A homeowner who was fined £960 after he failed to comply with a local authority enforcement notice requiring him to demolish an unauthorised extension to his property has lost an appeal against his conviction and financial penalty. The Court of…
A patent can only be granted when there is novelty in the thing for which the patent is sought. This is why it is critical that one’s novel designs do not become public knowledge: once they do, a patent application…
The High Court has upheld a classroom ban on a Christian school teacher who condemned the ‘homosexual lifestyle’ in front of pupils. In what is believed to be the first case of its kind, a judge rejected an appeal by…
In Simmonds v Milford Club, the Employment Appeal Tribunal (EAT) ruled that where there is a real concern that an earlier final written warning that was material in the decision to dismiss an employee may have been manifestly inappropriate, it…
The Act is wide ranging. It contains many new measures, such as giving shareholders more say on directors’ pay, making reforms to Employment Tribunal procedures, establishing a new Competition and Markets Authority to tackle anti-competitive behaviour and modernising the UK’s…
In Ashcourt Rowan Financial Planning Limited v Hall, the High Court ruled that a restrictive covenant contained in the employment contract of a senior financial adviser was unenforceable. Ashcourt Rowan Financial Planning Limited provides financial advice to corporate and high…
Who can challenge a company’s decision that has been improperly made? This question was the subject of a court hearing recently, when the owners of the ‘ultimate economic interest’ in shares in a company sought to overturn a decision the…
A man who sold a house after forging certificates for planning permission for works he had carried out but for which planning permission had not been obtained was recently sentenced to 12 months’ imprisonment. The man had applied on three…
A recent High Court case provided a lesson in medieval land law for those involved, and featured a reputed Lord of the Manor in dispute with his villagers. In 2000, Peter Burton, a retired banker, and his partner Susan Bamford…
When a businessman voiced his opinion on planning matters by joining a planning action group which opposed the construction of two biomass power plants, he did not expect his past business record to become the subject of debate. However, a…