LATEST NEWS

You may understandably feel overawed by the might of the tax authorities but, with the law on your side, the balance of power is far more even than you might think. In a case on point, a couple struck an important blow for the cohort of determined people who set about building their own homes. The couple demolished a wooden bungalow on their land and embarked on an epic project to construct a new home for themselves. They lived in a caravan whilst the work was ongoing. Although the man,...

If someone on whom you depended for support has died without making reasonable financial provision for you, you should consult a solicitor without delay. In a case on point, the High Court came to the aid of a widow who was left largely reliant on benefits following her husband's death. Prior to his death, the husband made a will bequeathing the whole of his estate to his widow. Their matrimonial home was, however, owned equally by the husband and one of his brothers as joint tenants. When the husband died,...

The parking of cars along shared access routes is all too often a source of acrimony between neighbours. A High Court ruling provided a clear explanation of the legal principles commonly applied when resolving such disputes. The case concerned a lane that provided access to two residential properties. The owner of one of them sought an injunction against the owners of the other restraining them from obstructing his right of way over the lane by parking vehicles along its length. Whilst accepting that the claimant had a right to use the...

The advent of so-called 'no fault' divorce is on the horizon but, until then, a great many divorce petitions will continue to be issued on the basis of unreasonable behaviour by one party or the other. As a High Court ruling underlined, the requirement to prove such behaviour is no empty formality. The case concerned 28 divorce petitions that had been passed to the Court for consideration after a judge noticed that, in each case, the particulars of alleged unreasonable behaviour were couched in word-for-word identical terms. All the petitions...