Legal News
- When Is a New Home Complete? DIY Housebuilders Win £14,000 VAT Rebate One of the benefits of building your own home is that you can claim back VAT paid on materials used in the project – but rebate applications have to be made within three months of the property's completion. That time limit came under analysis in a case...
- Eminent Retired Judge's Intellect Weighs in Favour of His Will's Validity Even people of the greatest intellect can be affected by diminished mental ability in old age and that is one good reason why it makes sense to execute a professionally drafted will sooner rather than later. A case on point concerned an eminent former judge...
- Always Take Independent Professional Advice Before Investing Your Money Fraudulent investment schemes are perennially tempting to the unwary and it really does make sense to take independent professional advice before parting with your money. In one case, the High Court found compelling evidence that hundreds of small investors...
- Do Your Medical Records Stay Confidential Forever? Your privacy rights will die with you, but that does not mean that just anyone will be permitted access to your medical records after you are gone. The extent to which such records should remain under wraps post mortem was analysed in a High Court test case...
- Cruelly Deceitful Husband Ordered to Pay Betrayed Ex-Wife £2.25 Million Where blame, if any, attaches for the breakdown of a marriage is generally irrelevant when it comes to dividing assets following divorce. However, as a cruelly deceitful husband discovered to his cost, bad behaviour can have consequences in that it is hardly...
- Lordship of the Manor Almost Scuppers Residential Development Lordships of the manor, whilst sounding grand, are often viewed as arcane titles with little real significance in terms of property rights. However, that is not always so and, in one High Court case, a lordship which was bought for just £100 almost...
- Children Born Out of Wedlock Receive Shares of £1.29 Million Trust Fund Few people nowadays care whether a child is born within wedlock, but the law is in some respects behind the times. In a ground-breaking ruling, however, the High Court has opened the way for illegitimate members of an extended family to receive shares of a...
- Validity of Marriage - Court of Appeal Takes Rigorous Approach The full rigour of formalities that must be gone through in order to solemnise a marriage have been upheld in a landmark case. The Court of Appeal found that a ceremony performed in a restaurant which was not registered as an authorised wedding venue was a...
- Professional Gambler Fends Off £290,000 Income Tax Demand HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) are always on the lookout for unexplained cash earnings which have not been declared for tax. However, in one case, a former professional gambler was relieved of a six-figure Income Tax bill after convincing the First-tier...
- In Dispute With a Neighbour? Legal Advice Can Help Draw the Sting Disputes with neighbours have a way of getting horribly out of hand, but legal advice taken at an early stage can help to draw the venom and save incalculable heartache and money in the long run. A case on point concerned flat dwellers who for years engaged...
- Couple Pay for Pursuing 'Speculative' Professional Negligence Claim Those who engage in speculative litigation on the basis of weak evidence can expect to be hit hard in the pocket. In a case on point, a couple who sued a friendly architect after she provided them with free assistance in re-landscaping their garden found...
- It Always Makes Good Sense to Appoint a Professional Executor Most people would consider it an honour to be chosen as executor of a friend's or relative's will. However, as a High Court ruling showed , the legal responsibilities that go with such a role can be extremely onerous and it usually makes better sense to...
- Gender-Neutral Sharing of Assets on Divorce is Not Always That Simple A gender-neutral and non-discriminatory approach to divorce generally requires an equal division of marital assets – but it is not always that simple. In one big-money case, complexities arose in respect of the husband's inherited assets and his wish...
- Inheritance Tax Mitigation Scheme Ends in Abject Failure If offered the opportunity to shelter their homes against future Inheritance Tax (IHT) liabilities whilst retaining the right to live in them rent free, most people would jump at the chance. However, as one case strikingly showed, that holy grail of tax...
- Overlooking is Not a Private Nuisance - Landmark Court of Appeal Ruling If you are a property occupier and have noise, dust, noxious smells, vibrations or other forms of nuisance inflicted upon you by a neighbour, the law will provide you with a remedy. However, the Court of Appeal has ruled in a landmark case that that...
- Former Couple's Division of Property Decided By Judge Unmarried couples frequently intermingle their property whilst love still blooms, but sorting out who owns what after separation can pose a serious challenge. That was certainly so in the case of a former couple who, between them, owned two former council...
- Making a Will? Don't Forget Your Moral Obligations You are in principle entitled to bequeath your worldly wealth to whoever you choose. However, as a High Court decision made clear, the law will intervene if you ignore your moral obligations when making your will. A successful motor dealer and property...
- When Is a Property 'Completed'? DIY House Builder Wins VAT Rebate DIY house builders are entitled to refunds of VAT they pay on materials used in their projects. However, as a decision of the First-tier Tribunal (FTT) showed , seeking such rebates is far from straightforward and a strict time limit applies. A man applied...
- New Statutory Instrument Boosts Intestate Entitlement A change to intestacy law recently announced by the government has increased the sum of money that spouses and civil partners of people who die without having made a will are entitled to receive. The change has been introduced via a statutory instrument...
- Adoption Only Justified If Nothing Else Will Do Adoption of children outside their natural families is always a last resort and will only be permitted if nothing else will do. The Court of Appeal made that point in coming to the aid of a couple whose son was taken from their care when he was just two...