Welcome to the April edition of our newsletter, keeping you up to date with all the latest news from a legal point of view.
Health & Safety: Would your Systems win Olympic Gold?
With tickets for London 2012 now on sale and media focus on the games increasing daily, the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) has been keen to highlight their ongoing partnership with the London 2012 Olympic Delivery Authority. With the eyes of the world on the construction of key sites throughout the south east, the HSE wanted to showcase the project as a shining example of ‘how it should be done’. Rigid management programmes were put in place to cover high risk activities and risks assessments were carried out as early as the planning stage.
Whether a construction site, an office, a retail outlet, a warehouse or a factory, whatever the size of your business, it’s imperative to adhere to health and safety legislation. Fines for not following procedures, and compensation claims for injuries sustained due to negligence, can be catastrophic so contact us for advice if you are in any doubt about your responsibilities.
As usual we have a number of key stories for you to look at this month. Remember to contact us without hesitation for more information or for any other business law related matter.
Neves News
Jane Joseph gets mucky again! No it's not what it may seem. Jane Joseph has once again completed a 13k Mucky Race. What makes her do such a thing? We have no idea!! Read her report by clicking here.
Congratulations to Amrita Singh of our Harpenden office, who this month sailed through the latest round of her Institute of Legal Executives exams. Well done Amrita! |
Changes to Tax Credits As of 6 April 2011, the following changes have been made to tax credits: Working Tax Credit (WTC) and Child Tax Credit (CTC) These have been largely uprated in line with inflation. The basic and 30-hour elements of WTC will...  |
The Dangers of Private Communications Out of Working Hours A recent decision of the Employment Tribunal (ET) illustrates that you should think carefully before pressing the email ‘send’ button on what you regard as a private communication made out of working hours. If the email contains material that... |
Man Who Disguised House as Barn Loses Court Battle A man who built a house which appeared from the outside to be a barn has lost his battle to obtain a certificate of lawful use for the property. The man originally obtained planning permission to build a barn. He then constructed a... |
New Minimum Wage Rates The Government has accepted recommendations from the Low Pay Commission (LPC) and announced that the National Minimum Wage (NMW) will increase by 15p an hour to £6.08 in October 2011. The statutory wage for those aged 18 to 20... |
Collaborative Law When Parents are Separating 240,000 children a year experience their parents separating or divorcing. It is becoming more widely recognised nowadays that children need a good relationship with both their parents and need to be protected from getting caught up in the fall-out of... |
Invalid Company Signature Renders Notice Invalid A group of tenants who sought to acquire the freehold of the property they occupy met with failure recently , after the Court of Appeal found that the notice served on their landlord was invalid because it was not correctly signed by one of the tenants.... |
Bentley VAT Claim Fails Retaining sufficient information in regards to VAT claims is becoming increasingly important as a case involving a Bentley proves. HM Revenue and Customs demanded to see evidence of hire contracts, ID checks on customers and specific mileage records amongst other things in order to approve a tax deduction claim on the car. Failure to do so resulted in the claim being rejected. It is essential to retain sufficient information to substantiate VAT claims. Speak to us for further information on VAT and tax issues to better understand what you can and cannot claim back. The full story is available on our website. |
Funny Bit at the End - Royal Romance  Love it or hate it - the wedding between Wills and Kate has saturated the media for the last 12 months.
Another regal figure has also been hitting the headlines with regularity this year - Lady Gaga. But it took the skills of male a cappella group 'The Other Guys' to combine them in a rather unusual way. It is interesting to note that the video was filmed in the town where Wills and Kate met. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JAlnM7RUDcA& |
