Building an engaged and loyal team is one of the best ways to project a business as a fantastic place to work …
September 24th 2018Building an engaged and loyal team is one of the best ways to project a business as a fantastic place to work, a conference heard. And having a plan to actively market a company to potential employees ‘who may not even know they want to work there’ will give bosses a head start in the increasingly tough battle for talent. The two themes were high on the agenda as representatives…
Farming Partnerships – Things to be Careful
September 21st 2018By Jonathan Carroll, Head of Agriculture Yet again a farming family dispute has led to huge legal costs, when a decent partnership agreement would have prevented it for a tiny fraction of the sums lost. The Wild family farmed Beard Hall Farm from 1965, which was owned by dad, Ben. Ben and his wife Jean brought their son, Malcolm, into the partnership in 1978 when he was just 16, but…
Changes to divorce law ‘could make separations less painful’
August 31st 2018Julian Nelson, Head of Family Law explains that the government is being urged to introduce major changes to divorce laws to reduce the stress and difficulties faced by couples when their marriage breaks down. A private member’s bill put forward by Baroness Butler-Sloss proposes a system of no-fault divorce. It would be the first major change to divorce laws in England and Wales for 50 years and could help up…
Developer can’t dodge paying extra £750,000 for land
August 28th 2018Elizabeth Crouch, Senior Associate and Head of Residential Conveyancing considers a recent Court of Appeal case where a developer has been ordered to pay an extra £750,000. A developer has been ordered to pay an extra £750,000 for land that was sold subject to the condition that the price would increase if planning permission for houses was granted. The issue arose after the developer purchased property from a landowner to redevelop…
Sleep-in care workers ‘not entitled to minimum wage’
August 24th 2018Joanne Stronach, Head of Employment & HR, considers the recent Court of Appeal cases regarding sleep in workers. The decision by the Court of Appeal in two recent cases – Royal Mencap Society v Tomlinson Blake and Shannon v Jaikishan and Rampersad (trading as Clifton House Residential Home) 2018 EWCA Civ 1641 – will have major implications for residential care homes. The Court of Appeal decided that care workers sleeping…
Brothers in dispute over house left in their mother’s Will
August 15th 2018The High Court has settled a property dispute between two brothers after one accused the other of using undue influence to persuade their mother to leave him her house in her will. The case involved an elderly woman who moved in with her son after her husband died. However, she later wanted to move back to her own home in Cornwall. The house needed significant repairs, so she decided to…
Getting the right person for the right job – how to attract talent!
August 9th 2018Recent surveys indicate that recruiting and attracting talented staff is one of the biggest concerns facing SMEs in Cumbria and further afield. Together working with the Family Business Network we are delighted to announce that we have brought together a number of exciting speakers to give their views and share their experiences on how to get the right person for the right job. We are pleased to confirm that the following speakers will…
Can a landlord get a rate cut if property is not fit to rent out?
August 6th 2018If a landlord doesn’t want to carry out repairs on a commercial property unless he has a tenant waiting to move in, is he entitled to have the rateable value reduced? A recent case saw landlord Christopher Shaw appeal after a valuation tribunal refused to reduce the rateable value of one of his business units. Mr Shaw had managed a business park since purchasing it in 1986. A large building…
Family businesses shine at Summer Social
August 3rd 2018An event held to give an insight into family businesses had guests transfixed as speakers from three companies gave searingly honest accounts of the challenges they have faced. More than 100 people gathered for the Summer Social, an event held at Warwick Hall in association with the Family Business Network. From near bankruptcy to the value of staff and building a business on ice cream, speakers from More Handles, Stalkers…
Oral agreement ineffective in dispute over serviced offices
July 17th 2018The Supreme Court has ruled that an oral agreement to vary the terms of a licence for serviced offices was ineffective because the contract specified that all changes had to be in writing to be valid. The long running dispute involved Rock Advertising Ltd, who rented premises from MWB Business Exchange Centres Ltd. The contract between them contained a No Oral Modification (NOM) clause saying: “All variations to this Licence…
