Franchisor’s restraint of trade covenant held to be unenforceable
September 22nd 2022A franchisor has been told by the High Court that its restraint of trade provisions in a franchise agreement were unenforceable. Sam Lyon Head of Corporate & Commercial reports on this recent case. Dwyer (UK Franchising) operated an emergency plumbing and drainage franchise business. In September 2018, an individual trading as Fredbar entered into a 10-year franchise, which would be his sole source of income. He had a mortgage on the family home…
Tenant not liable after sub-tenant unlawfully evicted by landlord
September 20th 2022The High Court has overturned a decision that a tenant was liable to pay damages to his sub-tenant after she was unlawfully evicted by the property owner. Natalie Tatton, Solicitor in our dispute team provides an update. Mr Brem rented a hairdressing salon from the property owner Mr Marchant, with the agreement that he could also make use of the flat upstairs. Brem sub-let the flat to a member of his salon staff,…
Leading solicitors helps lay alliance’s legal foundations for £4m contract wins
September 9th 2022A LEADING Cumbrian law firm is celebrating one of its client’s winning contracts worth more than £4million. Collaboration and joint ventures are becoming ever more prevalent for SMEs looking to combine their skills and expertise to bid for major industry contracts across a range of sectors. In order to meet the needs of those awarding the contracts and to make successful bids, specific legal frameworks often need to be set…
Sharp rise in number of firms facing insolvency and financial distress
September 5th 2022The number of firms going out of business or facing serious financial distress has risen sharply this year, according to the latest figures. Carly Davies, our Debt Control Manager reports. The Insolvency Service says there were 5,629 corporate insolvencies in Q2, an increase of 12.7% compared to Q1’s figures of 4,995, and an increase of 81.3% compared to Q2 2021 (3,105). Meanwhile, the Red Flag Alert produced by the recovery, financial advisory,…
A step beyond – how family businesses can legalise their values and purpose
August 11th 2022Family businesses are well-known for taking the long-term view, with business sustainability and the wider community impact being forefront in their development strategy. Increasingly, all business sectors are adopting a shifting mindset that considers a “triple bottom line” of people, planet and profit, moving away from the desire to simply make profit. We have all come across examples of businesses that make bold claims on their website about their purpose-driven…
Marketing firm’s post-termination covenant ruled unreasonable
August 8th 2022A marketing company has been told that the post-termination covenant in a contract with one of its former suppliers was not enforceable because it prevented fair competition. Mark Aspin Director and Head of Dispute Resolution reports on this recent case. The case involved Mr Lambert, who ran his own business, and Credico Marketing Ltd. Credico operated by entering into trading agreements with independent sales advisers or the company they represented, and those…
Businessmen must personally honour company’s loan repayment
August 4th 2022Two businessmen have been told they are liable to repay a business loan even though the money was paid into their company’s account. Sam Lyon Head of Corporate & Commercial reports on this recent case. The businessmen owned the company, which was in financial difficulties. They asked an associate to lend them £50,000, without stating if the loan would be made to the company or them personally. The loan agreement was drafted and…
Advice for employers with staff caught up in holiday travel chaos
August 2nd 2022A LEADING employment lawyer has issued advice for businesses with employees caught up in the current international travel chaos. The first week of the school holidays has seen lengthy queues at the Port of Dover, with the chaos at the ferry port mirrored by delays at international airports, with many holidaymakers left stranded abroad with flights either postponed or cancelled. The delays are expected to intensify over the next six…
Water company granted injunction against former business manager
July 28th 2022A water company has been granted an injunction against its former business development manager after he breached post-termination restrictive covenants in his employment contract. Mark Aspin Director and Head of Dispute Resolution reports on this recent case. The case involved ATAC Solutions, which provides water and waste services to commercial and domestic customers, and its former manager Mr Crotty. Crotty had started working for ATAC in 2017. He was the principal contact for…
Do your employees have permission to work, and do you know how to conduct Right to Work Checks?
July 20th 2022One of the basic requirements on all employers is to ensure that the people they employ have permission to work in the UK. From April 2022 the process that employers need to follow when conducting right to work checks changed – you can no longer accept physical cards or permits, you must undertake digital checks. Civil penalties are imposed on organisations that have employed an individual who does not have…
