14/08/18
John Myles, a Partner in Forbes Solicitors' Insurance department has become the new President of Blackburn Incorporated Law Association (BiLA). The Association exists to help local law practitioners and provides educational meetings and a range of support. However in recent times…
13/08/18
Forbes, the leading North West legal firm, has recruited two new Associates to join its successful Housing and Regeneration (Property) team. Catherine Kennedy and Francesca James will work out of the firm's Preston office, dealing with clients on a wide range of property-related…
08/08/18
Cycling enthusiasts from Forbes Solicitors have raised more than £3,600 for charity after creating their own version of the Tour de France. The Tour de Forbes involved a team of around 30 volunteers making the 100-mile journey from the firm's Leeds office to its base in Accrington…
01/08/18
Leading North West legal firm Forbes Solicitors has represented Irish meat producer Kepak Group in its acquisition of 2 Sisters Red Meat Limited from Boparan Holdings Ltd. The acquisition fits Kepak's plans to increase the value and scale of their company in markets that are complementary to…
27/07/18
The Employment Tribunal (ET) is an independent judicial body established to resolve disputes between employers and employees in relation to employment rights. The ET will hear claims about employment matters; such as unfair dismissal, discrimination, wages and redundancy payments for example. There…
26/07/18
Mencap v Tomlinson-Blake The Court of Appeal ruled on Friday 13 th July 2018 that periods of 'sleeping in' are to be treated as being available to work, opposed to 'actually working' and therefore do not constitute 'working' for the purposes of National Minimum Wage (…
26/07/18
A night of pampering and beauty treatments organised by Forbes Solicitors has raised £428 for Lancashire cancer charity CARES. The event, at the firm's Oak House office in Walton Summit, included demonstrations as well as canapés and prosecco for the 40 women who attended. The…
25/07/18
Leading North West legal firm Forbes Solicitors has expanded its Contentious Trusts and Probate Team with the recruitment of Solicitor Tom Howcroft. Tom joins Associate Solicitor Ben Wilson at the firm's Central Lancashire office as the team continues to build on its reputation for expert…
19/07/18
Allen v Oldham MBC - Manchester CC The claimant alleged that he was out walking his friend's dog, when he tripped due to a pothole in the alleyway. He fell and sustained an injury. Breach of duty was admitted but the defendant remained unconvinced by the claim and put the claimant to strict…
19/07/18
Austin v Lancaster County Council Local authorities often have to strike the balance between providing safe and exciting play areas for children as well as protecting the needs of local residents who live nearby. This claim arose after a child was injured after falling on a stone boulder installed…
19/07/18
DHL receives £2m fine after employee crushed by a reversing lorry DHL has been fined £2m over the death of an employee who was crushed at a depot in Milton Keynes. The worked was trapped between a reversing lorry and a loading bay in February 2015. DHL admitted breaching s 2(1…
19/07/18
Tuson v Debbie Murphy (2018) [2018] EWCA Civ 1461 The Court of Appeal considered whether a claimant ought to receive a cost penalty even though the defendant made the Part 36 offer in full knowledge of the misleading and dishonest conduct of the claimant. The claimant, Ms Tuson, fell from her…
19/07/18
Philip Clarke v John Kerwin (T/A Dirtbike Action) (2018)CC (Carlisle) (Judge Peter Hughes QC) 26/04/2018 A claim for personal injury was dismissed after the Court found that the true cause of an accident occurring at a motorcycle event was the dangerously high speed at which the claimant had…
19/07/18
Philip Clay v TUI UK LTD (2018) [2018] EWCA Civ 1177 CA (Civ Div) (Kitchin LJ, Hamblen LJ, Moylan LJ) 23/05/2018 The Court of Appeal have for the first time in a number of years considered when the actions of a claimant might break the chain of causation. Mr Clay had been on a package holiday…
19/07/18
A Partnership is an arrangement where two or more interested parties agree to cooperate their assets and skills to advance their mutual interests. These interested parties can be individuals in their personal capacity or alternatively be corporate entities or even partnerships themselves. Many…
18/07/18
A recent finding of the EAT in Flowers & others v East of England Ambulance Trust has confirmed that both non-guaranteed and voluntary overtime should be included in an employee's holiday pay calculation provided it was sufficiently regular and settled to amount to "normal remuneration&…
18/07/18
How far reaching can a workplace dress code be? In summary, dress codes can be a legitimate part of an employer's terms and conditions of service, but any less favourable treatment because of sex could amount to direct discrimination. While dress policies for men and women do not have to be…
17/07/18
Earlier this year, the Government launched an innovative £1.5 million 'Share the Joy' campaign to encourage more parents, via advertising, to take up the offer of Shared Parental Leave in their baby's first year. Research from the Department of Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy…
11/07/18
A summer ball organised by Forbes Solicitors in conjunction with Handelsbanken Chorley has raised £7654.75 for a national youth charity's new base in Chorley. The Midsummer Ball was held at Shaw Hill Golf Resort and Spa Hotel, Whittle-le-Woods, and was attended by 169 people from…
03/07/18
Leading law firm Forbes Solicitors is urging Lancashire people to consider end of life planning in the wake of a new report from Solicitors for the Elderly ("SFE"), and independent think tank, Centre for Future Studies. " The incapacity crisis: a nation unprepared " reveals the…
02/07/18
In July 2015 the Civil Justice Council set up The Working Group on Property Disputes in the Courts and Tribunals. Their purpose? To consider proposals for "flexible deployment" of judges between the First-tier Tribunal (Property Chamber) and the County Court in landlord and tenant, property…
19/06/18
In city of York Council -V- Grosset The Court of Appeal upheld a claim for stress arising out of a disability amounting to discrimination in the workplace. Mr Grosset, an English teacher, who had cystic fibrosis was suffering an increased workload. In conjunction with this, his Department had…
19/06/18
Q: Do we have to open up applications for a full time position to staff on fixed term contracts? A: Yes, a fixed-term employee has the right not to be treated less favourable than a comparable permanent employee with regards the terms of their contract or any other detriment. Regulation 3(2)(c…
19/06/18
Fishburn v Rochdale BC - Manchester County Court A Claimant has discontinued her claim for personal injury after a poor performance in the witness box. The Claimant alleged that she sustained a personal accident whilst walking along a pavement. The Claimant contended that she tripped on a…
18/06/18
Miles v Wigan Council This claim arises following an alleged accident in March 2014 when the Claimant stated that she tripped as a result of a rocking flagstone. The Claimant sustained a displaced fracture to her left elbow which required surgical fixation and presented a schedule of special…
18/06/18
After what feels like an age of the GDPR looming on the horizon, the new data protection regime has finally been implemented into law. There is no grace period so those who handle data must be ready to hit the ground running. But what impact will the GDPR have on claims and those who process data for…
18/06/18
Contractors face £526,500 penalty for failure to plan work at height An employee fell through a fragile roof at a leisure centre and sustained six fractures to his back. A HSE investigation found that two contractors involved had failed to plan and manage the work at height risk. The…
18/06/18
This week the Courts Service has admitted that since introducing increased court fees in July 2016, claimants have been overcharged for issuing stage 3 proceedings. The overcharged Court fees will have been passed on to defendants or their insurers when stage 3 costs were subsequently claimed. The…
18/06/18
The House of Commons Justice Committee have examined the Small Claims limit for personal injury and have rejected the proposals to increase the small claims limit for personal injury claims from £1,000 to £2,000 and to £5,000 for road traffic accidents. The Justice Committee have…
18/06/18
A major conference focusing on the important of a multi-agency approach to safeguarding and vulnerability is being held by Forbes Solicitors and West Yorkshire Police. The West Yorkshire Housing and Safeguarding Exchange Conference, at Cedar Court Hotel, Ainley Top on July 12, will be attended by…
31/05/18
Cycling enthusiasts from Forbes Solicitors have created their own version of the Tour de France to raise money for charity. The Tour de Forbes will involve a team of around 35 volunteers making the 100-mile journey from the firm's Leeds office to its base in Accrington on Friday…
17/05/18
Gilpin v Blackburn with Darwen Borough Council Preston County Court On 21 st May 2016, the claimant alighted from a taxi, took a few paces and stumbled in a pothole falling onto her outstretched hand and suffered injury. The claimant brought a claim against the local authority under the…
17/05/18
Potts v Wigan Council District Judge Mornington - Wigan County Court The claimant alleged that he was running along the pavement outside his home in May 2013 when he tripped on a raised paving slab. The claimant fractured his ankle as a result of the fall. At trial, the claimant…
16/05/18
DHL fined £2m over death of an employee An employee died after he was trapped between a reversing lorry and a loading bay at the company's site in 2015. DHL admitted breaching s. 2(1) and 3(1) of the Health and Safety at Work Act and was ordered to pay costs of £100,000…
16/05/18
In the case of Sally Woodward & Mark Addison v Phoenix Healthcare Distribution Limited the Court granted an order for retrospective alternative service of a claim form under CPR 6.15(2). The master found that the defendant's solicitors had breached their duty to further the overriding…
16/05/18
Sumner v Michael Colborne & Denbighshire County Council & Welsh Ministers (2018)[2018] EWCA Civ 1006 The Court of Appeal found that the highway authority did not owe a duty of care to highway users to cut back vegetation on land adjacent to the highway which interfered with drivers'…
16/05/18
Edward Wright v Satellite Information Services Ltd (2018)[2018] EWHC 812 (QB) A Judge had been entitled to conclude that, for the purposes of the Criminal Justice and Courts Act 2015 s.57 ("CJCA"), a claimant had not been fundamentally dishonest in relation to his personal injury claim…
16/05/18
Forbes Solicitors has announced the appointment of two new Partners and two new Associates as part of its continued growth. The largest legal practic e in the North West outside the major cities has promoted Shirley Wignall and Gill Carr to Partners from Associates. It has also confirmed that…
15/05/18
Forbes Solicitors successfully defends series of vexatious claims and allegations brought by a tenant over a 3 year period to enable enforcement of Possession Order made in 2015. Forbes Solicitors has successfully assisted a Social Landlord to defend the most recent in a long series of serious and…
15/05/18
In the recent appeal made by the Respondent in Capita Customer Management Ltd v Ali UKEAT/0161/17/BA , the Employment Appeal Tribunal (EAT) held that failing to pay a father his full salary during shared parental leave, where a female colleague on maternity leave would have received her full salary…
14/05/18
We are pleased to announce that the Forbes Insurance Department has been shortlisted for the British Claims Awards in the strongly contested categories of Defendant Law Firm of the year and Counter Fraud award. The British Claims Awards celebrate the successes of leading professionals in the claims…
30/04/18
In Newcastle upon Tyne Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust v Haywood, the Supreme Court held that in the absence of an express contractual provision, a written notice of termination served by an employer does not take effect until the employee has read it or had a reasonable opportunity of doing so. On…
20/04/18
Leading law firm Forbes Solicitors' successful Housing and Regeneration Department now boasts seven High Court Advocates after the latest successes in the Higher Rights of Audience qualification assessments. Partner Justine Hunkins and Solicitors Amy Chadwick and Emanuele Bellanca became the…
19/04/18
In its March report, 'Turning the tables: Ending sexual harassment at work', the Equality and Human Rights Commission ("the Commission") summarised its findings and detailed its recommendations for employers following an investigation into sexual harassment in the workplace. The…
15/04/18
Everybody's experience when divorcing is different. It is impossible to compare a friend or relative's divorce outcome with that of your own, as circumstances will be different. However, in all divorces, how the husband and wife act could influence the settlement and how fair it is.…
10/04/18
Ms Gomes worked for a company providing accommodation and support services for vulnerable young people. She brought a claim for compensation before the Employment Tribunal for failure to allow her rest breaks. Under the Working Time Regulations 1998 (SI 1998/1833) ("WTR"), workers are entitled…
10/04/18
From the 1 April 2018 there are going to be major changes to the regime governing Energy Performance Certificates ("EPC's"). The changes are to be brought into effect by The Energy Efficiency (Private Rented Property) (England and Wales) Regulations 2015 ("the MEES Regulations")…
09/04/18
Bailey v Warrington Borough Council and United Utilities Water Limited St Helens CC - District Judge Simister The Claimant alleged that she was walking along the pavement when she tripped on a defect in the pavement where a United Utilities stop tap grid cover was located. At trial, the…
09/04/18
Health & Safety Fine for Tree Climbing Fall Center Parcs UK has received a £250,000 fine and ordered to pay costs of £14,000 after an eight-year-old child fell from a tree and broke her wrist. The child was participating in an organised tree climbing class. Prior to the…
09/04/18
Universal Credit is the government's flagship reform of the benefits system. Universal Credit was introduced to simplify the benefit system but has proved to be unpopular with many. In this article we consider the implications for defendants and insurers who are responsible for re-paying social…
04/04/18
As with all other organisations employing more than 250 people Forbes has provided full information in connection with the gender pay gap between men and women employed in our organisation. This is not a comparison of the salaries for men and women doing the same jobs, but is calculated by comparing the…
04/04/18
In the recent case of Pemberton v Inwood [2018] EWCA Civ 564, the Court of Appeal held that a Church of England priest was not subjected to unlawful sexual orientation discrimination when he was refused a ministry licence on the ground of his same-sex marriage. The Claimant, Canon Pemberton,…
04/04/18
With the 4 April 2018 deadline for submitting gender pay gap information looming, of 181 primary and secondary schools who have now reported on their pay figures only 11 pay women more than men. And of the 100 companies with the biggest pay gap across England, Wales and Scotland that have reported on…
29/03/18
Unexpected service charges and unjustified hikes in ground rent have meant that leasehold ownership has hit the headlines in the last year for all the wrong reasons. The fact that a growing number of houses have been sold on a leasehold basis - if for no other reason than the delays and costs often…
27/03/18
The Employment Appeal Tribunal recently confirmed that the Claimant's strong belief that he has a disability isn't enough to ensure that his employer should be regarded as knowing, or be reasonably expected to know, of his disability. In Toy v Chief Constable of Leicestershire, the Claimant…
23/03/18
Q. Is it possible to employ agency teachers to cover teaching staff who are going on strike? A. It is not lawful to supply agency workers to perform the duties normally performed by an employee who is taking part in a strike. Regulation 7 of the Conduct of Employment Agencies and Employment…
23/03/18
In the recent case of Brazel v The Harpur Trust , the EAT upheld a music teacher's appeal challenging the approach taken to calculate her holiday pay. Mrs Brazel worked at the Trust as a music teacher in term-time on a zero-hours contract. She was entitled to 5.6…
23/03/18
In the recent case of Sunuva Ltd v Martin , the Employment Appeal Tribunal (EAT) upheld an Employment Tribunal cost award to a claimant in respect of costs incurred before receipt of the ET3 on the grounds that the response had no reasonable prospect of success. The claimant, Martin, was an…
21/03/18
An innovative debt collection service using cutting-edge technology, launched by Forbes Solicitors, has recovered more than £500,000 of clients' money in just 12 months. Forbes Collect utilises cloud-based technology to deliver a platform for efficient, effective recovery. In the 11…
20/03/18
The Justice Secretary David Gauke has unveiled the Civil Liability Bill to Parliament. The bill includes reforms to clampdown on whiplash claims as well as changes to the way the personal injury discount rate is calculated for serious injuries. In a statement from the Ministry of Justice, Justice…
16/03/18
Yes, held the Supreme Court in Reilly v Sandwell Metropolitan Borough Council. Facts Ms Reilly, the head teacher of a primary school, was in a close (but not romantic) relationship with a man convicted of making indecent images of children. Whilst Ms Reilly did not live with the man,…
16/03/18
The Government has launched an innovative new 'Share the Joy' campaign to encourage more parents to take up the offer of Shared Parental Leave in their baby's first year. The campaign launch follows discouraging research from the Department of Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy ('…
16/03/18
In January 2018, the Homes and Communities Agency split into two separate entities: Homes England and the Regulator of Social Housing (RSH). The reasoning behind the move is to eliminate the perceived potential conflict of interests between the part of the body that regulates registered providers, and…
16/03/18
We are pleased to announce that the Forbes Insurance Department has been shortlisted for the Insurance Post Claims Award in the strongly contested category of Insurance Law Firm of the Year for work in fraud and social care. These Awards celebrate the achievements and progress made by the leading…
13/03/18
It would be difficult to miss the media coverage of university staff at over 60 universities striking over proposed pension changes. Universities UK want to change the Universities Superannuation Scheme from a defined benefit scheme (which would provide a guaranteed retirement income) to a defined…
13/03/18
Gilpin v Blackburn with Darwen Borough Council DJ Hinchcliffe - Preston CC The claimant alleged that as she was crossing the road after alighting from a taxi, she tripped and stumbled in a pothole and fell onto her outstretched hand. The residential cul de sac was subject to an annual…
13/03/18
Mabb v English [2017] EWHC 3616 (QB) The Court has ruled that it is not an abuse of process for a claimant to file a notice of discontinuance to avoid possibly having to pay the defendant's costs. The claimant sought damages from the defendant for alleged clinical negligence. The…
13/03/18
It has been reported by the Motor Accidents Solicitors' Society that Ministry of Justice officials have confirmed that the government will implement the proposed reforms to the RTA system from April 2019, with personal injury reforms to be introduced at a later date. It is understood that the…
13/03/18
Barton (Appellant) v Wright Hassall LLP (Respondent) [2018] UKSC 12 The Supreme Court has confirmed that the rules of service apply to all litigants regardless of whether or not they are represented. The Facts Mr Barton acting as a litigant in person brought a negligence action…
13/03/18
Corstorphine (An Infant) v Liverpool City Council (2018)[2018] EWCA Civ 270 The Court of Appeal has provided further guidance on the application of QOCS. The court was asked to consider whether QOCS should apply to defendants added to proceedings after 1 April 2013 where the existing claim was…
06/03/18
Financial pressure, an ageing population and more complex family structures are leading to a large rise in the number of wills being challenged in England and Wales, Forbes Solicitors disputed wills expert Ben Wilson has revealed. Ben, an Associate Solicitor, specialises in disputes arising from…
28/02/18
Head teachers in England have called for a fairer framework addressing the pay levels of all school staff to prevent "fat cat" pay gaps. This follows the revelation earlier this month that the Chief Executive of the Harris Foundation, Sir Dan Moynihan, had become the first in the state sector…
16/02/18
Q. Can a fixed term contract (FTC) be brought to an end before its expiry? Does a fixed term worker have the same rights? A. It is commonly mistaken that a Fixed Term Worker does not share the same rights as a permanent employee. Under the Fixed Term Employees (Prevention of Less Favourable…
16/02/18
In a recent Court of Appeal case ( Simon Agreyo v London Borough of Lambeth (Appeal)) the court concluded that suspension should not be a ' knee-jerk' reaction and that alternative options that would be reasonable should be taken into consideration. This case has followed on from similar case…
16/02/18
Under the Anti-social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act 2014, a civil injunction may be granted against any individual aged 10 or over. However, for those Respondents between the ages of 10 and 18, there are key procedural differences in bringing an application for a 'Youth Injunction', as well…
16/02/18
April 2018 is the date when the new requirements will first hit…are you ready? The Energy Efficiency (Private Rented Property) (England and Wales) Regulations 2015 (MEES Regulations) were introduced to improve energy efficiency in both domestic and non-domestic private rented properties as…
16/02/18
The Employment Appeal Tribunal (EAT) recently determined that it is unlawful for an employer to reject a potential candidate because they believe that a current health condition may become a disability in the future in the case of Chief Constable of Norfolk v Coffey. In this case the Claimant was a…
06/02/18
The Claimant, aged 76 at the date of the accident, alleged that she sustained a personal injury after tripping over a base level barrier after collecting her grandchild from school. The school was partly under construction and base level barriers are generally used to segregate pedestrian walkways…
06/02/18
Wigan Council - DDJ Glassbrook - Wigan County Court A Claimant had her highways claim dismissed at trial after giving unconvincing evidence. The Claimant alleged that she was walking along a road one evening with her friend, when her right foot got stuck in a pothole. She pleaded that she…
06/02/18
Barnes v Tameside Metropolitan Borough Council A Judge dismissed a claim for personal injury after finding that the Claimant had failed to prove her claim. In April 2014, the Claimant alleged that she was walking home from the supermarket when she tripped on a defective grid and stubbed her…
06/02/18
Cook v Swansea City Council (2017) EWCA Civ 2142 The Court of Appeal has dismissed an appeal from an Appellant Claimant after his claim for damages in negligence and/or breach of duty under s2(2) of the Occupiers' Liability Act 1957 was dismissed. The claim arose from an accident in…
06/02/18
Lord Keen of Elie QC has appeared before the House of Commons Justice committee to set out the government's agenda for personal injury reforms. This one off session was intended to explain: · the rationale and evidence supporting the Government's proposals for raising the…
06/02/18
London Organising Committee of the Olympic & Paralympic Games (In Liquidation) v Haydn Sinfield (2018)[2018] EWHC 51 (QB) The Court have set out the correct approach to applications to have a personal injury claim dismissed for fundamental dishonesty pursuant to s.57 Criminal Justice and…
06/02/18
Various Claimants v WM Morrisons Supermarket PLC 2017 EWHC3113 (QB) The High Court considered whether Morrisons supermarket ("the Defendant") was vicariously liable for an employee who intentionally disclosed personal details of staff on a file sharing website. The Facts On…
26/01/18
Surveillance and privacy in the work has been under the spotlight recently at the European Court of Human Rights. The cases of Antovic and Mirkovic v Montenegro and Lopez Ribaida & Ors v Spain considered whether video surveillance breached Article 8 of the European Convention on Human…
26/01/18
With the new year already under way and 2017 having rapidly come and gone, we provide employers with an outline of key issues they should note and take steps to prepare for this year. If 2017 was a busy year for employers, 2018 is expected to be even busier. So, what do you need to know (that…
26/01/18
The use of fixed-term contracts is widespread across many industries and business sectors. Whilst the mechanism behind this type of contract appears simple, dealing with the expiry of a fixed-term contract is not always straightforward. The Employment Appeal Tribunal in Royal Surrey County NHS…
26/01/18
The Employment Appeal Tribunal (EAT) recently determined that it is unlawful for an employer to reject a potential candidate because they believe that a current health condition may become a disability in the future. In the case of Chief Constable of Norfolk v. Coffey, the claimant (C), a Police…
17/01/18
Forbes Solicitors, the North's leading law firm, has announced the appointment of Oliver Burton as its new Chief Executive Officer. Oliver joins from Warrington-based FDR Law, where he had been CEO since June 2013. Prior to that he was Corporate Banking Director at RBS Corporate in Lancashire…
12/01/18
The immediate answer in almost every organisation would be yes. S15 of the Immigration, Asylum and Nationality Act 2006 makes it unlawful for an employer to employ an adult who is subject to immigration control. The penalties include civil and criminal sanctions even if the employer knew or had…
12/01/18
Ben Wilson, a solicitor who specialises in Wills, Trusts and Probate disputes considers how the promise of an inheritance of a family business can be enforced, if that promise is not kept. "One day, all of this will be yours" is a saying often heard when family business owners are…
12/01/18
With an ageing population, a dramatic increase in house prices and more complex family structures, will disputes are becoming increasingly common. Ben Wilson, an Associate at Forbes Solicitors specialising in Contentious Trusts and Probate, gives an overview of the various ways to contest a will or make…
