British Gas dismissed and discriminated against mother of triplets
June 1st 2022The Employment Tribunal has ruled that British Gas discriminated against and unfairly dismissed a mother of triplets after a performance review was “stacked against” her following her return from maternity leave. Joanne Stronach Head of Employment and HR reports on this recent case. The case involved Gemma Long, who started work as an intellectual property solicitor for British Gas Trading in 2012. Long went on maternity leave on 29 May 2016…
Insurance company wins £80m contract dispute with IBM
May 23rd 2022IBM has been ordered to pay an insurance company £80m following a contract dispute. Stephanie Johnson Senior Associate Solicitor in our dispute resolution team reports on this recent case. It had agreed to provide Soteria Insurance Ltd with an IT system over a 10-year period. After a series of delays, Soteria refused to pay a “milestone” invoice presented by IBM. Relying on the non-payment, IBM terminated the contract, and the IT system…
Family Business Awards crowns regional champions in front of capacity crowd
May 17th 2022Family businesses from across the North West celebrated in spectacular style at The North West Family Business Awards on Friday night at the Rum Warehouse in Liverpool’s iconic Titanic Hotel. The city’s historic Stanley Docks was the setting for the sell out 2022 Awards, organised by The Family Business Community. The North West Family Business Awards celebrate family businesses of all sizes and sectors covering Cheshire, Cumbria, Lancashire, Greater Manchester…
Restrictive covenant placed on MD ‘reasonable and enforceable’
May 12th 2022A veterinary company has successfully used a restrictive covenant to prevent its former managing director contacting its clients with a view of taking them to his new business. Rebecca Armstrong Associate Solicitor in our dispute resolution team reports on this recent case. The case involved Eville and Jones (Group) Ltd and Aldiss. As managing director, Aldiss was responsible for the day-to-day running of the business and held a 5% share in the company.…
House of Commons employee victimised over hot desking policy
May 9th 2022A House of Commons employee who had a musculoskeletal condition was discriminated against as a result of her office’s hot desking policy. Jennifer Cafferky Solicitor in our employment team reports on this recent case. Ms A Baker had worked at the House of Commons since 1991. She needed to use specialist desk equipment such as an orthopaedic chair, specialist keyboard and mouse, number pad and reading/writing slope. However, due to the…
Franchisor granted injunction to prevent use of confidential data
May 5th 2022A letting boards management franchisor has been granted an injunction to prevent a former franchisee from using confidential data. Mark Aspin Head of Dispute Resolution reports on this recent case. However, it was unable to prevent the former franchisee from setting up a competing business in the area. The case involved Countrywide Signs Ltd, whose business was the erection, maintenance and management of sales and lettings boards used by estate agents. This involved…
The fifth edition of our Agricultural Newsletter is now live
April 26th 2022“Uncertainty is part of life and business, but things at the moment take the biscuit. We have commodity and input prices soaring while the breadbasket of Europe is under threat, and UK food exports sit perishing on motorways. The future of UK farming schemes is becoming clearer, but with many questions still unanswered. For our farming and landowning clients, polishing their crystal ball is becoming a vital skill. Events in…
Law to resolve Covid commercial rent debts comes into effect
April 13th 2022A new law to resolve commercial rent debts accrued because of the pandemic has now come into effect. Carly Davies, our Debt Control Manager, provides an update. The Commercial Rent (Coronavirus) Act 2022 provides a legally binding arbitration process for eligible commercial landlords and tenants who have not already reached an agreement. It’s designed to resolve disputes about certain pandemic-related rent debt and help the market return to normal as quickly as…
Liquidator fails to prove that businessman was a shadow director
April 4th 2022A liquidator has failed to prove that a businessman had acted as a shadow director of a company and was therefore liable for paying compensation for breaches of duty. Sam Lyon Head of Corporate & Commercial reports on this recent case. The case involved three related companies in liquidation. The liquidator brought claims against a director of one of the companies for alleged breaches of his duties, and for declarations that certain payments…
Employee unfairly dismissed after refusing to return to office
March 22nd 2022An employee was unfairly dismissed after he refused to return to the office during the pandemic because he lived with his girlfriend who was clinically vulnerable. Jennifer Cafferky Solicitor in our employment team, reports on this recent case. The case involved Nicholas Quelch, who worked as a compliance analyst at Courtiers Support Services. On March 18, 2020, Quelch began working from home after the Prime Minister said the public must stay…
