<p>Distinguishing between employment and self-employment is a multi-faceted task and not just a matter of ticking boxes. That was certainly so in one case concerning a radio personality who was relieved of six-figure tax demands after a tribunal found that he fell into the latter category.</p> <p>The man had for 18 years presented a humorous… Read more »

<p>Those who lack the mental capacity to make important decisions for themselves still have the right to express their wishes and feelings if they are able to do so &ndash; and judges must listen to them. The Court of Appeal powerfully made that point in ruling against involuntary termination of a disabled young woman&rsquo;s pregnancy.</p>… Read more »

<p>Some employers treat their staff disgracefully but, no matter how bad their conduct may be, the objective of the tribunal system is not to punish them but to compensate those who suffer at their hands. A case on point concerned an immigrant worker who was plunged into depression after suffering extortion at his boss&rsquo;s hands.</p>… Read more »

<p>There can be few greater shocks to any child than discovering that their real father is not the same man who they love as a parent. In a guideline case, the High Court had to balance concerns about the impact such a revelation might have on an eight-year-old boy against his right to know the… Read more »

<p>The formalities that must be met when making a will are strict and failing to adhere to them to the letter can result in your wishes being frustrated after your death. That is exactly what happened in one case in which a generous mother&rsquo;s final will was declared invalid by the High Court.</p> <p>The woman… Read more »

<p>Businesses in which women are under-represented in senior roles invite speculation that the imbalance results from discriminatory sexual stereotyping. However, as a case in the context of the banking sector showed, Employment Tribunals (ETs) are required to base their decisions not on surmise but on hard evidence.</p> <p>The case concerned a female vice-president who worked… Read more »

<p><img alt=”Bottles Of Wine – various Quizzes” src=”https://s3-eu-west-2.amazonaws.com/legalrss-production/assets/1491/small/Slater_Heelis_Wine_Bottles.jpg?1355097658″ style=”border-style:solid; border-width:0px; float:right; margin:2px 5px” />Many marketing and promotional campaigns offer &lsquo;free&rsquo; goods to customers. A tax tribunal&rsquo;s decision has, however, established the truth of the popular saying that there is no such thing as a free lunch, or for that matter a free bottle of wine.</p>… Read more »

There is a risk that well-meaning or light-hearted marketing or advertising campaigns may inadvertently stray into the realms of discrimination. A brewery fell into that trap when it marketed a cut-price beer only to those who identified as women in a satirical attempt to highlight the gender pay gap. A customer launched proceedings against the… Read more »

Professionally drafted restrictive covenants in employment contracts are a legitimate means of protecting businesses from unfair competition – but only insofar as they do not amount to an unreasonable restraint on an individual’s freedom to work. In an important test case, the Supreme Court considered where the balance is to be struck between those two… Read more »

So-called squatters’ rights are a constant bone of contention because they can result in property being wrested from the ownership of those who have paper title to it. That was certainly so in an unusual case concerning a burial vault in which members of a landed family had rested for more than 150 years. The… Read more »