LATEST NEWS

Self-employed people are only permitted to deduct from their Income Tax bills those expenses that are incurred 'wholly and exclusively' for the purposes of their trade or occupation. That is a very demanding test but, in a guideline case, it was passed by a saturation diver who spent heavily on maintaining his physical fitness. The diver appealed to the First-tier Tribunal (FTT) after HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) disallowed his claim for an Income Tax deduction in respect of expenses involved in pursuing a rigorous exercise regime. HMRC contended that,...

Senior partner and statutory tenancies expert Russell Conway protects vulnerable regulated tenant from a 400% rent increase – a common tactic used by landlords to rid themselves of protected tenants. Regulated tenancies The client in question had a regulated tenancy under the Rent Act 1977, which entitled him to the following protections: Regulated tenants pay a ‘fair rent’ which is often substantially lower than market value; Regulated tenants can only be evicted by court order, and a legal reason for eviction must be proved (such as rent arrears). Due to the one...

Couples who buy a home together tend to assume that true love lasts forever and that the property should be owned in equal shares. As a High Court case showed, however, that is one very good reason why they should always consult a solicitor, whose job it is to take a more sanguine view. The case concerned a mother of four who was never formally married to her partner under English law, although they had entered into an Islamic form of marriage. She was the long-term tenant of a council...

Landlords who fail to license houses in multiple occupation (HMOs) commit a serious criminal offence and can expect to be hit hard in the pocket. In making that point, the Upper Tribunal (UT) emphasised that stiff financial penalties are generally required in such cases as a deterrent to others. The case concerned a landlord who let six bedrooms in his former family home as bed sitting rooms. There was no dispute that the property was an HMO and, after discovering that it was unlicensed, the local authority notified him that...