Arguments over what has been left by the relatives of someone who has died have been around for centuries. The main disputes were restricted to the wealthy elite as they were the few who had anything of value to actually pass on to others. In the last few decades disputes over the distribution of assets […]
Late August and early September usually herald all the ‘back to school’ adverts on TV and in the papers. These really used to annoy many of us when we were younger, particularly when they appeared only a week after the summer holidays had started! This year the whole ‘back to school’ theme is tinged with […]
Are we seeing the end of the traditional commercial lease? Even before the arrival of COVID-19 there has been increasing disquiet over the perceived ‘onerous’ nature of commercial leases. The rise and rise of online shopping and the changing demands on the retail, restaurant, supply, logistics and manufacturing sectors have led tenants and, increasingly, landlords […]
rhw have been around in one form or another for the best part of two centuries. We put that survival down, partially, to making sure we always engage with the local community, whether that be through CSR projects, networking or just talking to local companies and individuals. Communication is vital in understanding what is happening […]
If you follow the news you will see a lot of details coming out of celebrity divorces such as the Johnny Depp and Amber Heard case, much of which tends to make you quite glad not to be a celebrity yourself to be honest. You may ask yourself “why are we allowed to see details […]
‘Office Politics’ occur where you have different people with varying values, beliefs and assumptions. Fundamentally it causes tension and strain in working relationships and means you don’t get the best out of individuals and therefore don’t optimise decision-making, collaboration and productivity. However, it can be positive, if managed and handled well, but often it’s negative. […]
In an economic statement made today, the Chancellor, Rishi Sunak, announced an increase to the threshold at which Stamp Duty Land Tax (SDLT) becomes payable. SDLT is a tax paid by buyers on the purchase of a property with varying rates depending on the purchase price and the individual circumstances of the buyer. Previously, a […]
We are now rapidly heading towards the middle of July. It would be nice to say that we have moved on to a more certain place from where we all were a couple of months ago but it really doesn’t feel that way at present. The uncertainty over the ongoing presence of the virus and […]
rhw Solicitors provide expert employment law advice to employers and employees alike. Please contact us on 01483 302000 or guildford@rhw.co.uk if you need legal advice. However there is for more to the redundancy process than just the legal angle. If you have to make individuals redundant you can do it in the right way or […]
The Divorce, Dissolution and Separation Bill has not quite finished its Parliamentary journey but if the House of Lords deal with the final amendment swiftly, it will then move on for Royal assent. It seems very likely that the final stages will pass without any major hiccups. Interestingly the Lord Chancellor told MPs that the […]
“Family Lawyer says there is no such thing as a quickie divorce!” was a line from a media article about the Divorce, Dissolution and Separation Bill currently making its way through Parliament. It is true but the media seems obsessed with the use of ‘quickie divorce’, particularly around celebrities, as though they have access to […]
Behind all the battles and disagreements at the top level in politics there are a number of things going on that will be of huge interest to business owners across the country. One of these is the introduction of the Corporate Insolvency and Governance Bill. This is currently making its way through the House of […]
On the “Estate Agent Today” website there is an article reporting that a specialist conveyancing firm is telling its staff to put up their fees as the property market comes out of lock-down. Some of the article is a bit sniffy about the notion that conveyancing services have been too cheap for too long, which […]
You may be feeling a little lost currently. Full on lock-down was stressful and for many of us, pretty testing. Now, however, we really are in unknown territory once again. We can do certain things but not others. What was familiar now looks a little menacing. The mundane, such as the daily commute, is a […]
Potentially 450,000 people gave a sigh of relief this morning with the news that the residential property market has reopened in England. That’s the estimate of the number of individuals who had to put their property plans on hold when the country went into lockdown. We have been saying for sometime that the property market […]
Everyone is aware that there are a lot of dubious emails in circulation. Probably within days of email being invented someone, somewhere was thinking up a way to try and take advantage of the format to con others out of money. Unfortunately, the present crisis has accentuated the problem. According to UK Action Fraud there […]
Here’s a surprising thing. If you are getting divorced the courts don’t care about who was the better spouse and the reasons driving you to separate will be of no interest to them. That’s a nasty shock to many people who initially regard the legal process as a chance to seek revenge. You may think […]
What should employers also be doing at the present time as the furlough leave and job retention scheme occupy the minds of many? Employers should be looking beyond the furlough leave and the job retention scheme and considering what will come after. Moving forward everything is not going to be completely straightforward for either employer […]
Force Majeure clauses are in the spotlight currently. They have been fairly standard in most contracts for a long time. A common clause in that essentially frees both parties from liability or obligation when an extraordinary event or circumstance beyond the control of the parties, described by the legal term act of God, prevents one […]
Service of proceedings can be something of a minefield at the best of times. The rules surrounding service are strict and can be complicated. Covid-19 has potentially complicated matters further and businesses are not trading from their usual premises and personal service may not be practicable given the social distancing policies in place. Below are […]
Changes to Employment law that came into effect in April 2020 With all that’s happening currently you would be forgiven for missing the recent changes, so here is a quick A-Z summary of the main ones. If you require any further information on any of them, please do not hesitate to contact us. Agency Workers […]
There is some excellent advice in this article (click on the link below) that addresses some of the matters that concern both landlords and tenants in the commercial sector affected by Covid-19 issues. rhw can help with commercial leases as well as property management and property development matters. Have a read and if our commercial […]
Employment Law Update: Firms to be able to start claiming furlough money from the Government starting Monday 20th April 2020. The qualification date has just been moved to the 19th March 2020. As of 17.04.20 the end date for the scheme has been advanced to the end of June 2020. Need some employment law or […]
Don’t do any work for your employer – even if they say it is ok to do so! We are sure that most employers will be encouraging you not to work as they won’t want to get into trouble with HMRC for potential fraudulent claims, but just in case: The whole point of being furloughed […]
About 70% of the population do not have a Will. That is a fairly astonishing figure when you think about it. Sadly, quite a few people who do have a Will have not updated it recently, so it no longer reflects what they wish to happen after their death and also does not reflect the […]
This is the latest update from the Civil Courts (see link below) . The Courts remain open for the majority of legal work. Hearings are taking place through remote means such as Skype and telephone calls between the Judge & Legal Representatives. rhw are fully open to provide legal advice to existing clients and new […]
I have COVID-19 or I need to self-isolate and can’t continue working – will I still get paid? If you have COVID-19 you should receive either statutory sick pay (SSP) or your company’s sick pay, depending on what your employment contract states. There was some question over whether someone who wasn’t actually ill but couldn’t […]
I am worried about going to work in case I catch the virus – what can I do? Whilst most people have been told to work from home where possible, you may not be able to. Perhaps you are a key worker or your employer falls under the essential services category. In this case you […]
We are delighted to report that Bethany Rickerby of rhw’s family team has passed the Higher Rights Civil Advocacy Assessment. This allows Bethany to offer advocacy services up to the High Court and use the title of Solicitor Advocate. Many congratulations to Bethany on this accomplishment. If you require family law advice please call 01483 […]
With the news that both the Prime Minister, Boris Johnson and the Health Secretary, Matt Hancock have tested positive for coronavirus, the question of what happens when the virus gets into the workplace is now of intense interest to Employers. How do you deal with an employee who you think may be positive for the […]
The Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (the “Scheme”) – what we know so far from an employee’s perspective. What is it? It enables employers to receive a grant from the Government to pay up to 80% of their employees’ wages or £2,500 per month, depending on which is the lower amount. How long does this Scheme […]
From the close of business on the 17th March 2020 rhw will be moving to a remote working status. This allows us to take precautions to limit any exposure to the coronavirus. With reference to working practices, this means that many of our solicitors and support staff will be working from home. You will be […]
Coronavirus is in the news a lot at the moment and probably will be for the next few months. Here at rhw we are very aware that some people may be feeling anxious about the spread of the virus and wish to minimise contact with other people during this time. It can be inconvenient to […]
An article on the BBC news website posted on the 20th February 2020 had the headline that Women are most likely to be killed by their partner or ex. This striking and disturbing article is well worth a read. The staggering statistics are that in 2018 alone, over half (61%) of women in the UK […]
The thought of an engagement proposal and spending the rest of your days with the love of your life is all too often a fantasy many of us wish for. However, sometimes, engagements are nothing more than false promises and broken dreams. What with Valentine’s Day here once again, the ultimate declaration of love can […]
Having made it past Blue Monday, (this year, 20th January 2020 was alleged to be that day!), some couples may still find themselves considering a divorce. The period directly after Christmas and through to the end of February often results in one of the highest influx of divorce requests during the year. Whilst divorce may […]
In a day and age where life throws its everyday challenges at us, it is safe to say that most of us want someone in our lives to be able to share those daily triumphs and tribulations with. Dare I say it, we want our own real-life version of a fairy-tale love that Walt Disney […]
1) rhw are delighted to welcome Niresha Umaichelvam to the family law team in Guildford. Niresha practices across all areas of family law including nuptials, divorce and financial settlements; cohabitation, separation and children matters. Niresha has already established a strong following through her friendly and positive attitude coupled with her genuine interest in assisting clients achieve […]
Put yourself into this scenario: You have gone as far as you can with your marriage and you want a divorce. You want to get it done, without fuss and delay, and you want to spend as little money as you can. You therefore look online and see websites offering an online divorce service. Some […]
Why is the 2nd December 2019 significant? Well, on the 15th March 2019 the Civil Partnerships, Marriages and Deaths (Registration etc) Bill completed its passage through the Houses of Parliament. The Bill received Royal Assent on 26th March 2019 and came into force on 26th May 2019. The reason the 2nd December is relevant to […]
Although a joyous and festive time of year for most, every year law firms consistently report that December to January is the peak time for couples to commence divorce proceedings. It is unlikely that the reason for this is one awkward incident with the in-laws on Christmas Day. With couples and families spending more time […]
The Help to Buy ISA scheme assists those saving for a deposit on their first home. Through this scheme individuals can potentially walk away with a £3,000 government bonus and couples can pool their separate ISAs together for a total bonus of up to £6,000. According to the Government over 225,000 bonuses have been paid […]
There are a number of boutique/niche law firms (as well as some very large law firms), who position themselves as the champions of the very wealthy when it comes to dealing with family law and divorce matters. rhw often find ourselves representing clients who have former partners that have instructed one of those types of […]
TUPE (sellers & buyers) Whether you’re a buyer or a seller, if a business or part of a business is being transferred to a new owner, then you need to be aware of The Transfer of Undertakings (Protection of Employment) Regulations 2006, know as TUPE. These in effect provide protection for the employees of the […]
rhw are delighted to be able to share this news. On top of the two Awards rhw staff won at the Surrey Law Society (SLS) Awards last week, we have just had our top conveyancing quality award (The Law Society’s Conveyancing Quality Scheme (CQS)) renewed and we have just heard we are in the 2020 edition […]
We are delighted to report that rhw won two awards at the Surrey Law Society Legal Awards last night! At a glittering evening held at the Mandolay Hotel in Guildford, rhw’s Arjun Sreedaran won the “Rising Star” award and Sarah England won the “Support Team Member of the Year” award. We are delighted for both […]
I was talking to the CEO of our Website and SEO support provider a couple of days ago. We were having a chat about the core ideals that both of us have in terms of how we conduct business and how we look to project that through the businesses we represent. It was interesting how […]
Dispute resolution and ADR (sellers & buyers) ADR means Alternative Dispute Resolution. The idea here is that some form of “alternative” process is adopted that is likely to work effectively and be acceptable to more people but (fundamentally) seeks to avoid the conventional process of issuing claims, threats, demands etc. Litigation is the term used […]
Company Will – do you have one and do you need one? Your business partner of 20 years has just died. Apart from the immediate cash-flow crisis that you’re facing, there is a fundamental question over the future of the business as a whole. Who will have control of his share? Will the share be […]
Individual people have very different attitudes as to how they approach a divorce. Some clients want to know about every single aspect of the legal process, others just want their solicitor to get on with it, whilst a few are surprisingly relaxed about the whole thing. Adjusting to the way our clients want us to […]