Dispute Resolution

Credit Rating Agency Equifax were dealt a heavy blow in the High Court when their failure to update the information held in their credit file meant Mr Smeaton was denied a loan. The Court found that Equifax had breached the Claimant’s statutory duty of care under the Data Protection Act and was entitled to be […]

A term in an employment contract which restricts the employee’s activities after termination will be void for being in restraint of trade and against public policy. However, such a term will be enforceable where the employer can show that they have a legitimate interest to protect and that the protection which they are seeking is […]

Under the Trade Marks Act 1994, a trade mark cannot be registered if it does not satisfy certain prescribed requirements, including that it must be a ‘sign’ and be capable of being represented graphically. A trade mark can also not be registered if it is devoid of distinctive character, unless before the date of the […]

The Office of Fair Trading (OFT) recently conducted a pre-Christmas review of 156 retailer websites and found that many of them were not fully complying with the Consumer Protection Distance Selling Regulations and the Electronic Commerce Regulations. These regulations cover “distance selling” and, in particular, the rights of consumers to receive certain minimum information prior […]

Wheel clampers will be outlawed from clamping vehicles on private land following the introduction of new legislation. The Protection of Freedoms Act 2012 (which came into effect on the 1 October) makes it a criminal offence to clamp on private land in England and Wales, but not in Northern Ireland. Clamping and towing away on private […]

Under the Defective Premises Act 1972, a landlord owes a duty of care to anyone who might be affected by defects present in the premises which they let. In a worrying decision for social and private landlords, the High Court has ruled that a landlord can be liable for not carrying out repairs even where […]

The use of Charging Orders as a means of enforcement of a debt has been increasingly popular over recent years as the equity in a debtor’s property is often his most valuable asset. The law in this area has today changed to allow Charging Orders to be obtained even where the debtor has an instalment […]

The World Wide Web has revolutionised the way people live in both their personal and professional lives, with every conceivable topic available at the click of a button. Internet users can access a wide variety of websites by typing in domain names which end with a small number of suffixes such as .com, .net and […]

In a previous blog post I reported on how High Street banks had been mis-selling interest protection products to many small businesses. Following a two month review, the Financial Services Authority (FSA) has found that there have been “serious failings” at Barclays, HSBC, Royal Bank of Scotland and Lloyds in the way they have sold […]

As reported in the national news recently, the banking industry has abandoned its legal fight over the mis-selling of payment protection insurance (PPI) to thousands of customers and will now be compensating those customers. There is another area where an increasing number of complaints are being made by customers against the banks. This is over […]

A partnership is one of many options available when running a business. Partners will frequently share profits and losses and will usually be bound by a Partnership Agreement which will govern their relationship. Partnership disputes are common and can be complicated by the lack of a formal Partnership Agreement. In some circumstances this can even […]

It is not uncommon for businesses to spend substantial sums on marketing, but there are dangers involved in using a marketing campaign which aggressively targets a competitor by reference to its trade marks. Businesses should be aware that the Courts will not allow them to “ride on the coat tails” of others or build unfairly […]