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A gender-neutral and non-discriminatory approach to divorce generally requires an equal division of marital assets – but it is not always that simple. In one big-money case, complexities arose in respect of the husband's inherited assets and his wish to preserve a thriving family business. During the lengthy marriage, the husband, a self-confessed workaholic, graduated from being an HGV driver to becoming the majority shareholder in a highly successful plant hire company. The wife performed an administrative role in the business and devoted herself to the care of the three...

If offered the opportunity to shelter their homes against future Inheritance Tax (IHT) liabilities whilst retaining the right to live in them rent free, most people would jump at the chance. However, as one case strikingly showed, that holy grail of tax planning is extraordinarily hard to achieve. The case concerned a widower with three children who entered into a scheme which was designed to reduce future IHT liabilities. In essence, it involved the purported sale of his home for £1.4 million to a trust of which he was one...

If you are a property occupier and have noise, dust, noxious smells, vibrations or other forms of nuisance inflicted upon you by a neighbour, the law will provide you with a remedy. However, the Court of Appeal has ruled in a landmark case that that principle does not apply to loss of privacy caused by overlooking. The case concerned a luxury apartment block which was overlooked by the external viewing gallery of a neighbouring museum. Residents of the flats complained that the gallery enabled thousands of museum visitors to look...

Unmarried couples frequently intermingle their property whilst love still blooms, but sorting out who owns what after separation can pose a serious challenge. That was certainly so in the case of a former couple who, between them, owned two former council houses when their relationship ended in acrimony. During their relationship, which lasted more than 25 years, the couple exercised their right to buy their respective council houses. After encountering financial difficulties, the man had transferred his former home into the woman's name with the result that she became the...