News & Insights

Question: 18 months ago I engaged a contractor to carry out a major refurbishment of our property. Practical completion was granted three months ago, subject to a list of defects…

Part I of the Commonhold & Leasehold Reform Act 2002 (the Act) was finally enacted in September 2004 introducing commonhold as a new form of freehold ownership.

When an artist dies, his or her work forms a tangible and emotional legacy. How should this be managed, by whom and for whose benefit?  This article looks at particular estate planning issues for artists.

“Thomas Cromwell was a man of property.” So says Hilary Mantel, author and passionate advocate of the man in question.

As the area of law surrounding Norwich Pharmacal Orders (NPOs) has grown in recent years, applications for an NPO in situations where the respondent resides outside the jurisdiction has come under increasing scrutiny.

Is a tenant’s right to park sufficient to prevent a landlord from redeveloping the common parts?

On the expiry of a lease, a landlord may be able to claim damages from its tenant for losses arising from the tenant’s breach of its repairing covenants in the lease.

This article considers the scenarios where a variation of a lease amounts to a ”surrender and regrant”, and outlines how the unwanted consequences of this can be avoided.

The matrimonial home is often the most valuable asset owned by a family.

The Commonhold and Leasehold Reform Act 2002 (CLRA 2002) requires that long residential leaseholders must be consulted before a landlord carries out qualifying works or enters into a qualifying long term agreement which they intend to recover through the leaseholders’ service charge.

If you want to wine and dine a potential client, or treat an existing client to lunch to thank them for their custom, you may not realise that you could potentially be caught by the Bribery Act 2010 if the gift is deemed to be excessive and go well beyond reasonable efforts to promote your business.

If a lease is silent or simply states that a tenant may assign, then the tenant can assign without the need for the landlord’s consent.

This note examines the difficulties that arise where an owner of commercial property allows someone into occupation of the property without documenting the basis on which they are to occupy it.

The family home is generally the most valuable asset owned by a couple. On divorce, it is considered a unique asset and is given special treatment by the family courts, which take the view that its primary concern is to ensure that each party has a roof over his/her head.

This article considers the position of creditors attempting to enforce a judgement debt against a co-owned property.

Emily Brand, partner, and Genevieve Smith, an associate at Boodle Hatfield, consider the ‘archaic’ nature of the law, and the Supreme Court’s decision to award an unmarried woman access to bereavement allowance after the death of her partner.

Divorce is something that few people plan for. Dividing up shared assets and moving them out of tax-efficient vehicles can be costly and reaching a financial settlement can take a long time, sometimes years if both parties are contesting it.

Joint bank accounts may be a flexible and practical solution for the management of money on a day to day basis.