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A landlord has won the legal right to challenge a company voluntary arrangement (CVA) proposed by the Nero coffee shop group. Stephanie Johnson Senior Associate Solicitor reports on this recent case. Nero, which has over 800 shops in the UK, was severely affected by the Covid-19 pandemic and had fallen into rent arrears at its shops. Mr Young was the landlord of one of the shops, the rent from which was…

A 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…

A woman with breast cancer who was told by her boss that she was lucky to get a free boob job from the NHS, has won her claim of harassment. Joanne Stronach Head of Employment & HR reports on this recent case. Aggie Kownacka was a recruitment manager for Textbook Teachers from June 2017 until December 2018. In May 2018, she was diagnosed with breast cancer and was required to undergo…

The government is introducing new legislation to target company directors who dissolve their businesses for their own gain and leave staff or taxpayers out of pocket. Sam Lyon Head of Corporate & Commercial provides an update. The Insolvency Service will be given powers to investigate directors of companies that have been dissolved, closing a legal loophole and acting as a strong deterrent against the misuse of the dissolution process. The…

Two teenage brothers have been granted a share of their father’s estate even though they were estranged from him and had been excluded from his will. Rebecca Armstrong Associate Solicitor reports on this recent case. The two boys, referred to only as J and H in court, who were aged 16 and 15 respectively at the date of their father’s death in 2018. Their parents had divorced in 2012. The…

A company has been granted permission to search an employee’s personal computer and other devices as part of its investigation into the potential misuse of confidential information. Joanne Stronach Head of Employment & HR reports on this recent case. The case involvedDigital Realty Trust Inc and its senior director of acquisitions, Mr Coogan. The nature of his role meant that he had access to commercially sensitive and confidential information central…

The government is continuing its support for tenants to protect them from being evicted during the Covid-19 pandemic, even though lockdown restrictions have now been eased. Natalie Tatton, Solicitor provides an update. As part of a phased approach back to normality, notice periods – previously extended to 6 months as an emergency measure during the pandemic – are now set at four months, dated from 1 June. Subject to the…

Two financial services directors have been disqualified for continuing to trade and take money from clients while their company was insolvent. Sam Lyon Head of Corporate & Commercial reports. Paul Rossi was a director of Independent Derivative Traders Ltd. The company traded as ‘Futex’ and provided access to a financial markets trading platform for sub-contracted independent traders. He was joined in the management of the company by his brother Mark and…

Businesses are being urged to monitor their cash flow as corporate insolvencies look set to rise despite the easing of lockdown restrictions. Carly Davies Debt Recovery Manager provides an update. The insolvency and restructuring trade body R3 says that government support such as the furlough scheme have masked the difficulties some companies are facing. There were 2,384 seasonally adjusted corporate insolvencies in the first quarter of this year, a reduction of…

A company has lost $3m dollars because it had agreed to contradictory contract terms when entering into a purchase agreement. Sam Lyon Head of Corporate & Commercial reports on this recent case. The case involved Septo Trading Inc, which contracted to import fuel oil supplied by Tintrade Ltd. The terms were recorded in an email confirmation (the Recap). A clause in the Recap stated that a quality certificate issued by…