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A word out of place can lead to the sacrifice of valuable legal rights and that is why it is vital to seek professional advice the moment a potential dispute looms on the horizon. The point was made by the case of a couple who faced a challenge to their ownership of two plots of land adjoining their home. The couple bought the land on which they built their home in 1993. Although they did not formally own the adjoining plots, they treated them as their own, using them as...

It may come as a surprise but, even if you have been divorced abroad, there is a great deal that an English family lawyer can do to ensure you receive a fair financial deal. In one case, the High Court came to the aid of a woman whose marriage to an affluent Chinese businessman ended acrimoniously. The couple enjoyed an opulent lifestyle during their marriage, which lasted for about two years. Following their separation, he for some months provided her with apparently generous financial support. However, all that changed when...

Words are not numbers and even the most careful draftsperson cannot guarantee that the meaning of a will is always clear beyond doubt. As a High Court case showed, however, judges are adept at resolving ambiguities so that the true intentions of testators are put into effect. After specific bequests, a woman left the residue of her estate equally to her four siblings 'or the survivor or survivors of each of them'. Each of the siblings died before her but three of them were survived by a total of one...

So-called DIY builders who 'construct' their own homes can reclaim VAT incurred in doing so. As one case showed, however, there is a very great difference between the ordinary English usage of that word and its meaning in VAT legislation. The case concerned a couple who bought a derelict farmhouse. It had holes in the roof, its front wall was bowed and water was running out of the door. They carried out extensive building works that left only the building's two gable ends standing but succeeded in transforming it into...