When a shipyard worker was injured in an accident, he received a £7 million settlement from his employer. The ultimate cause of the accident was a defect in the design of equipment (a platform) that he was using, which had recently been installed at...
There are many potential benefits of buying a franchise, such as having access to well-established business and accounting systems, centralised marketing and a proven business model. Being part of a well-known national brand also has an appeal for many...
Who can challenge a company’s decision that has been improperly made? This question was the subject of a court hearing recently , when the owners of the ‘ultimate economic interest’ in shares in a company sought to overturn a decision the...
When chocolate giant Cadbury sought to use the Supply of Goods and Services Act 1982 (SOGA) to make the firm that designed, built and installed a fire detection and control system that failed to prevent a major fire fully liable for its losses, the Court...
Commercial Press Release Changes in the default statutory protection for late payment of commercial debts sees a tightening up on how quickly commercial debts should be settled and greater opportunity to recover costs. In view of these changes,...
When an offer to settle a legal dispute is made (called a ‘Part 36 offer’ by lawyers) and the court subsequently orders payment of a higher figure (in which case the award is said to have ‘beaten the offer’), the general rule is that...
A recent case involving supermarket chain Somerfield (now part of the Co-Op) shows the wisdom of thinking through the implications of a contract before undertaking it. The supermarket chain made an agreement with a company called ParkingEye to monitor...
When a Scottish council computerised its pension records, it failed to ensure that the paper records were appropriately disposed of – and the result was a £250,000 fine. After the work was completed, files were discovered to have been dumped in...
Employee theft is often an exclusion in commercial insurance policies. When fashion retailer Ted Baker found that it had suffered a major loss due to employee theft of stock, AXA, the company’s insurer, declined to meet the claim on the ground that...
Electrical equipment is the fastest-growing category of rubbish across the European Union (EU). It is estimated that by 2020, 12 million tonnes will be produced. In February 2003, the EU Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) Directive came into...
