Section 96(2) of the Children Act 1989, provides that the unsworn evidence of a child may be heard by a court in civil proceedings if in its opinion the child understands that it is their duty to speak the truth and that they have sufficient understanding to justify their evidence being heard, even though, in the court's opinion, they cannot understand the nature of an oath. The attendance of a child to give oral evidence in children law cases was considered by the Supreme Court in Re W (Children)

The question of the status of a lodger following the death of a resident landlord will depend upon the true nature of the right of the lodger to occupy the property. The occupation may be by way of excluded licence or excluded lease, meaning that there are limited protections pursuant to the Protection from Eviction Act 1977 (PEA 1977). Further a tenancy where the landlord is a resident landlord cannot be an assured tenancy by virtue of paragraph 10 of Schedule 1 to the Housing Act 1988 (HA 1988) (the reference to an assured tenancy by virtue of the HA 1988 now being to an assured shorthold tenancy). A tenancy does not come to an end on

A Power of Attorney (POA) is a formal arrangement by which one person (‘the donor’) gives another person (‘the attorney’) authority to act on their behalf and in their name. In the case of an instrument creating an ordinary POA (as is the case here) it must be executed as a deed by the donor of the power and must comply with the formalities that apply to the executions

True licence Firstly, it should be considered whether or not there is a true licence in place, or whether it is in fact a lease. In summary, the court will determine whether an agreement is a lease or a licence by looking at its substance, not the label attached to it by the parties. In Street v Mountford the House of Lords identified the hallmarks of a tenancy. They are: • exclusive possession • of defined premises Payment of rent might also be an indication of a tenancy, but rent is not in fact required for a tenancy to exist. Please see our Practice Note: Leases and licences of land—key features and differences for more information. If the agreement is a licence it will not benefit from Landlord and Tenant Act 1954 (LTA 1954) protection. If,

In July 2012 the Department for Work and Pensions confirmed plans for the introduction of an insurer funded compensation scheme for mesothelioma claimants with un-traced employer liability insurance schemes. A tariff scheme (based on a percentage of the average damages awarded at court) will operate through the Employers

The first step to decide how to remove a substation is to ascertain the terms on which the occupier is in possession. Even if there is no formal documentation, it is necessary to understand the nature of the relationship (or at least to estimate the way that a court would interpret the facts). Examples of the types of relationship that may be inferred include, for example, an implied licence, tenancy at will, or other form

Where a company enters into one of the applicable insolvency processes (being, under section 234(1) of the Insolvency Act 1986 (IA 1986), administration, administrative receivership, liquidation, or provisional liquidation), any person may be required by the court to deliver up company property, books, papers or records to which the company appears to be entitled. Practice Note: Directors’ duties: companies in financial difficulties contains further information. IA 1986, s 235 imposes a duty inter alia

Inheritance tax on unsettled property which vests in the personal representatives is a testamentary expense. See: section 211(1) of the Inheritance Tax Act 1984. Schedule 1 Part II to the Administration of Estates Act 1925 sets out the order of application of the assets within a solvent estate for

We direct you to section 5 of the Administration of Estates Act 1925 which states, inter alia: ‘Where a person appointed executor by a will—survives the testator but dies without having taken out probate of the will…his rights in respect of the executorship shall wholly cease, and the representation to the testator and the

Practice Note: Order of play and trial timetables sets out the order of play during a trial depending on which track the case is assigned to as well as those in speciality courts. The order of play depends on the track on which the case is proceeding and/or the venue. The Practice Note suggests that the claimant experts would go first followed by both defendant experts. Commentary from Trials: Butterworths Personal Injury Litigation Service [1207]–[1250]

Copyright infringement Copyright recognises the intellectual creation of an author when a work is created. In the UK, copyright subsists in specific categories of works. These are ‘original’ literary, dramatic, musical or artistic works (called author’s rights); sound recordings, films, broadcasts (called derivative rights because they derive from other works); and the typographical arrangement of published editions. Legal agreements would come under the ‘literary works’ category. There is no official system of registration of copyright in the UK. The right arises automatically once the copyright work is recorded, subject to other qualifications being fulfilled. See Practice Note: Copyright—subsistence and qualification. Copyright is likely to subsist in a legal agreement as a literary work and this copyright would be owned by the creator of the agreement (if this person is an employee and the document

Legislative references to the power of a magistrates’ court to impose a sentence of imprisonment of up to 12 months on summary conviction can lead to confusion: the magistrates’ court does not have power to impose imprisonment or detention for more than six months in respect of any one offence per section 224(1) of the Sentencing Act 2020 (SA 2020) (which