Under the Working Time Regulations 1998 (WTR), which implement the EC Working Time Directive into UK law, in certain circumstances an employer can deny workers their right to daily and weekly rest breaks and rest periods where their activities involve…
The Government has announced that it has accepted the recommendations of the Low Pay Commission on the rates for the National Minimum Wage (NMW) that will apply from 1 October 2012. The rates are as follows: The adult hourly rate…
When deciding a reasonable adjustments claim under Section 4A of the Disability Discrimination Act 1995 (now replaced by the Equality Act 2010), the Employment Tribunal (ET) must identify the relevant provision, criterion or practice (PCP) and then identify whether or…
Having rejected the findings of a report it commissioned into the parenting of children after divorce, the Government has thrown into doubt the whole area of how this issue will be dealt with in future. The Government recently issued its…
A property manager from Cardiff has been fined for failing to comply with the duty to manage the risks from asbestos at premises on the Penygraig Industrial Estate, Rhondda. Richard Hayward, trading as Richard Hayward Properties, managed the property on…
When a man was worried that his creditors would not approve his proposals for an Individual Voluntary Arrangement (IVA), he took innovative steps to ensure that when the meeting of creditors was held a majority of them voted for it…
A recent case dealt with the thankfully rare circumstance of someone buying a property without knowing that the vendor is a bankrupt. When the buyer bought the property, the search of the title at the Land Registry did not show…
A former tenant has failed in a claim for damages over and above the return of his deposit, in a ruling that has demonstrated the limitations placed on tenants’ rights under Section 214 of the Housing Act 2004. This legislation…
Commercial tenants should be made aware of a High Court decision which held that a tenant failed to exercise a break right effectively when it only paid rent up to the break date. In this case, the break clause required the tenant to give vacant…
A recent tribunal case highlights the importance for employers of educating their employees about the implications of writing inappropriate or offensive comments on social media sites. The Northern Ireland industrial tribunal held that the dismissal of an employee for making vulgar comments about…