Archive for November 2018

Should the law relating to NDAs in sexual harassment cases be changed?

By Employment Law Expert, Thalis Vlachos Sexual harassment has been in the news more or less constantly over the past year. I have already written a couple of blogs on this topic, most recently Is your business set up to deal with a sexual harassment claim? This blog is on a related issue, namely the […]

‘Banter’ is not a defence to sexual harassment despite what Philip Green may think

Sexual harassment has hit the headlines again after Peter Hain outed Sir Philip Green as the businessman who obtained an injunction preventing The Telegraph reporting allegations of sexual harassment against him. What lessons can we learn from this latest episode about the myths that still surround sexual harassment?  One of the most remarkable things on […]

‘Let Only’ Agent Found Responsible for HMO Licensing

By Property Litigation Partner, Claire-Elaine Arthurs Most letting agents, in their terms and conditions, will put the responsibility for licensing a property firmly with the Landlord. Having included that clause, they then leave the issue to the landlords to resolve, incorrectly thinking that ensuring any required HMO Licence is in place is not their responsibility. […]

Proactive Management of Commercial Leases: Part 3

Property Dispute Resolution Partner, Claire-Elaine Arthurs, will be presenting a Four Part Series exploring the common issues that arise with Commercial Property Leases. She will be considering how a proactive approach can manage risks, avoid disputes and allow both Landlords and Tenants to get the best out of their Tenancy. Part 3: Variations to the Lease […]

inspire* Gift of Time Charity Pledges

This year our Christmas campaign is to raise 1,000 hours of resource and support for charities and help make a difference. Over the next few weeks, we’ll be campaigning to get as much help as possible from businesses to give the gift of time to our inspire* charities. We will culminate in a celebratory event […]

New Access Rights for Telecommunications Operators

Under the current Electronic Communications Code (Code) operators wishing to provide upgrades to tenants have to obtain formal permission from the landowner in the form of an access agreement or wayleave. However, operators have complained that high levels of landlords are not responding to requests. An operator who does not get cooperation from a landlord […]

New SDLT Filing Window due March 2019

From 1 March 2019 it is proposed that the window to file a Stamp Duty Land Tax (“SDLT”) return, and pay any SDLT due, will reduce from 30 days to 14 days from the effective date of the transaction. In most cases the “effective date” is the date of completion. However, where a contract for […]

inspire* Gift of Time Charity Pledges this Christmas

This year our Christmas campaign is to raise 1,000 hours of resource and support for charities and help make a difference   Over the next few weeks, we’ll be campaigning to get as much help as possible from businesses to give the gift of time to our inspire* charities. We will culminate in a celebratory event […]

5 Top Tips on How to Respond to Intellectual Property Infringement

Hosted by Rosie Burbidge, Intellectual Property Partner at gunnercooke Rosie’s experience as an intellectual property litigator and strategist means that she has experience of the many different intellectual property issues which can affect all types of business. She has helped resolve a wide range of disputes relating to copyright, designs, trade marks and patents, both pre-action […]

Whistleblowing Claims and How to Defend Them

Whistleblowing Claims and How to Defend Them Hosted by Employment Law Partner, Angus Menzies Whistleblowing is regularly in the news and it increasingly forms part, if not the main basis, of claims in the Employment Tribunal. The fact that there is no two-year service requirement for bringing claims, and the absence of a statutory cap […]

New Minimum Energy Efficiency Standards (MEES) Regulations for Residential Property

MEES Regulations 2015 The Energy Efficiency (Private Rented Property) (England and Wales) Regulations 2015 introduced two key measures with a view to improving the energy efficiency of private rented properties. The first is a right for a tenant of a domestic property to make energy efficiency improvements, which has been available since 2016. The second […]

Competition In Commercial Leases

Anti-Competitive Leases Don’t Fly On 25 October 2018 Heathrow airport recieved an order to pay £1.6m fine. This was for restricting competition on parking prices in a lease with an operator of a Terminal 5 hotel. After launching an investigation into the airport’s agreement with the Arora Group for the lease of Arora’s Sofitel hotel […]

Empty Properties May Become Even More Expensive For Landlords

Empty Properties May Become Even More Expensive For Landlords On 1 November 2018 the Rating (Property in Common Occupation) and Council Tax (Empty Dwellings) Act 2018 received Royal Assent. It is yet to be confirmed when it will come into force but, when it does it will apply to England only. Additional Premiums for Empty […]

Do you know who your Landlord is?

Do you know who your Landlord is? In many cases, residential tenants have little to do with their landlords for extended periods of time. During that time landlords may sell their interests or move, making it challenging for tenants to know who they then need to contact when an issue does arise. The first place […]

Is Right to Manage worth the Effort?

Is Right to Manage worth the Effort? As the number of people in privately rented residential accommodation increases, the ability of tenants to manage their homes in a way that works for them has become increasingly important. The Right to Manage (“RTM”) legislation, which landlords cannot contract out of, was introduced in 2002 to give […]

Male Domination: Why the Legal Sector Pushes Women Away

Male Domination: Why the Legal Sector Pushes Women Away With the results of the Gender Pay Gap showcasing a huge disparity between men and women in the workplace, we question why women are pushed aside when it comes to their career. Regardless of sex, colour and interests, we all have the same ability to perform […]