Posts from the ‘Legal’ Category
H
elp us make Will Aid a success this November
We are pleased to announce that we will once again be participating in Will Aid.
During November 2013, Thompsons Solicitors will prepare basic Wills without charging our normal fee. Instead, to raise as much money as possible for Will Aid, we will ask clients to make a donation to the Will Aid charities. The suggested donation level is £90 for a single Will, £135 for a pair of Wills or £40 for a codicil to an existing Will.
Make or update your Will with Will Aid and you will gain peace of mind from knowing that you have protected your family and loved ones for the future as well as giving money to help thousands of people in need to gain the skills, tools and support they need to improve their lives.
It is extremely important to seek qualified and professional expertise when making a Will. So don’t put it off any longer. Phone 028 91 811652 or email us at law@thompsons-solicitors.co.uk to arrange an appointment in November.
All money raised by Will Aid supports the work of ActionAid, Age UK, British Red Cross, Christian Aid, NSPCC, Save the Children, Sightsavers, SCIAF (Scotland) and Trocaire (Northern Ireland).
We provide a full range of legal services in addition to drafting and preparing Wills. See our website for details at www.thompsons-solicitors.co.uk.
The case of Cruddas -v- Adams serves as an important reminder that defamatory comments made on social media may lead to significant awards of damages.
It is particularly relevant in showing that the amount of damages may be increased considerably when comments are made repeatedly over a prolonged period of time.
On 25 March 2012, the Sunday Times published an article which alleged that Peter Cruddas (at the time Treasurer of the Conservative Party), had, during an undercover meeting, corruptly offered for sale via donations to the Conservative Party, the opportunity to influence Government policy; allegations which were repeated by the Independent on 9 June 2012. Mark Adams (a lobbyist) repeated these allegations and made other inaccurate comments in connection with the issue online through his blogs and on Twitter.
Over the course of several months, Mr Adams repeatedly called for the arrest of Mr Cruddas, and taunted Mr Cruddas for his failure to commence a libel action against him (which he finally did). The comments were made via 12 tweets (Mr Adams had over 700 followers) and in 9 blog posts.
During the course of the proceedings, the Police confirmed that there was no evidence of any criminal conduct on the part of Mr Cruddas, and a full retraction and apology from the Independent followed. A libel claim against the Sunday Times is due to commence in June 2013. After being shown a transcript of the meeting that took place between Mr Cruddas and the Sunday Times journalist, Mr Adams did not continue defending the libel action and ultimately default judgement was entered against him. However, when it came to assessment of damages, he chose not to issue any apology, nor did he withdraw all of the statements that he had made. The Court awarded Mr Cruddas £45,000 in damages, along with costs. Read more
The Employment Rights (Increase of Limits) Order (Northern Ireland) 2012 has set new compensation limits for redundancies and unfair dismissals in Northern Ireland. The new limits came into force on 1 February 2013.
The limit on a week’s pay, used to calculate redundancy payments or for unfair dismissal compensation, has gone up to £450 from £430. The maximum compensatory award for unfair dismissal claims has risen from £72,300 to £74,200.
Minimum basic awards have also been raised. They have risen to £5,500 from £5,300 for unfair dismissal or selection for redundancy on grounds related to union membership or activities, as well as dismissals for health and safety cases, and those concerning employee representatives and trustees of occupational pension schemes.
If the dismissal occurs before 1 February 2013, the old limit still applies even if compensation is awarded after that date.
Unlimited compensation continues to apply to discrimination claims, the compensatory award for whistleblowing and protected health and safety dismissals.
If you’ve been exposed to excessive levels of noise in the course of your employment, and have difficulty with your hearing, you may be entitled to claim compensation.
From, at least, 1963 onwards (although arguably before), employers have had a legal duty to monitor the level of noise in the workplace and to protect their employees from excessive exposure as it became known that noise in the workplace could cause hearing loss. Where the noise is assessed as being excessive they are required to take reasonable steps to reduce the noise levels. Where this is not possible they have been required to provide and enforce the wearing of hearing protection.
Many jobs and workplaces require employees to work in environments where noise levels and patterns are potentially hazardous to hearing. As stated above employers have a responsibility to provide their employees with adequate protection against this noise. If this protection is missing or flawed, the result can be serious and long-lasting damage to hearing and can result in noise induced hearing loss, also referred to as industrial deafness, for which you may claim compensation.
If you have previously been exposed to high levels of noise at work and you now find that you have to turn the volume on your television or radio up, or cannot follow a conversation where there is background noise, or have difficulty hearing the telephone or doorbell, then you may be suffering from noise induced hearing loss. Hearing loss may or may not be accompanied by tinnitus – a ringing, whistling, humming or buzzing in one or both ears. You may also be entitled to claim compensation for tinnitus caused by exposure to excessive noise in the workplace (when not accompanied with hearing loss). Read more
Help us make Will Aid a success this November
We are pleased to announce that we will once again be participating in Will Aid.
During November 2012, Thompsons Solicitors will prepare basic Wills without charging our normal fee. Instead, to raise as much money as possible for Will Aid, we will ask clients to make a donation to the Will Aid charities. The suggested donation level is £90 for a single Will, £135 for a pair of Wills or £40 for a codicil to an existing Will.
Make or update your Will with Will Aid and you will gain peace of mind from knowing that you have protected your family and loved ones for the future as well as giving money to help thousands of people in need to gain the skills, tools and support they need to improve their lives.
It is extremely important to seek qualified and professional expertise when making a Will. So don’t put it off any longer. Phone 028 91 811652 or email us at law@thompsons-solicitors.co.uk to arrange an appointment in November. Read more
Northern Ireland Law 