A businesswoman who made more than £3 million from the sale of her shares in a social care company – and then promptly set up in rivalry with it in breach of a non-compete covenant – is facing a substantial damages bill. On the sale of her shares, the woman had agreed not to compete with the company or solicit its clients for three years. However, even before her departure, she and her civil partner, who had also worked for the company and agreed to the covenant, had set up a business which operated in a similar field. They commenced…
An excellent article in the Solicitors Journal “the real fly in the ointment” 18 November 2014 (www.solicitorsjournal.com) expands on the ruling of Mostyn J about dating before divorce. He called it the “fly in the ointment”. What he meant was that Judges cannot not in practice disregard a new relationship before divorce. If for example the wife had moved in with a wealthy man, and the husband was ordered to pay a high degree of maintenance, he would have a justifiable grievance if he thought that “another man should look after her”. Equally she might be aggrieved if she got…
An article in the 11 November 2014 Solicitors Journal (www.solicitorsjournal.com) called “Child contact centres perform a valuable function” is well worth a look. They are closed centres with each parent entering from separate secure entrances to keep them apart. These facilities are applicable where there is a drug or alcohol problem, typically with the male absent parent. Fathers and the children often hate them because they are not a good place to have quality contact. Nevertheless the advice to the absent parent, typically the father, is to accept any humiliation and condition to maintain contact with the child. Things will…
On 8 September 2014, the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills published a guide to the use of electronic signatures, which is essential reading for anyone seeking to use them for business purposes. This can be found at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/electronic-signatures. We would be interested in your comments, please leave them by clicking on the title to this blog above.
If you are thinking of entering into a same sex marriage, or when effect converting your existing civil partnership click on the link below for guidance Marriage (Same Sex Couples) Act Preparation for the occasion, such as having a prenuptial agreement, and advice in relation to break down of the same as heterosexual situations Expert legal advice were taken at an early stage
Where a contract makes no sense a Judge has discretion to delete and change the void or illegal clause and put in wording that the parties should have actually used. This is called the “blue pencil rule”. A case worth looking at is Phrophet plc v Huggett (2014) EWCA CIV1013, where the Judge decided that the lawyer who drafted the contract had not written down the parties’ intentions, and so instead the Judge substituted wording that should have been used. These cases can be go way and can be very uncertain and therefore expert legal advice should be taken in…
In H (A Child), the parents were both born in Pakistan enter an arranged marriage. The husband already lived in the UK by this time, and the wife joined him on a spousal visa in 2012. Their son, ‘H’, was born shortly afterwards. The wife accused the husband of keeping hold of her and H’s passports following a matrimonial spat Before the trip, she found out that her husband had been previously been married and had a daughter. The wife was initially sceptical of the trip to Pakistan, but she was convinced to make the trip, when he swore on…
The 10 November 2014 Times (thetimes.co.uk) tells us a story called “Park Bans Single Women and Men” because they wanted to visit an adventure park without children. The reason given was the risk of paedophiles. All of us wish to take the strongest action against these evil men, but this is a step too far and probably unlawful. The grandfather in this story says he feels discriminated against. He is right to feel that way because that is exactly what has happened. This particular park featured falconry, one of his interests. Although a private company…
The Children Act 1989 (CA) gives children rights. It is the children who have the rights to have contact with both parents and the children have the rights for maintenance. The judge is guided by the welfare checklist which is as follows: the ascertainable wishes and feelings of the child concerned (considered in the light of his age and understanding) his physical, emotional and educational needs the likely effect of any change in his circumstances his age, sex, background and any characteristics of his which the court considers relevant any harm which he has suffered or is…
Mr Justice Mostyn in the case of AB v CD caused quite a ripple. If during a divorce a party enters a relationship (either sex, and male or female) a Judge will take this into account. It may not blossom into cohabitation or marriage but a Judge has to weigh it up as a Section 25 factor. That is the section of the law that determines how the finances are divided. Whilst we are not specifically not saying dating is out, during a divorce there should be great restraint and discretion or it could have very serious…
