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Failing to take active steps to protect your land from use by another can produce unfortunate effects, as a couple from York discovered recently. The couple own a bungalow which has a front driveway adjacent to that of the next-door bungalow – a common design. The two effectively blend into one before reaching the road. In 1986 their neighbour repaved her drive with new paving tiles and brick edging, and in so doing went across the boundary line between the two properties. She parked her car on the area and...

It is common in legal disputes for the two sides to agree to suspend the court proceedings for a period so that they can get as much agreed between them as possible, and gather their evidence and prepare their arguments over what remains in dispute without the pressure of an impending hearing date. Such an agreement is called a 'standstill agreement', and if proceedings are served in time it is usual for the court to agree to the requested hiatus. In a recent family law case, one of the UK's...

If you dispute a tax bill, you are entitled to a fair hearing of your appeal and specialist advice will ensure you get just that. In a case that demonstrates this point, a couple were relieved of a substantial Capital Gains Tax (CGT) demand after successfully arguing that they had not been treated even-handedly. The couple had sold a plot of land on which was a house they had built for themselves, and outbuildings including a large shed. Disposal of a taxpayer's principal private residence is exempt from CGT and,...

It is not widely known that the 'cap' on assets above which people in residential care must fund their own care is only £23,250 in England and Northern Ireland. It is even less well known that elsewhere in the UK the cap is set at different levels. In Scotland, full self-funding only starts when the assets of the person in care exceed £28,000. However, following a recent increase in the limit by £10,000 in Wales, a Welsh resident needing care will now have their funding fully met by the state...