Director banned for paying herself while failing to pay creditors
June 30th 2021A broker who traded while insolvent and took money from her company for herself while failing to pay creditors £140,000 has been disqualified for seven years. Mark Aspin Director & Head of Dispute Resolution reports. Kathleen Shepherd, aged 58, from Southampton, was the sole director of Shepherd Site Services Limited, a company which acted as a broker to provide waste management services to the construction industry. The company went into administration…
Leaseholders not liable for cost of repairing structural defects
May 17th 2021The Court of Appeal has ruled that a group of leaseholders were not responsible for the cost of repairs if those repairs also made good fundamental structural defects in their properties. Natalie Tatton Solicitor reports on this recent case. The leases related to flats situated in a large block constructed in 1957. They were for 125-year terms and were originally granted under the right to buy provisions in the Housing…
Landlord entitled to unpaid rent despite tenant’s Covid defence
May 4th 2021A commercial landlord has won a dispute over unpaid rent of more than £166,000 despite the tenant citing Covid-19 as the reason for its failure to pay. Stephanie Johnson Senior Associate Solicitor reports on this recent case. The case involved Commerz Real Investmentgesellschaft MBH and TFS Stores Ltd. Commerz was the leasehold owner of the Westfield Shopping Centre. TFS was the tenant of one of the units in the centre…
Government extends support for commercial and residential tenants
March 29th 2021The government has extended the ban on evicting commercial tenants until 30th June 2021. Natalie Tatton Solicitor in our Dispute Resolution team provides an update. The move is designed to help those worst affected by the pandemic, such as bars and restaurants, get back to business when doors fully reopen for hospitality no earlier than 17th May. Residential tenants will also be supported as the ban on bailiff-enforced evictions in…
Publisher granted injunction against its former chief executive
March 3rd 2021A publishing company has been granted a further injunction preventing its former chief executive officer from disclosing sensitive information obtained during his employment. Mark Aspin Director & Head of Dispute Resolution reports. The executive had worked for the publisher until he was dismissed for gross misconduct in 2018. He threatened to bring employment tribunal proceedings, but the case was settled in July 2018. The settlement agreement defined what confidential information…
Ban on tenant evictions by bailiffs extended until end of March
February 23rd 2021The ban on tenant evictions by bailiffs, which was imposed because of the Covid19 pandemic, has been extended until 31 March. Natalie Tatton, Solicitor in our Dispute Resolution team provides an update. Exemptions remain in place for the most serious circumstances that cause the greatest strain on landlords as well as other residents and neighbours, such as illegal occupation, anti-social behaviour and arrears of 6 months’ rent or more. The…
Travel agency ‘wrong to use data from rival’s former employees’
February 18th 2021The Court of Appeal has ruled that a travel agency was wrong to take client contact information disclosed by its competitor’s former employees and add it to its own computer database. Mark Aspin Director and Head of Dispute Resolution reports. The issue arose after the agency, Trailfinders, hired some employees from a rival agency, Travel Counsellors Ltd (TCL). Trailfinders expected new employees to bring their own customers and encouraged them…
Tenant not allowed to change defence over service charges
February 15th 2021A commercial tenant has been refused permission to re-amend its defence to a service charge claim four weeks before trial. Stephanie Johnson Associate Solicitor reports. The court ruled that although the new defences had reasonable prospects of success, they could have been pleaded earlier and there was no good reason for the delay. The issue arose because the tenant refused to pay certain elements of the service charge relating to the…
Will Your Business Qualify for Covid-19 Business Interruption Insurance?
January 21st 2021Mark Aspin Director and Head of Dispute Resolution provides an update. Since last May, we’ve been following the proceedings launched by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) to add some clarity to the availability of “Business Interruption” (BI) insurance as a result of business closures as a result of the pandemic. Last September the High Court came to its conclusions, and as the national press has now reported the Supreme Court…
Business Dispute: What types of company disputes do you deal with?
January 1st 2021Business Dispute: What types of company disputes do you deal with? We deal with a wide spectrum of business disputes, including:- Director disputes- Breach of director duties- Shareholder duties- Breach of shareholder agreements- Unfair prejudice petitions- Minority shareholder protection- Conflicts of interest- Insolvency disputes- LLP and partnership disputes
