Business Law

A Nuffield Health employee has been awarded £148,000 after an employment tribunal found she suffered detriment and was constructively dismissed following concerns she raised about Ministry of Defence fitness testing procedures. Jennifer Cafferky, Associate Solicitor in our employment team, reports on this recent case. The tribunal heard that the claimant, a personal trainer, raised concerns in June 2022 about the way a pre-joining fitness test had been conducted. She believed that…

Councils across England are to receive £41 million in new funding to help enforce the Renters’ Rights Act, which came into effect on 1 May. Rob Winder Senior Associate Chartered Legal Executive and Head of Property Litigation in our Dispute Resolution team provides an update. The funding is intended to support local authorities in carrying out new legal duties, including overseeing a ban on “no-fault” evictions and tackling rogue landlords. Ministers said the…

The government has announced a package of reforms aimed at tackling late payments to small businesses, including new enforcement powers, mandatory interest on overdue invoices and limits on how long larger companies can take to pay their suppliers. Carly Davies, our Debt Recovery Manager provides an update. The changes would give the Small Business Commissioner new authority to investigate payment practices, resolve disputes and impose financial penalties on companies that repeatedly pay…

A property manager has been awarded nearly £392,000 after succeeding in a long-running claim for unpaid holiday entitlement built up over decades of service. Jennifer Cafferky, Associate Solicitor in our employment team, reports on this recent case. The Employment Tribunal found that Mr Mohamed Ageli, who had worked for Sabtina Limited since 1987, had accrued a substantial amount of untaken leave which had been carried forward year after year under a…

The Supreme Court has clarified an important point of company law, ruling that shareholders are not subject to any statutory time limit when bringing unfair prejudice claims, even where the complaint relates to events that took place many years earlier. Mark Aspin Director and Head of Dispute Resolution provides an update. Unfair prejudice claims, brought under section 994 of the Companies Act 2006, allow shareholders to ask the court to intervene where…

A company has been awarded almost £4m after the Court of Appeal ruled that it did not lose its right to terminate a contract, even though it continued supplying services for several months after the event that triggered the termination right. Joseph Halvorsen, Solicitor Apprentice, reports on this recent case. The case concerned an electricity supply agreement and the principle of waiver by election – whether a party entitled to…

Landlords and letting agents will be required to provide tenants with new official information explaining upcoming changes to rental law, as the Renters’ Rights Act is due to come into force on 1 May 2026. Haley Howells, Apprentice Paralegal working in our dispute resolution team, provides an update. The government has published an information document setting out the changes, which must be given to tenants by 31 May 2026. The…

Farming has always involved risk – weather, markets, livestock, machinery. Yet one of the biggest risks we see regularly isn’t outside the farm gate at all. It’s the absence of a clear partnership agreement between the people actually running the business. Jonathan Carroll, Director & Head of Agriculture, explores why partnership agreements are essential for farming families. If one of the partners died tomorrow, would everyone know exactly what happens…

A female security officer who was repeatedly called “mummy” by male colleagues and subjected to sexist and racist behaviour at work has been awarded almost £69,000 in compensation by an employment tribunal. Jennifer Cafferky, Associate Solicitor in our employment team, reports on this recent case. The tribunal found that the woman, identified only as CL, was harassed on grounds of sex and age while working as a security officer for Mitie…

Prominent law firm Cartmell Shepherd is continuing to grow its team with the appointment of a new trainee solicitor – the 10th individual to receive their backing. Tom Miller has joined the agricultural property team based at Rosehill in Carlisle. He was born and bred in the city, attended Nelson Thomlinson School, and comes from a farming family so his first role in the company’s team is perfectly placed. “I’ve…