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If noise arising from major infrastructure projects disturbs your peace and diminishes the value of your home, you have a legal right to fair compensation. In a case on point, a householder living a mile away from an extended airport runway was awarded...

The wrench of a child leaving home is a tough experience for many parents and that can be particularly so when the child is disabled. However, as a Court of Protection case showed , not even parents are entitled to stand in the way of their offspring...

Not every accident is someone else's fault. The High Court powerfully made that point in the case of an elderly man who sustained devastating injuries when he tripped over a kerb in a car park adjacent to a Waitrose supermarket. The man, in his 80s, was on...

It is perhaps inevitable that British motorists who are involved in road accidents on the continent often face claims that they were driving on the wrong side of the road. A case concerning a motorcyclist who was gravely injured in Germany showed, however,...

When making your will, it is vital to bear in mind the responsibilities you owe to those who depend on you financially. In a case on point, the High Court came to the aid of a 12-year-old boy whose aunt treated him as if he were her own child throughout...

Conducting your trade through the medium of a limited company can bring tax and other benefits. However, as a case concerning the clawback of COVID-19 support grants paid to a fitness coach showed , it can also have disadvantages, not all of which can be...

The courage of many accident victims is deserving of great admiration, but judges are required to put sympathy aside when considering issues of liability. The High Court staunchly observed that principle in the case of a motorcycle racer who sustained...

If you are a council tenant and are anxious to ensure that a loved one succeeds to your tenancy after your death, you should seek legal advice straight away. A High Court case powerfully illustrated the potentially dire consequences of failing to do so. The...

Divorcees who are unwilling to give ground and negotiate responsibly with a view to achieving a financial settlement with their ex-spouses are highly likely to pay a stiff price for their lack of flexibility. The High Court emphasised the point in a...

Are so called 'smart' motorways, which lack hard shoulders, safe? An answer to that question was implicitly begged by a High Court case concerning a catastrophic accident involving a minibus filled with university students, one of whom died. The...

The trouble with wills that have not been professionally drafted is that they very often signally fail either to accurately reflect the testator's wishes or to achieve fairness. That was certainly so in the case of a man who, by his home-made will, all but...

It is not uncommon for abuse victims to claim that their lives have been wrecked by a local authority's failure to properly protect them during their childhood. A landmark Court of Appeal ruling has gone some way to easing their path to justice. The case...

Sporting and other community facilities are obviously desirable but, as a guideline High Court ruling showed , there are effective legal steps you can take if they become a magnet for anti-social behaviour that amounts to a statutory nuisance. Three...

Motorway collisions commonly involve multiple vehicles and it can be a very difficult forensic task to discern where responsibility for them lies. The High Court, however, rose to the challenge in ruling that a bakery van driver was solely to blame for one...

Family judges are often called upon to make agonising decisions concerning medical treatment of those who have lost the ability to express their own choices. However, as one case showed, they bend every sinew to discern what their wishes might be and to...

Employers are required to perform risk assessments and to have policies in place to ensure the reasonable safety of their staff. As a Court of Appeal ruling concerning a pupil's assault on a teacher showed, however, it can be very difficult to prove that...

It is commonplace for parents to put their hands in their pockets to help their children set up in business. As a High Court ruling in a bitterly contested inheritance case showed , however, a failure to formally document the precise legal basis on which...

Few would quarrel with the principle that, where personal injury claims are tainted by fundamental dishonesty, they should be dismissed in their entirety. As a High Court ruling showed, however, there must always be a fair opportunity to answer such grave...

No one should be surprised to hear that, when a same-sex couple have a child following lawful IVF treatment, each of them has a right to be registered as the child's legal parent. However, as a High Court case showed , whilst the law has generally kept pace...

It is an established fact that certain foreign powers resort to violence and the use of surveillance software to target dissidents in the UK. In a ground-breaking ruling, the High Court considered whether the principle of state immunity precludes them from...

When interpreting wills, judges focus on the actual words used and that is one good reason why professional drafting really matters. As a guideline case showed , only in the event that the wording of a will is meaningless or ambiguous will extraneous...

The debate over whether there should be 'no-fault' damages awards for injuries caused in road accidents has been raging for decades. The law, however, currently requires proof of negligence and – as a Court of Appeal ruling showed – that means...

There are few things more concerning than a proposal by your neighbours to extend their property in a way that may threaten the structural integrity of your home. As one case showed, however, voicing your opposition to such a proposal via the planning system...

Some divorcees drag their feet in a misguided attempt to put off the hour when they must divide their assets with their ex-partners. However, a case involving a husband who caused costly delay when he asserted that he had COVID-19 showed that family judges...

The acrimonious end of intimate relationships is sadly often marked by the making of wounding accusations. However, as a High Court case made plain , anyone involved in such personal disputes should think long and hard before resorting to defamation...

The vast majority of accident victims are entirely honest, but there are sadly always a few who exaggerate their suffering with a view to upping their compensation. A High Court ruling served as a stern warning that those whose claims are infected by...

The majority of personal injury and clinical negligence claims culminate in an agreed financial settlement. However, as one case showed, such deals do not mark the end of the supervisory role played by judges in ensuring that often very large sums in...

It is a sad fact that many people lose their ability to make rational decisions in old age and that is why it is so vital to make a professionally drafted will before time catches up with you. The point was powerfully made by a High Court ruling . About...

Losses incurred on the disposal of an asset can be set against future profits on other investments for Capital Gains Tax (CGT) purposes. As a First-tier Tribunal (FTT) ruling showed , however, behind that simple statement lie layers of complexity. The case...

In a unique decision arising from a woman's tragic death when pregnant with twins, the High Court gave posthumous effect to her longstanding wish to have a child by granting her bereaved husband permission to make use of an embryo stored in a fertility...

Those in the early stages of asbestos-related illness often receive an initial award of damages on the basis that they can seek further compensation in the event that their condition deteriorates. In a ruling which broke new legal ground , the High Court...

Those involved in catastrophic road accidents frequently point the finger of blame at potholes or other defects in the road surface. As one case showed, however, it can be an uphill task to pin responsibility for such accidents on highway authorities. The...

If your land has been compulsorily purchased to make way for a public infrastructure project, you are entitled to full and fair compensation. Local authorities may be keen to pay as little as possible in such cases but, as an Upper Tribunal (UT) ruling...

When accidents happen abroad, the first hurdle that must be overcome in seeking compensation in this country is to show that the claim falls within the jurisdiction of the English courts. That can be a far from straightforward task but, as one case showed,...

When people die, it is the duty of the administrators of their estates to gather in their assets and distribute them to those entitled to inherit them. As a case concerning the contents of a deceased artist's flat showed , however, that task is by no means...

Highway authorities and private landowners alike are under a legal duty to address tripping hazards so that pedestrians can move around in reasonable safety. As a High Court ruling made plain, however, that is not a counsel of perfection. The case concerned...

Justice that can be accessed only by the super-rich is not justice at all. A High Court judge made that point in noting that financial remedy proceedings in divorce cases are fast heading for Ritz Hotel status – affordable only by the well-heeled...

There is such a thing as a reasonable excuse for failing to file your self-assessment tax return. However, in an unusual case, the First-tier Tribunal (FTT) ruled that a businessman's alleged debilitating fear of making a mistake in his return did not...

When negotiating the settlement of personal injury cases, lawyers know only too well that a bird in hand can be worth two in the bush. That was certainly so in the case of a cyclist who suffered a catastrophic brain injury in a road accident. The woman, in...

Alternative investments may offer attractive rates of return, but they should never be entered into without professional advice. A High Court case concerning numerous small investors who staked their life savings on the success of an ill-fated hotel...

No one knows when death will come calling and it is equally a truism that, if you fail to make a professionally drafted will, you store up trouble for your loved ones after you are gone. As an unusual Family Court ruling showed, that is particularly so if...

Boundaries between properties are usually marked by a line on a small-scale Land Registry plan but they may be invisible on the ground. Precisely that difficulty was the root cause of a bitter dispute between owners of two riverside homes. The owners could...

There can be few questions of greater importance than 'Who is my parent?'. A judge made that point in taking the unprecedented step of enabling rectification of an adopted woman's birth certificate to reflect the identity of her natural father. The...

The road to justice for those who have suffered terrible wrongs can be excruciatingly long and hard, but persistence will often win the day. That was certainly so in the case of a retired police officer who was with WPC Yvonne Fletcher when she was gunned...

In a ruling which will be greeted with joy by the growing community of self-builders , a couple who made a very handsome return on their 'Grand Designs'-style project have been relieved of a six-figure Capital Gains Tax (CGT) bill. The couple bought a plot...

If you suffer an accident at work, personal injury lawyers can be relied upon to do all in their power to ensure you are fully compensated. That was certainly so in the case of a workman who was dreadfully injured in an explosion whilst dismantling a...

Lasting powers of attorney (LPAs) enable thousands of vulnerable people to have their financial and other affairs managed by others whom they trust. However, as a High Court case showed , it is vital to remember that they can only be granted by those who...

In divorce proceedings, those who make overly ambitious financial claims or fail to enter into reasonable negotiations are highly likely to end up worse off. The point was powerfully made by a case in which a bitterly opposed former couple ran up more than...

Road traffic accidents can, in the twinkling of an eye, turn a happy day out into a life-changing tragedy. That was certainly so in the case of a young woman who was struck by a car and severely injured as she left a public event. The streets were congested...

Claims to non-UK residency for tax purposes are a political and fiscal hot potato and HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) are, to say the least, reluctant to accept them. In an exceptional case, however, the First-tier Tribunal (FTT) backed a hard-pressed...