The Marie Curie Power Peloton

Ware & Kay is extremely proud and delighted to be sponsoring Mr Mike Hughes from York who is raising funds in aid of Marie Curie as part of the Marie Curie Power Peloton on Saturday 5 July 2014   Mike Hughes (York) is riding in the Marie Curie Power Peloton on 5 July 2014 The Marie Curie Power Peloton   A unique experience for only 25 cyclists to ride the route of the first stage of the Tour de France Grand Depart on the same day as Chris Froome, Mark Cavendish, and the other professional riders. The challenge is to ride the 190km of Stage One so that they are not less than 3 hours ahead of the caravan. Marie Curie Cancer Care is the official charity of the Tour de France Grand…

Commercial Rent Arrears Recovery

Landlords have for a long time used the common law remedy of distress, which enables them to seize the goods of their tenant at the leased premises and sell those goods at auction, in order to recover any rent arrears. However, distress for commercial rent arrears will be abolished by the Tribunals Courts and Enforcement Act 2007 via the Taking Control of Goods Regulations 2013, which were published last month. These reforms create a new process called Commercial Rent Arrears Recovery (CRAR) which landlords must abide by when seizing a tenant's goods for failure to pay rent. The changes are due to come into effect in April 2014. Executive summary Distress is an invaluable and frequently used remedy for the recovery of arrears. Its replacement by commercial rent arrears recovery ("CRAR") from 6 April 2014…

100 Not Out

With one in three babies born today likely to live to this milestone age, this is something more of us need to start planning for. Here is a checklist of the essential considerations for your elder years: Retirement finances You could easily find yourself having thirty or forty years of "old age" following retirement so it is vital to plan how much income and capital you will need to fund your future plans. You may want to help family members who are struggling financially or put something aside for your grandchildren. Using your inheritance tax allowances wisely is crucial or your relatives may have a heavy inheritance tax bill when you are gone. Paying for care Living longer means more of us will require professional care in our later years. You can plan…

Employment Tribunal Traps To Avoid

An employee can take an employer to an employment tribunal for a variety of reasons. These include claims for unfair dismissal, unpaid wages, redundancy and discrimination. If the claim is successful, the tribunal can order the employer to pay compensation and/or give the employee their job back. Defending the claim yourself can be very difficult and time consuming if you have no experience of employment law or dealing with a tribunal court. Some claims are very technical and depend on the interpretation of legislation or case law. If you do not follow the correct procedure, present your case properly or miss a hearing you put your defence at risk. If you are tempted to represent yourself, take care to avoid the most common mistakes employers make: failing to complete the response form properly or…

Is Help To Buy The Key To Your Dream Home

The 'dream of home ownership' can now become a reality for many people who had thought it might be out of their reach, under the government's new Help to Buy schemes. However, home ownership is not without its risks both financially and personally so it is wise to take legal advice at an early stage to protect your interests. There are two schemes which can help you fund a house purchase up to the value of £600,000: equity loan scheme - offering an interest free government loan of up to 20 per cent of the value of the property for the first five years. You need to put in a five per cent deposit and get a mortgage for the 75 per cent balance; or mortgage guarantee scheme - the government will guarantee up…

Resignation Checklist

All employers, no matter how good they are, will likely have to deal with an employee resignation at some point. Sometimes it is because an employee's personal circumstances change and sometimes it is because they have been offered a better opportunity elsewhere. On some occasions, it is because there are problems at work. As an employer it is important to know how to handle the details when an employee resigns. You cannot refuse to accept someone's resignation. However, if an employee resigns verbally in the heat of the moment, you should give them an opportunity to change their mind in order to avoid a constructive dismissal claim. Here is a checklist of some of the issues for employers to think about when an employee resigns: ✔   the resignation should be confirmed in writing; ✔…

The Mediators

A group of experienced solicitors from across eight different law firms have banded together to form the York Solicitor Mediators. Their aim is to offer families and couples who may be going through a difficult divorce or separation an alternative to the court process which can often be extremely stressful and expensive. Chris Myles, a member of the new group and himself a family solicitor in York, commented that, "Not only do we understand the law but we are all qualified Family Mediators who recognise that there are better ways than the court system to make those all-important arrangements. Whether it is finances, divorce, or child custody issues, we can open the door to communication between parties to avoid court and unnecessary costs". York Solicitor Mediators cover all of North Yorkshire as well as the…

Religion And Belief In The Workplace

The Equality Act 2010 makes it unlawful to discriminate against someone because of their religion or belief.  With religious festivals of all faiths spread throughout the year, employers need to be aware of workers' rights and some of the issues that can arise to avoid costly tribunal claims. The Equality Act protects employees, contract workers, partners and office-holders, and covers the areas of recruitment, terms and conditions, promotion, training and dismissal. An employee, who believes you have discriminated against them, harassed or victimised them because of their religion or belief can bring a claim in an employment tribunal and, if successful, can be awarded unlimited compensation. The average award in April 2012 - March 2013 for this type of discrimination was £16,320. Employers can be held responsible if one employee discriminates against another in the…

Zero Hours Contracts

It is estimated that anything between 250,000 and one million workers are employed on zero hours contracts in the UK. Employment law does not define a zero hours contract. In practice it has come to mean a contract for casual work, where the employer does not guarantee to provide the individual with any work and pays them only for the work actually done. Usually, the worker is expected to be available to work if called on by the employer. Workers are effectively on standby and are generally contacted at the start of each week and told how many hours they will be required to work that week. The advantages for employers are clear: they do not have to pay staff when there is no work available for them; nor do they have to pay sick…

Promotion Of Gill Wilkinson

Gillian Wilkinson Ware & Kay has promoted Gillian Wilkinson to Head of Employment. Gillian advises on all aspects of employment law for both employees and employers with a particular expertise in handling discrimination cases. Gillian will play a key role in the firm's growth plans for the Employment Department. Contact details   Published: September 2013 Last updated: 30 June 2014