News

Cartmell Shepherd in Cumbria and Northumberland has once again secured membership to the Law Society’s Conveyancing Quality Scheme – the mark of excellence for the home buying process. This is the 8th year in a row that Cartmell Shepherd has achieved CQS accreditation. Cartmell Shepherd Solicitors underwent rigorous assessment by the Law Society in order to continue to hold CQS status, which marks the firm out as continuing to meet…

A Royal Mail employee has won her case of unfair dismissal in a case that went all the way to the Supreme Court. Ms Kamaljeet Jhuti joined the Marketreach unit of Royal Mail in October 2013 on a trial basis as a media specialist. She quickly raised concerns about potential regulatory breaches in the processes. She made the comments under the company’s whistle blower policy, in which her comments were…

Wealthy professional footballers who took part in a failed tax avoidance scheme have lost their claims of breach of contract and professional negligence against two banks. The case centred on schemes advertised as vehicles through which taxpayers could contribute funds to limited liability partnerships for investing in films, offsetting their share of the partnership losses against other taxable income. The investors were professional footballers who became clients of an independent…

At Cartmell Shepherd we value and encourage feedback from our clients and we regularly review the feedback we receive.  As part of our commitment to improving the services we provide we send our clients a feedback questionnaire at the end of every matter or case. Why choose us? The feedback we have received from October to December 2019 has been extremely positive and highlights how we pride ourselves on taking…

Businesses across different sectors are urging the new government to end late payment practices that are crippling many small companies. They say the existing Prompt Payment Code isn’t working and fear a surge in company insolvencies if no action is taken. David Frise, CEO of the Building Engineering Services Association (BESA), said repeated failures by previous governments to deal with late payment culture meant company failures were almost inevitable. He…

CARLISLE Airport was the setting as Cartmell Shepherd Solicitors’ expanded 12-strong business team met to plan how they can best support companies to expand their horizons in 2020. Cartmell Shepherd Solicitors’ business team now includes three corporate lawyers, six commercial property lawyers, and three in its commercial employment team, delivering advice to businesses of all sizes across Cumbria, Northumberland and beyond. With commercial lawyers with a wealth of experience available…

A mental health nurse who was subjected to abuse by patients has won a claim of indirect race discrimination by his employer. However, his claim for harassment was rejected by the Employment Tribunal. Colleridge Bessong, from Africa, worked for Pennine Care NHS Foundation Trust (2019) at a secure residential unit. In 2017 he was seriously assaulted by a patient who also racially abused him. The patient had a history of…

The restaurant chain Bella Italia has lost a dispute about terminating a commercial lease. The property in question was a new development of retail premises on a site owned by two groups of trustees. In November 2014, Bella signed the agreement for lease, with the trustees as the named freeholder and landlord. The other parties to the agreement were the developer and a company which guaranteed Bella’s obligations under the…

LIFE in the north-east is proving just the ticket for solicitor Alice Whittome who has just landed her dream job. Alice, a Newcastle United season ticket holder, has joined leading legal firm Cartmell Shepherd Solicitors as a private client solicitor in Haltwhistle. Alice is now preparing for her first Christmas as a homeowner with fiance Robbie, a trainee GP at Hexham General Hospital, and their two miniature dachshunds Evie and…

An occupational therapist who lost her job after years of suffering from chronic fatigue syndrome has won her claim of discrimination and unfair dismissal. Ms D Ward had worked for Northumberland Tyne & Wear NHS Foundation Trust since 2000. The trust operated a sickness and absence management policy under which employees faced disciplinary action if they had more than three absences from work in a 12-month period. In 2009, Ward…