Commercial

Articles

Update: employment

Sue Ashtiany reviews the latest cases on employment status and whether directors of failed companies are entitled to the same benefits as their employees, unfair dismissal claims and the 'Polkey' principle, and equal pay in the NHS

Update: commercial property

Milton McIntosh considers recent decisions on reserved rights of entry, disputes over rent arrears and rent reviews, the legality of virtual assignments and the validity of break notices

Striking a balance

The conflict between the need to comply with the new practice direction on pre-action conduct and the duty to serve clients' best interests could make efficient dispute resolution more difficult to achieve, says James Maton

Proceeding with care

The changing scope of cost recovery outside of court proceedings has important implications for legal defence insurers, says Jennette Newman

Update: competition

Lesley Davey reviews the European Commission's policy on abuse of dominant position, block exemptions, the application of State aid rules in the context of the economic crisis, and the OFT's new leniency guidance

Double grovel, toil and trouble

My bank has just bounced one of my client account cheques. Just a few words but the consequences are horrific. Why did they do this? In 31 years of practice no client account cheque of mine has ever been dishonoured. At the time that the cheque was not met I had in the region of one million pounds in the client account. So why was the bank behaving in this very curious fashion? We live in strange times but surely some things remain sacred?

The Forced Marriage (Civil Protection) Act 2007

Awareness of the damage that forced marriage can cause to individuals has grown in recent years, and now the Forced Marriages Act recognises for the first time the abuse of power by those enforcing their wishes against family members. Cris McCurley reports

Update: local government

Justin Bates discusses the strained relations between local authorities and government over the move towards unitary authorities, and disputes between authorities over provision of services to asylum seekers