2015

Making a molehill out of a mountain

Charlotte Ross explores a case concerning forfeiture of a head lease where the court refused to grant relief.

Privacy and the Family Law Courts

The recent divorce case of Oasis frontman Liam Gallagher and Nicole Appleton of All Saints fame, has thrown the issues of publicity and the press in the family courts into the spotlight.

A snowball effect?

Natasha Rees considers a case where precarious rights in leases and the test of the equivalence as set out in the 1993 Act came under the spotlight.

This article was first published in Property Law Journal issue 335 (October 2015).

New rules for Section 21 Notices

From 1 October 2015 the Deregulation Act provisions relating to retaliatory evictions will come into force.

A trustee's dilemma

To what length and at what point should trustees become involved in a divorce settlement involving a member of their trust.

Thwaytes v Sotheby's

Judgment was handed down on 16 January 2015 in the Chancery case of Thwaytes v Sotheby's, in which Sotheby's was held not to have been negligent in its assessment of a painting.

Your insurance broker is here to help but how far will they go?

On any commercial property transaction that requires financing or refinancing, a secured lender will usually require a letter from the borrower's insurance broker as a condition to drawdown.

Out of time, out of mind

How limitation periods apply to financial mis-selling.

Alternative Dispute Resolution - is the Financial Ombudsman Service a viable alternative?

In this article we consider how attractive this alternative route to justice is for consumers with complaints against their financial services providers, and for those financial service providers.

Removal of squatters from commercial premises

Remedies for interference with a right to light

Scott -v- Aimiuwu (18/2/2015) is the first known Court Decision on a rights of light claim since the Judgment of the Supreme Court in Coventry -v- Lawrence (2014) - in which the basis upon which injunctive relief should be granted, and damages awarded, was reviewed and revised.

It is a Decision that will give some comfort to developers.

Post death arrangements for digital assets

Digital assets play an increasingly important role in our daily lives – whether through social networking, reading eBooks, using cloud storage for emails, music and photographs or making transfers using our online bank accounts.  Many of us cannot imagine a life before the internet.

When is a variation caught by procurement law?

Hannah Kramer reports on a case that has highlighted the risk of a new public procurement exercise having to be carried out in the event of a 'material' variation to an agreement.

This article was first published in the May 2015 issue of Property Law Journal and is also available at www.lawjournals.co.uk

To sign in not to assign

Nikolas Ireland considers the importance of execution formalities on assignment in the context of a recent case.

First published in Solicitors Journal, April 2015.

The inside track on family law

With Spring in the air, change is afoot in family law. 

A new equality

In what could herald a new era for equality, judicial attitudes towards ongoing spousal maintenance are hardening.  Until recently, the financially stronger party was often ordered to support his or her former spouse and often for life.  This is slowly changing. 

A Trustee's dilemma - involvement in divorce proceedings

In divorce proceedings, where one of the parties is a beneficiary of a trust, there has long been confusion about the extent to which trustees should be involved. Some recent cases have provided greater clarity, which are dealt with below.

Sale of Charity land

Introduction

The end of generous pay-outs to ex spouses? Judge tells ex wife of equine surgeon to get a job

In a decision in February 2015 that was widely reported by the media as being a 'game-changer' in terms of the English court's attitude to financial provision on divorce (particularly amongst the wealthy), an Appeal Court judge upheld a judgment that there should be a staged cut-off of ex-spousal maintenance that a millionaire equine surgeon had previously been paying his former wife.

Overview of partnership and marriage for same sex couples in England and Wales

First delivered at NYSBA/STEP 10th Annual International Estate Planning Institute, March 2014. Updated to April 2015.

Beware the ghost in the machine

Ben Brayford and Hannah Kramer consider a recent case involving Gordon Ramsay's personal liability under a guarantee executed by a 'signature machine'.

First published in Solicitors Journal, 10 March 2015.

The Sunday Times, The Law of the Property Jungle

New housing delivery by local authorities - a return to future past?

In January 2015 the findings of an independent review (click to view) commissioned by the Treasury on the construction of new housing by local authorities were published.

Family office property investment in 2015

Beware the new EU regulatory environment.

Sunday Times, Ask the Experts

The path less travelled

Huseyin Huseyin delves into the issues to be considered when developing out unusual sites.

First seen in Property Law Journal, December 2014/January 2015