Joanna Yates

Starting a new business? Tips on organising your business into a partnership

Filed under Commercial law, August 12, 2011 by , No Comments

There are different ways of organising the structure of your new business. For instance, a few of the choices you have are a private limited company, a sole trader and a partnership.

Unsurprisingly, many new business start ups choose to organise themselves into a partnership because there is far more flexibility and informality with this business structure compared to if you organise yourself as a company. This is due to the fact that with a partnership there is no formal arrangement. You can choose your own terms by which to organise your partnership by drawing up a partnership agreement. (More…)

Divorce and financial awards – is what's mine yours?

Filed under Family law, June 13, 2011 by , No Comments

The process of sorting out the finances in a divorce is called ‘ancillary relief’. There seem to be many rumours floating round about what financial awards each individual is entitled to when a couple get divorced. I usually speak to at least one person a day whose soon to be ex-wife/husband/civil partner has threatened to take everything they’ve got and “take them to the cleaners”.  The family law courts in England have a particular approach for deciding who gets what financially and this is always the starting point a specialist family solicitor will take to advise you.  (More…)

Employment law: learning the art of compromise agreements…

Filed under Employment law, May 27, 2011 by , No Comments

What is a compromise agreement?

In employment law, a compromise agreement may be given to you by your employer when your employment is terminated. By signing this legally binding agreement, you accept a full and final pay out from your employer in return for giving up your legal rights to make a complaint against them to an employment tribunal. (More…)

Conveyancing solicitors: you get what you pay for

Filed under Property law, May 18, 2011 by , No Comments

Buying a property is probably the biggest investment that you’ll ever make so you need to make sure that you are clever when it comes to choosing a conveyancing solicitor. Unfortunately, most people I talk to are usually only concerned with getting the cheapest quote. Of course costs are important, but there are two vital factors to be aware of if you do choose a conveyancing solicitor based on price alone: (More…)

Landlord and tenant law – protecting your deposit

Filed under Property law, May 13, 2011 by , No Comments

At Contact Law we get many enquiries from people who are private tenants with an assured shorthold tenancy and are having trouble getting their deposits back from their landlords. Sometimes this can drag on for months and months without a resolution. If this sounds familiar then you should read on to find out some initial advice before we put you in touch with a specialist solicitor who can help get your deposit back. (More…)

Employment law: Unfair dismissal and the three-month rule

Filed under Employment law, May 5, 2011 by , No Comments

“There certainly are a lot of rules in employment law.”

This is what one client observed after I broke the news to him that no matter how good his case was, the three-month rule prevented him from making a claim for unfair dismissal against his employer.  If there is one rule to remember for employment law, it should be the three-month rule. (more…)