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LATEST NEWS

Homeowner Pays Price for Unauthorised Subterranean Leisure Development

28th September, 2021 By

Judges play a crucial enforcement role in the planning process and those who fail to comply with their orders can expect stern punishment. In one case, a homeowner who breached planning control when he built a huge subterranean leisure facility under his garden received a suspended prison sentence. The man spent about £1 million constructing the building, which incorporated a sports hall, gym, tenpin bowling alley, casino bar and children's play area. He contended that it was a permitted development, not requiring formal planning permission, but the local authority for...

Court Honours Woman's Intentions by Correcting Clerical Error in Her Will

22nd September, 2021 By

Even the most carefully drafted will can contain inadvertent clerical errors that leave room for doubt as to the document's true meaning. As a High Court ruling showed, however, judges happily have the power to correct such mistakes so as to ensure that the intentions of the deceased are honoured. The case concerned a woman who made her final will more than 20 years before her death. By far the largest asset in her relatively modest estate was her home, which was worth about £140,000. The document stated in clear...

Divorce – Intransigence and Dogmatism Will Only Increase Your Pain

17th September, 2021 By

An intransigent and dogmatic approach to divorce is an infallible way of making the process far more painful and costly. A man who insisted that his ex-wife's financial entitlements should be reduced to reflect the poor quality of their short, childless marriage found that out to his cost. The couple's marriage lasted not much more than three years, including two periods of separation. Following their divorce, the husband, a very successful businessman, argued that, in the light of the brevity of their childless union, the wife's award should be calculated...

COVID-19 – Court Authorises Cessation of Father's Life-Sustaining Treatment

14th September, 2021 By

It often falls to judges to address the most dreadful consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic. That was certainly so in a case where the Court of Protection found that keeping a much-loved husband and father on life support would merely serve to prolong his inevitable death. The man, in his 50s, developed a deep vein thrombosis following a long-haul flight and suffered a heart attack. He was on life support in hospital when he was diagnosed with COVID-19. His condition steadily deteriorated and at least eight unsuccessful attempts had been...