Court of Appeal Regina (Patel) v General Medical Council Before Lord Dyson, Master of the Rolls, Lord Justice Lloyd and Lord Justice Lloyd Jones Judgment March 27, 2013 A British resident who had undertaken a long course of study by distance learning at an overseas university relying on e-mail assurances from the defendant, a professional medical body with responsibility for registering doctors, that he would be entitled to register his medical qualification once awarded after completing all the clinical requirements, had a legitimate expectation of registration. The defendant body was not entitled to defeat that expectation by refusing him registration…
by Rodney Hylton-Potts A commercial peer-to-peer lender pools money from various sources (individual savers, pension funds, councils, even government) and lends it to businesses looking for a loan. Interest rates (currently 7-10%) are often lower than those offered by traditional lenders, including banks. This is because peer-to-peer lending schemes are not ‘bricks and mortar’ businesses, but use the internet to bring lenders and borrowers together. Fees are transparent – typically between 2-4% of the amount borrowed. Peer-to-peer lenders do not offer ‘add-on’ products such as swaps, insurance or hedging. Time from application to funds being released is typically 12…
This first appeared in the solicitors Journal on 14th of June 2013 and is reproduced with their permission. In Prest v Petrodel the Supreme Court kept company law principles intact and used property and trust law to reach a fair conclusion – but not all agree with Lord Sumption. Hazel Wright takes a closer look at the decision, while our commentators share their own take on the longer-term implications of the decision (see box below) “Courts exercising family jurisdiction do not occupy a desert island in which general legal concepts are suspended or mean something different”, Lord Sumption said…
By Rodney Hylton-Potts The Supreme Court’s decision to order an oil tycoon to hand over assets held by his companies to his former wife has been hailed as a victory for fairness and justice by lawyers. But lawyers are divided on the implications of judgment in Prest v Petrodel Resources Limited. The court used trust rather than company law to resolve the matter, declaring that the seven disputed properties were, in the particular circumstances of the case, held on trust for the husband and could therefore be passed to his wife. Some lawyers feel that the court had ‘parted the…
Rodney Hylton-Potts writes On 24 May 2913 the High Court decided that the Speaker’s wife, Mrs. Bercow’s tweet carried a defamatory meaning. McAlpine v Bercow is the first case to really tackle the peculiar nature of this social media genre and could mark a key moment in social media use. Seven deadly words The Judge had just seven words to deal with, two of which read as a descriptive ‘emoticon’: ‘Why is Lord McAlpine trending? *Innocent face*’. In interpreting the meaning of the tweet the court looked at the fairly unique nature of the audience to which it was published.…
Charles Saatchi was cautioned by police, for an offence of Common Assault. He accepted a caution, so he stated, because it was “better than the alternative, of this hanging over all of us for months“. 1. By accepting a caution, Mr Saatchi accepted that he was guilty A caution cannot be administered unless there is an admission of guilt. Additionally, when a caution is ‘administered’ by the police, the suspect must sign a form which makes it clear that they have accepted their guilt. 2. By accepting a caution, the offending admitted by Mr Saatchi must have been (relatively) serious…
The Unfair Dismissal Variation of Qualifying Period) Order 2012 came into force on 6 April 2012. It increased the minimum qualifying period of continuous employment necessary to claim unfair dismissal, and entitlement to written reasons for dismissal, from one to two years. This means employers could have two classes of employees with differing rights to claim unfair dismissal. This is because these changes do not affect employees whose period of continuous employment began before 6 April 2012. Employers need to be aware of this distinction and, in particular, consider if an employee may be able to claim the period of…
Rodeny Hylton-Potts, Lawyer I own a chain of boutiques. Our store is recognisable by its bright blue and pink stripy interior, which we use for our packaging. It has come to our attention that an online swimwear distributor’s website is using our unique colour combination in the same get up and fashion. The company could easily be confused for the online arm of our boutique. Can we contest this? Your lawyer should write to the distributor threatening “passing off” proceedings and you should be prepared to start them if your warning or any subsequent correspondence does not persuade them to…
Rodney Hylton-Potts, Lawyer I discovered that a hire at my company included false information on his CV. It turns out he was dismissed from his last role following a disciplinary hearing for gross misconduct. He told me he was made redundant. He has been in my employment for two months. Do I have grounds to dismiss him? If you are confident that your information about the finding of this gross misconduct is correct (and you have evidence of this), you can proceed to dismissal. As he has only been with you for two months, he does not have the qualifying…
Rodney Hylton-Potts, Lawyer Since 1 April 2013, the family courts have had the power to make a legal services order, which is a new form of interim order compelling one spouse to make provision for the other’s legal costs. Historical position The new provisions go beyond the family courts’ power to make a costs allowance within a maintenance pending suit. Since the decision of Holman J in A v A (maintenance pending suit: provision for legal fees) [2001], the definition of ‘maintenance’ was interpreted to be wide enough to include a monthly provision for the payment of legal fees. The…
