Clarke and Son News

Via Personnel Today comes news of a survey of 1,100 employers conducted by employment law firm, Peninsula, found that nine in 10 respondents would discipline staff if they were legally confident.

But, eight in 10 employers also feared a wave of employment tribunal cases following an increase employee rights.

In January, business secretary John Hutton announced a clampdown on unnecessary employment tribunals by pouring millions of pounds into conciliation service Acas. The move followed news of an increase in employment tribunal cases to 115,039 in 2005-06 to 132,577 last year.

David Price, head of employee relations at Peninsula said many businesses were so convinced that employment law is weighted on the side of employees, they were afraid to tackle disciplinary issues.

He want on to explain that employers are increasingly finding it difficult to apprach the area of discipline, afraid that they will become embroiled in a long, drawn-out process resulting in an employment tribunal. He added:

Employers also need to have a clearly defined disciplinary and grievance policy, in line with the statutory code of practice

If you are a Basingstoke based Business, or in North Hampshire, and have any questions relating to empoyee issues why not visit the employer legal service section of our website or call Nick Bowers on 01256 320555.

Employers could be held liable for the suicides of ex-employees after a landmark ruling by the House of Lords.

Law Lords ruled unanimously that the widow of a man who killed himself six years after a workplace accident should be compensated by his former employers. The decision upheld a previous judgment in 2006 that the company was responsible for the death of a former employee.

In 1996, Thomas Corr was hit on the head by a metal panel as a result of defective machinery. He later suffered from depression, headaches and mood swings. He committed suicide in May 2002.

In the original case, his employer, car manufacturer IBC Vehicles, admitted liability for the workplace accident, but denied that it was responsible for the suicide.

A deputy judge in the High Court awarded his widow £82,520 after finding IBC could not be held responsible for Corr taking his own life. Corr’s widow then appealed that decision and the Court of Appeal found IBC Vehicles was responsible his suicide. IBC subsequently appealed to the House of Lords which confirmed that the company was liable.

Ref. Personnel Today

The launch of the Junior Lawyers Division at the Light Lounge, Basingstoke on 19th February was a great success. Around 35 young professionals associated with the law attended and speeches were given by Kat Gibson, the President of the Junior Lawyers Division and District Judge Carney who sits at Basingstoke County Court.

District Judge Carney gave a very informative speech advising young lawyers on practical issues of court applications and Kat enthused about the group being a great support to junior members in the profession.

After the speeches a quiz and business card raffle was held. Julie Mehrabian (pictured), Clarke & Son Trainee solicitor and committee member of JLD thought the evening was a great success,

I think everyone really enjoyed themselves and we were very pleased that the net was cast wide and people came from all over the Hampshire area, proving that the group will offer really good opportunities in the future.

Prospective house sellers should watch their step with the new Home Information Packs (HIPs)

That is the warning from Paul Cowdery, Partner at Clarke & Son LLP.

The Home Information Pack team of the Department for Communities and Local Government has warned that some HIP providers are using what are called ‘register views’ of the property plan in their HIPs, instead of the ‘official copy’. The Department warns that the register view is not sufficient evidence of the plan of the property shown in the documents of title. Including it in the HIP instead of the official copy is a breach of the regulations relating to HIPs.

They warn that official copies are required as these are encrypted documents that the Land Registry will stand by – for example if there are any errors in the register – and are therefore acceptable during the conveyancing process. Although the information they contain is similar, register views have no such status. The official copy is required under the HIP regulations.

Paul, went on to say,

“The important issue is that if there is an error in the plan contained in the register view, there is likely to be a dispute, with potentially substantial costs required to resolve the matter.”

Make sure that your HIP has the right content!

Find out more on our website about home information packs.

A recent decision of the House of Lords may have opened the door for thousands of tenants of offices and other properties originally designed to be used as homes to be given the right to buy their properties says Charles Marchant White of solicitors Clarke & Son LLP.

The Leasehold Reform Act 1967 gives a long leaseholder of a house the legal right to purchase the freehold according to a set procedure. The Act does not apply to commercial premises – but the House of Lords’ decision suggests that in some circumstances commercial tenants may acquire the right to buy the properties they occupy.

The question turned on whether the premises in question were a ‘house’. The Act defines a house as premises which are designed or adapted to be lived in and which can reasonably be called a house.

In the case in point, the building was used for commercial purposes but had originally been designed as a residential property. The Lords considered that the fact that the premises themselves were not habitable was not relevant. The strict construction of the law meant that since the premises were designed to be lived in, the right to buy applied. It is quite clear from the judgment of Lord Walker that the Lords consider that a property which is of ‘mixed’ use, having been adapted for residential occupancy, would also qualify as a house for this purpose.

“This decision has potentially massive implications for owners and tenants of all sorts of properties which were originally designed as or adapted to be houses. We are watching with interest to see what the implications of this case might be. Landlords thinking of giving a long lease for commercial premises which were originally designed as a residential property might want to think again until the position is clearer.”

Employers in the UK will need to tighten up their discrimination and flexible working policies following a landmark disability decision at the European Court of Justice.

This will almost certainly to give rise to new rights for millions of workers in the UK, legal experts have warned. (Personnel Today)

An advocate-general at the Court confirmed last week that Sharon Coleman suffered ‘discrimination by association’ as a carer for her four-year old disabled son, claiming she was forced to quit her job after she requested time off to look after him.

The opinion, likely to be approved by the ECJ later this year, could mean that the millions of workers who care for disabled people will be able to claim unlimited discrimination damages if their employer treats them worse than non-carers in businesses through the UK.

This could pave the way for discrimination claims on the grounds of association with people of different ages, religions, or sexual orientation.

Nick Thomas, senior associate at law firm Jones Day, warned that Employers will need to review their harassment or discrimination policies to ensure they are broad enough to prevent people not only from making comments about the [minority] individual, but about anybody associated with them.

Read more at Personnel Today