Company News Archive
Working Abroad and Tax Residence
5th October 2011
If you move abroad to work, you pay your tax where you now live and that is the end of the matter. Or is it? Regrettably not. The UK tax system is a ‘world tax’ system, which seeks to tax the...
Nuisance Claim Against Landfill Company Fails
3rd October 2011
Before you purchase a property, it is wise to make sure you are aware of the implications of any permitted uses of the land surrounding it. A recent case, in which the courts declined to prevent a landowner from carrying out activities which,...
Radical changes to taxation system proposed by IFS
29th September 2011
According to a new report from the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) – Tax by Design – the current tax system is "inefficient, overly complex and...
Wills Still a Potential Minefield for Many
29th September 2011
According to a recent poll, more than one in eight wills is ‘self-written’ and one in 10 of those people who have made a will fails to tell anyone where it is. Since nearly 4 out of every 10 adults have not made a will in the first...
Animal Owners and the Law
28th September 2011
Damage by animals is not common, despite the lurid headlines one sees in the popular press. However, if your animal does cause damage or injury to someone else, what is the extent of your liability? As well as a...
Court of Appeal Backs Prospective Adopters
23rd September 2011
A recent case shows how unwilling the court will be to change an adoption order once it has been made. The case concerned a...
No Penalty for Driving While Using Mobile as a Dictaphone
21st September 2011
The comedian Jimmy Carr was recently successful in using a loophole in the law to avoid a fine for using a mobile phone whilst driving. The argument was based on the fact that he was using...
Changes to US Estate Tax
20th September 2011
Anyone who has substantial assets in the United States, is a US citizen, or expects to inherit assets situated in the USA or which are the property of US citizens, should take note of recent changes to the US Estate Tax.
Past Behaviour Indicates Intent
15th September 2011
A recent case illustrates the importance for cohabiting couples of giving careful consideration to property ownership and inheritance issues.
Claim Procedure Reforms Will Affect Smaller Claims
14th September 2011
With all the recent publicity surrounding the proposed changes to the ‘no win, no fee’ regime, another set of proposals, which may well be of greater importance to many people, has slipped under the radar of the popular press.
Unfair Trading Legislation Stops Bogus Prize Draws
12th September 2011
Not many prosecutions are brought under the Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations 2008, which are designed to protect consumers from the...
Misplaced Fence Leads to 163;20,000 Bill
12th September 2011
A fence put up by a Devon couple will cost them more than £20,000 in legal fees and re-erection costs after the court decided that it was built a few inches the wrong side of their boundary with their next-door neighbours.
HMRC Checks on IHT Valuations
12th September 2011
In the year to December 2010, HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) raised in the region of £70 million in additional tax as a result of challenging property valuations included in the estates of people who had died.
Buyer Loses Flat Because of Vendor's Error
12th September 2011
A recent case illustrates that, when mistakes occur, it may not always be possible to put them right. A buyer and seller...
Divorced Man Can Keep 163;1 Million in Pre-marital Assets
8th September 2011
A divorced man has won the right to retain £1 million of his pre-marital assets before a 50/50 division of the remainder of the couple’s joint...
Transferable Nil-Rate Bands - New Code of Practice
6th September 2011
If a person's estate does not fully utilise the nil-rate band for Inheritance Tax (IHT) purposes, the unused proportion of the nil-rate band can be used on the death of that person’s spouse or civil partner. This is termed the...
Will Conditions Lead to Court Appearance
31st August 2011
It may be tempting (but is probably just tempting fate) to put a ‘qualification’ clause in a will whereby a person inherits only if they do something or refrain from doing something. Where it is...
Helping Out in Court - The McKenzie Friend
29th August 2011
A ‘McKenzie Friend’, named after the case which established the legal principles in 1970, is a person who assists another person in legal proceedings in open court when the person who is party to the proceedings requires support...
'Over-Hasty' Child Contact Arrangement Overturned on Appeal
26th August 2011
The Court of Appeal has overturned the decision of a lower court to allow a father, against whom allegations of violence towards the mother of his child had been made, to vary the terms of contact arrangements made earlier so that he could...
Landlords Face Costs in Disputes
23rd August 2011
The general principle that ‘the loser pays the costs of the winner’ does not apply to disputes brought before the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal (LVT). The maximum amount the LVT can require the loser to pay is £500, and only...
