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With the general election hogging the headlines, the passing of the Guardianship (Missing Persons) Act 2017, which received Royal Assent on 27 April 2017, went almost unreported. Although the date on which the Act will come into force has not yet been set, it is a welcome addition to the statute books as it will allow the affairs of missing persons to be dealt with by their loved ones. Currently, there is no simple way that allows the affairs of such people to be managed or for many actions to...

An interesting use of the law relating to the sale of goods helped a couple whose all-inclusive holiday was ruined by gastroenteritis claim compensation from travel group First Choice recently. They claimed damages under the Supply of Goods and Services Act 1982 on the ground that the food they ate which made them ill constituted 'goods' which were transferred from the hotel to them and which were not of satisfactory quality, being contaminated. Normally, such claims are brought under the Package Travel, Package Holidays and Package Tours Regulations 1992 based on...

Taking legal advice when borrowing for any purpose is important, as a recent case in which a wife faced the possibility of the sale of her home when her husband was made bankrupt shows. When he faced financial difficulties in 2005, the husband raised a mortgage against the family home in order to provide finance for his professional practice. The house was owned by him and his wife as tenants in common in equal shares. Tenancy in common means that each person owns a specific proportion of the property and...

You can claim tax relief if assets that you have acquired become worthless or loans that you have advanced prove to be irrecoverable. However, in a case that will be required reading for tax professionals, the Upper Tribunal (UT) has ruled that the right to claim such losses for tax purposes does not survive your death. An investor had bought shares in two companies that became valueless and had made a loan of more than £330,000 that had to be written off. He died in a motoring accident before he...