The Growth and Infrastructure Bill, which received Royal Assent in April 2013, provides for a new type of employment status – the ‘employee-shareholder – with effect from 1 September 2013. Not to be confused with partnership arrangements whereby employees benefit…
The Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) has fined the Bank of Scotland plc £75,000 for a serious breach of the Data Protection Act 1998. The ICO found that, over a four-year period, the bank repeatedly sent faxes containing customers' personal data…
A recent case dealt with the issues surrounding the respective rights of a parent and child in unusual circumstances. The natural father of the child wished to join in the proceedings to oppose his son being adopted. The unusual feature…
In Walker v Sita Information Networking Computing Limited, the Employment Appeal Tribunal (EAT) found that the Employment Tribunal (ET) was in error in concluding that a claimant who was overweight and who suffered from a ‘constellation of symptoms’ that caused…
When a woman’s niece and great niece were appointed her deputies (persons responsible for looking after her financial affairs) under the Mental Capacity Act 2005, they made gifts of her assets to charities, themselves, family members and friends. They also…
The ‘controlling mind’ behind a property investment company that went into liquidation with an estimated deficiency of more than £70 million has been banned from being a company director for 12 years. In making the order under the Company Directors…
Businesses faced with employees making repeated unsubstantiated complaints of discrimination will have to think twice before dismissing them following a Employment Appeal Tribunal (EAT) decision. The EAT held that the dismissal of an employee who brought a series of grievances…
A former jockey has won £58,000 in compensation for injuries he suffered at Cheltenham racecourse when his horse fell at the first hurdle. Philip Hide’s horse skidded and fell at the outer end of the hurdle, causing him to be…
The Enterprise and Regulatory Reform Bill has now received Royal Assent. One of the more important changes for industry is that creative designs which are used in an industrial process will be protected for the life of the creator plus…
A recent Court of Appeal judgment, dealing with a situation where a party has suspended or delayed compliance with its contractual obligations, is likely to be of interest to many businesses. The economic downturn has made this scenario increasingly common…
