always a few who exaggerate their suffering with a view to upping their compensation. A High Court ruling served as a stern warning that those whose claims are infected by...
The majority of personal injury and clinical negligence claims culminate in an agreed financial settlement. However, as one case showed, such deals do not mark the end of the supervisory role played by judges in ensuring that often very large sums in...
It is a sad fact that many people lose their ability to make rational decisions in old age and that is why it is so vital to make a professionally drafted will before time catches up with you. The point was powerfully made by a High Court ruling . About...
Losses incurred on the disposal of an asset can be set against future profits on other investments for Capital Gains Tax (CGT) purposes. As a First-tier Tribunal (FTT) ruling showed , however, behind that simple statement lie layers of complexity. The case...
In a unique decision arising from a woman's tragic death when pregnant with twins, the High Court gave posthumous effect to her longstanding wish to have a child by granting her bereaved husband permission to make use of an embryo stored in a fertility...
Those in the early stages of asbestos-related illness often receive an initial award of damages on the basis that they can seek further compensation in the event that their condition deteriorates. In a ruling which broke new legal ground , the High Court...
Those involved in catastrophic road accidents frequently point the finger of blame at potholes or other defects in the road surface. As one case showed, however, it can be an uphill task to pin responsibility for such accidents on highway authorities. The...
If your land has been compulsorily purchased to make way for a public infrastructure project, you are entitled to full and fair compensation. Local authorities may be keen to pay as little as possible in such cases but, as an Upper Tribunal (UT) ruling...
When accidents happen abroad, the first hurdle that must be overcome in seeking compensation in this country is to show that the claim falls within the jurisdiction of the English courts. That can be a far from straightforward task but, as one case showed,...
When people die, it is the duty of the administrators of their estates to gather in their assets and distribute them to those entitled to inherit them. As a case concerning the contents of a deceased artist's flat showed , however, that task is by no means...
Highway authorities and private landowners alike are under a legal duty to address tripping hazards so that pedestrians can move around in reasonable safety. As a High Court ruling made plain, however, that is not a counsel of perfection. The case concerned...
Justice that can be accessed only by the super-rich is not justice at all. A High Court judge made that point in noting that financial remedy proceedings in divorce cases are fast heading for Ritz Hotel status – affordable only by the well-heeled...
There is such a thing as a reasonable excuse for failing to file your self-assessment tax return. However, in an unusual case, the First-tier Tribunal (FTT) ruled that a businessman's alleged debilitating fear of making a mistake in his return did not...
When negotiating the settlement of personal injury cases, lawyers know only too well that a bird in hand can be worth two in the bush. That was certainly so in the case of a cyclist who suffered a catastrophic brain injury in a road accident. The woman, in...
Alternative investments may offer attractive rates of return, but they should never be entered into without professional advice. A High Court case concerning numerous small investors who staked their life savings on the success of an ill-fated hotel...
No one knows when death will come calling and it is equally a truism that, if you fail to make a professionally drafted will, you store up trouble for your loved ones after you are gone. As an unusual Family Court ruling showed, that is particularly so if...
Boundaries between properties are usually marked by a line on a small-scale Land Registry plan but they may be invisible on the ground. Precisely that difficulty was the root cause of a bitter dispute between owners of two riverside homes. The owners could...
There can be few questions of greater importance than 'Who is my parent?'. A judge made that point in taking the unprecedented step of enabling rectification of an adopted woman's birth certificate to reflect the identity of her natural father. The...
The road to justice for those who have suffered terrible wrongs can be excruciatingly long and hard, but persistence will often win the day. That was certainly so in the case of a retired police officer who was with WPC Yvonne Fletcher when she was gunned...
In a ruling which will be greeted with joy by the growing community of self-builders , a couple who made a very handsome return on their 'Grand Designs'-style project have been relieved of a six-figure Capital Gains Tax (CGT) bill. The couple bought a plot...
If you suffer an accident at work, personal injury lawyers can be relied upon to do all in their power to ensure you are fully compensated. That was certainly so in the case of a workman who was dreadfully injured in an explosion whilst dismantling a...
Lasting powers of attorney (LPAs) enable thousands of vulnerable people to have their financial and other affairs managed by others whom they trust. However, as a High Court case showed , it is vital to remember that they can only be granted by those who...
In divorce proceedings, those who make overly ambitious financial claims or fail to enter into reasonable negotiations are highly likely to end up worse off. The point was powerfully made by a case in which a bitterly opposed former couple ran up more than...
Road traffic accidents can, in the twinkling of an eye, turn a happy day out into a life-changing tragedy. That was certainly so in the case of a young woman who was struck by a car and severely injured as she left a public event. The streets were congested...
Claims to non-UK residency for tax purposes are a political and fiscal hot potato and HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) are, to say the least, reluctant to accept them. In an exceptional case, however, the First-tier Tribunal (FTT) backed a hard-pressed...
If your human rights are breached, you may well have a right to compensation and should consult a solicitor without delay. In a case on point, a teenager whose father died in prison achieved a substantial settlement of her claim against an NHS trust that...
There will always be some people who believe that making your own will represents a sensible economy. However, as a High Court ruling strikingly showed , saving the modest expense of having your will professionally drafted may come at a frightful emotional...
Brave and determined road accident victims often make remarkable recoveries even from the most serious injuries and go on to achieve great things in life. However, as a case concerning a talented artist showed, such success need not lead to the sacrifice of...
Vindictive bloggers who hide behind a cloak of anonymity may feel that they can use the internet to subject innocent people to abuse with complete impunity. However, in coming to the aid of an academic falsely accused of being a sexual predator, the High...
Freehold owners of land generally believe that, subject to planning permission, they can develop their properties in whatever way they wish. However, as a High Court ruling strikingly showed, that is by no means always the case. Two men wished to build...
Recent census 2021 data discovers that an astounding number of properties are left uninhabited in the Swansea and Rhondda areas. The first batch of data from the 2021 Census has been released, and it has revealed some surprising statistics regarding the...
It is obviously right that fathers should pick up a fair share of the tab for raising their offspring, but exactly how deep into their pockets should they be made to dig? The High Court tackled that issue in considering whether a wealthy father should be...
Couples generally either own their homes as joint tenants or as tenants in common. The distinction between the two may not be widely understood but, as a High Court ruling in an inheritance case showed , it can matter very much indeed. The case concerned a...
In the heat of the moment, people are wont to express strong, binary opinions as to where blame for a road accident lies but, from the legal perspective, liability issues can be much more difficult to resolve. That was certainly so in the case of a cyclist...
Religious leaders by definition have influence over their congregations. However, as a High Court ruling showed, where that influence is alleged to have been abused, the law will not turn away those who claim to have suffered. The case concerned the former...
At what point can it be said that an embryonic business has begun to trade? A tax tribunal pondered that fundamental issue in a case concerning a claim for entrepreneurs' relief on the sale of a nascent business asset. An investor sold his minority stake...
Pre- and post-nuptial agreements that do not fairly meet the reasonable needs of one divorcing party or the other are unlikely to be worth the paper they are written on. The High Court made that point in refusing to hold a wife to the disadvantageous terms ...
