Tribunal modifies covenant to allow landowner to build house
September 21st 2020A landowner has succeeded in getting a restrictive covenant modified to enable him to build a second house on a small plot. By Jonathan Carroll Director and Head of Agriculture Mr Neil Sheppard owned a detached house on a 1980s housing estate. He bought the property in 2010, subject to restrictions on the title imposed by a conveyance in 1985, made between the developer and the original buyer. The restrictions…
How redundancy affects mental health to be discussed at webinar
September 14th 2020COLLABORATION continues to be key for Cumbrian businesses – and a popular webinar returns this week, looking at how redundancy impacts on mental health. As the furlough scheme winds down further and more businesses look to restructure and potentially make redundancies NXT.V’s latest webinar discusses the impact on mental health for both employers and employees. Cartmell Shepherd Solicitors’ Head of Employment Law and HR Joanne Stronach is among this week’s…
Employment rights if placed in quarantine after returning to UK
September 10th 2020The government has issued guidance on employment rights for people who have to go into quarantine when returning to the UK from abroad. By Joanne Stronach Director and Head of Employment & HR Currently, people returning must self-isolate for 14 days unless they’re travelling from a country with a quarantine exemption. The list changes regularly so it’s best to check before travelling and before returning. The guidance, issued by the…
Serious accident claims involving cyclists on the rise
September 1st 2020Thinking it over with Carol Fish Director & Head of Serious and Catastrophic Injury… A RISE in accident claims involving cyclists has been the downside of a welcome increase in the amount of people taking to two wheels during the Covid pandemic. Across the board, we’ve seen an overall decline in general claims relating to various types of accidents, which busts the myth that we have a compensation culture. We…
Furlough Explained: Answering SMEs Burning Questions
August 25th 2020Over recent months the government has announced a number of changes to the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme – more commonly referred to as ‘furlough’. From September the government contribution towards wages is reducing from 80% to 70% up to a maximum of £2,187.50 per month; in October this reduces further to a government contribution of 60% up to a maximum of £1,875. From November the government will not make any…
Affordable homes scheme to be extended by a further year
August 24th 2020The Affordable Homes Scheme, which is designed to get more families on to the property ladder, is being extended for a further year because of the coronavirus pandemic. Linsey Hayes Residential Conveyancer provides an update. It’s estimated that the building of 53,000 new affordable homes has stalled due to delays in the construction industry caused by lockdown. The Government is stepping in to safeguard funding and make sure these homes…
Tribunal ‘failed to consider employer’s needs’ in discrimination case
August 20th 2020The Employment Tribunal failed to properly consider the needs of the employer when dealing with a disability discrimination claim. By Claire Davies Director That was the decision of the Employment Appeal Tribunal in a case involving the Department of Work & Pensions and one of its employees, Susan Boyers. Ms Boyers suffered from migraines, stress and panic attacks. She went on sick leave in February 2017. In March 2017 she…
New proposals to improve the buying and selling of homes
August 18th 2020New proposals have been put forward by industry insiders to improve the process of the buying and selling of homes. Elizabeth Crouch Associate Solicitor & Head of Residential provides an update. The Home Buying and Selling Group (HBSG) – made up 120 organisations advising the government – has drafted a memorandum for the “smooth operation of the residential property market in the UK”. The proposals, in what would be a…
Judge ‘was wrong’ to prevent grandparents adopting 3-year-old
August 11th 2020By Taylor Chanter Solicitor in our Family Law team. The Court of Appeal has ruled that a judge was wrong to prevent two grandparents adopting their 3-year-old grandson. The court heard that the child’s mother suffered from mental health problems. She had a long history of drug abuse and had criminal convictions for violent offences. She had had no contact with the child since his birth. Care proceedings had been…
When your world is turned upside down, experts are here to help …
August 6th 2020Thinking it over with Carol Fish Director & Head of Serious and Catastrophic Injury … WE have seen from the Covid-19 pandemic how the world can turn upside down so suddenly. At the start of 2020 none of us could have envisaged how life would have unfolded. Yet, here we are heading into August – the final month of summer – still facing uncertain times and concern about what autumn…
