A recent case highlights the changes that will be coming into effect next year when the Insurance Act 2015 comes into force, reducing the number of 'technical' defences that can be used by insurance companies to avoid paying out on…
When a person misrepresents something being sold to the extent that what is being promised to the buyer is significantly different from what is delivered, the normal legal remedy is 'rescission', which is the term lawyers use for the cancellation…
Poaching of key staff is a perennial problem for service companies. In a recent dispute between two insurance broking firms, a firm which had the bulk of a specialist insurance team 'poached' by a competitor went to court to prevent…
The courts often employ the concept of commercial common sense in interpreting ambiguous or poorly drafted contracts – but that does not mean that they will relieve the unwise of the consequences of their bad bargains. That was the unfortunate…
Nuisance sales calls can be a major irritation and a plague on privacy – but the law is not powerless to bring those responsible to book. In one case, a rogue telemarketing company has been fined £75,000 by the First-tier…
Rules may be rules, but their rigid application by the state, without consideration of individual circumstances, is unlawful. In a case which illustrated the point, a woman whose designer crocodile-skin handbag was seized by the UK Border Force (UKBF) has…
Few disputes are as bitter as family disputes and the court is not normally the best place to settle them. A recent case shows how easy it can be for relations between family members to break down. A young couple's…
At what point does an agent’s introduction of an eventual buyer become an ‘effective cause’ of the sale? The Court of Appeal will consider that vital issue as brokers battle for a 10 per cent commission on the €19.8 million…
In a case which involved striking a balance between the individual right to a peaceful life and the benefits of commerce, a company has failed in a High Court bid to win retrospective planning permission for a metal recycling facility…
A High Court case which dealt with a longstanding uncertainty on the validity of 'e-signatures' in certain types of agreements was decided recently. The case involved a professional musician who used a very valuable viola as collateral for loans and…