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In the last couple of months I have written about the importance of reviewing your Will to ensure it is up-to-date with your personal and financial circumstances, but also in light of any changes to the tax environment. Over the weekend the importance of...
The Supreme Court has handed down its long awaited judgment in Pimlico Plumbers v Gary Smith in a case which has potentially huge ramifications for freelance workers and employment law generally. Mr Smith brought several claims in the Employment Tribunal in...
The Gangmasters and Labour Abuse Authority (GLAA) has recently launched a consultation on its Licensing Standards. Whilst the GLAA still covers the same regulated sectors (agriculture, horticulture, shellfish gathering and associated packaging and...
To mark the final day of Action for Brain Injury (ABI) Week 2018, the team wore their #HatsForHeadway in support of the popular Twitter campaign led by Headway, the brain injury association. The campaign aimed to raise vital funds for the charity and...
The Driver and Vehicle Standard Agency (DVSA) will introduce changes to the MOT test on 20 May 2018. The changes will affect cars, vans, motorcycles and other light passenger vehicles Here’s what you need to know: Categories will evolve from a...
The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) is new legislation which will impact nearly all organisations across Europe from 25 May. The regulation has been introduced in order to strengthen current personal data privacy laws and put all European...
HMRC have recently published a consultation document about their proposed changes to the calculation and payment of capital gains tax (CGT) in relation to the disposal of residential property – but, practically, what might this mean for taxpayers? CGT...
The robotics industry is one of rapid growth and innovation within the food sector. The benefits for productivity, health and safety and profit increase are definitely appealing, but it’s crucial that food businesses do not ‘run before they...
In its recently published 2018-2019 Business Plan, Companies House has set out its robust approach to companies not complying with their Persons with Significant Control (PSC) requirements. Since June 2016 UK companies have been required to hold an...
Since the introduction of new legislation and regulations in respect of Assured Shorthold Tenancy Agreements (ASTs) in England as of 1 October 2015, landlords have had to comply with a series of prescribed requirements which must be satisfied at the...
People always talk about how stressful buying a property is, particularly so if you’re going it alone as I am. Like many first time buyers the rose tinted spectacles were firmly attached to my nose before that first viewing … Lesson 1: remove...
It will not be the first time, and undoubtedly not the last, that permitted development rights are offered by the Government as one of the measures allowing a quick and ready solution to the ongoing issues we face with housing in the country. On 12...
It seems rather surreal writing this in the week after returning from MIPIM, and subsequently reflecting upon our experience there this year, the second for Team Roythornes. Those of you who read the pre-MIPIM blogs that my colleagues and I penned, may...
To mark the last day of Sport Relief 2018, Rob Dempsey of Roythornes Personal Injury department carries out a whistle-stop tour of the relevant points surrounding personal injury claims in sport. “But it’s a man’s game ref!” The...
Since it was ruled that fees in the Employment Tribunal are unlawful and were abolished in July 2017, notifications to ACAS have increased from around 1,700 per week to 2,200. There has also been a recent report from the Ministry of Justice which showed...
The latest Annual Local Authority Road Maintenance Survey (ALARM), compiled by the asphalt industry has been published today (20 March 2018). The analysis of last year’s figures by Rob Dempsey of Roythornes Personal Injury department could be...
According to the Government, 3,430 cyclists were killed or seriously injured between October 2015 and September 2016; this marks a seven per cent increase on the 2010-2014 average. As concerns grow over cyclist safety on British roads, personal injury...
Whilst arguments surrounding gender inequalities may be more apparent in other areas of law, such as employment, the calculation of damages in personal injury claims for men and women is a particular issue where inequality still lies and presents a clear...
It is a time for both review and reflection as I look forward to MIPIM 2018, a year on from our first ever foray into the world of MIPIM, both for me and my colleague, Jo Ladds - personally as well as for us as a company. It is interesting to sit back and...
In December I wrote about the research into the use of Agricultural Property Relief and Business Property Relief , the aim of which was to help HMRC to understand how people utilise these reliefs in estate planning. Following this, on 19 January,...
So says the Health Secretary, Mr Jeremy Hunt, following new data compiled by researchers drawn from Manchester, Sheffield and York universities. It is further reported that GPs, pharmacists, hospitals and care homes may be making 237 million errors a year...
The new National Minimum Wage and the new National Living Wage, which will apply from 1 April 2018, have been announced by the government and, according to the Low Pay Commission, this is the largest increase for 18-20 year olds and 21-24 year olds in a...
Calls from health leaders in a letter to Justice Secretary David Gauke urged for reform to payments for negligence claims against the NHS. In 2017, changes to the calculation used to work out how much a victim of negligence should receive upfront to...
In an interview with Business Green, MD of Chinese battery storage giant BYD (Build Your Dreams), Tom Zhao, says that making renewable energy more accessible is the key to growing the sector as a whole and he believes that the UK has great potential when it...
Last week, the government published its response to “Good Work: the Taylor Review of Modern Working Practices”. This independent review published in July made a series of recommendations designed to improve the working conditions of atypical...
What do you get when you cross a husband, a wife, a senior manager with 20 years’ service and an accusation of historic criminal activity? Answer: a management nightmare. Unfortunately these complex scenarios are a lot more common than you might...
Following a successful day working on The Green Backyard garden project in conjunction with Headway Cambridgeshire , Roythornes’ Personal Injury department would like to highlight these two great charities to give them the recognition they...
The electrical manufacturer Whirlpool has again been in the news following a parliamentary report which claims that it has provided an “inadequate” response to defective tumble driers produced and sold over a period of more than 10 years. It is...
The Town and Country Planning (Fees for Applications, Deemed Applications, Requests and Site Visits) (England) (Amendment) Regulations 2017 (Regulations) were made on 20 December 2017, essentially introducing a 20% increase in planning fees, and came into...
Regulation 12 of the Working Time Regulations 1998 (WTR) requires employers to give employees a rest break of not less than 20 minutes if a worker’s daily working time is more than six hours. It is important to ensure, therefore, that your business...
Following recent complaints to Transport for London, it is evident that the new procedures currently being trialled on London buses are not to everyone’s taste. But the question remains: where do individuals stand when injured as a result of a bus...
In the wake of a significant case that saw a couple jailed for making fake holiday sickness claims the government is addressing the issue of food poisoning claims, however it’s important to put allegations of fraud into context. The recent case of...
National Grid statistics show that, thanks to a boost in renewable power, the UK had its greenest year ever in 2017, breaking thirteen clean energy records. Overall in 2017, renewable energy sources outstripped coal plant production three-fold, beating the...
At the One Planet summit in Paris earlier this month, French president Emmanuel Macron led a meeting of minds from 50 countries to discuss worldwide action against climate change ahead of 2020, the year the Paris Agreement is due to come into force. One of...
Two 2017 cases are useful reminders of the limits to farmers’ freedom of movement when it comes to the building of flood defences on their land. In one case we see that land ownership does not give you the right to refuse entry for approved...
As the dust settles following the Autumn Budget, in amongst the various documents released around the same time, HMRC published research on the use of Agricultural Property Relief (APR) and Business Property Relief (BPR), and taxpayers’ attitudes...
The General Data Protection Regulations (GDPR) come in to force in May 2018 and, despite the fact that they have been widely publicised since 2016, a recent survey identified that only 7% of business felt they were ‘very prepared’ for the...
In last week’s Autumn Budget, Chancellor Phillip Hammond pulled out an early Christmas present from Santa’s sack, by removing and reducing Stamp Duty Land Tax (SDLT) for first-time buyers with immediate effect. First-time buyers now purchasing...
We are still seeing examples of employers failing to serve the correct documentation before handing over the keys of a cottage to new farm workers. They think they are granting an assured shorthold tenancy (AST) and that they will be able to recover...
Bereavement damages have been in the spotlight again following the recent decision of the Court of Appeal in the case of Smith v Secretary of State for Justice. Bereavement awards in England and Wales are provided for under the Fatal Accidents Act 1976. The...
The Tenancy Reform Industry Group (TRIG) has been meeting over the last few months to develop recommendations for changes that relate to both Agricultural Holdings Act (AHA) tenancies and farm business tenancies (FBTs). The Group picked up on themes from...
On 2 November 2017 the Bank of England reversed the drop in interest rates which came into effect on 2 August 2016. This means the base interest rate is back up to 0.5%, a level first introduced in March 2009. What does this mean for your entitlement to...
As recently as 1959, it was illegal NOT to celebrate Bonfire Night in the UK, and with the big night fast approaching again, it is vitally important to appreciate the legal implications involved when using fireworks, sparklers or creating bonfires....
To mark the success of the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents’ (RoSPA) annual month-long workplace safety campaign, #OSHtober , Roythornes is continuing to raise awareness of work-related musculoskeletal disorders (WRMSDs) and the effect...
The Commercial Agents (Council Directive) Regulations 1993 was implemented to clarify and protect the rights of commercial agents who engage with principals to sell products on their behalf. Generally, commercial agents have the right to a compensation...
Pre-Action Protocol for Debt Claims will come into effect on 1 October 2017 This Protocol applies to any business (including a sole trader or public body) claiming payment from an individual (including sole traders) and describes the conduct the court...
An online service for selected personal applicants of ‘non-complex’ estates has, in fact, been available under a pilot scheme since November 2016. The launch now invites all personal applicants to apply providing certain criteria are met:...
Shruti Trivedi, Head of Planning at Roythornes recently delivered a planning update on the application of the Community Infrastructure Levy Regulations 2010 (as amended) (the Regulations). This prompted some interesting questions with regards to rural...
The outcome of a case where a minor was injured falling into a collapsed manhole cover in Nottingham is likely to set a precedent for future cases regarding disputes on the maintenance of private land. Acting on behalf of the child, who cannot be named...
A new raft of anti-money laundering rules has important implications for all trusts, and trustees need to be aware of their new obligations. A new Trusts Register Individuals and trusts are subject to stringent anti-money laundering laws. The EU’s...
