Law Articles

HR’s Role in Commercial Property Decisions: Legal and Ethical Concerns
October 29 2024 - As businesses expand or relocate, the input of HR departments becomes crucial in ensuring compliance with employment laws and ethical standards.

Top Employment Law Challenges for HR: Avoiding Common Pitfalls
October 29 2024 - In the realm of human resources, navigating employment law is a crucial yet challenging task.

Is it Harder to Get a UK Visa?
September 30 2024 - Businesses must be prepared to make progress through complex compliance requirements and shifting Immigration Rules.

How To Ensure You Protect Your Business Legally
July 1 2024 - Ensuring your business is legally protected is crucial for its long-term success and sustainability.

Hiring Right: Employment Law Essentials Every Startup Founder Should Know
January 19 2024 - In this article, we're giving you a heads-up on the employment law essentials every startup founder should know.

The Pros and Cons of Settlement Agreements for Small Businesses
January 18 2024 - In this article, we're taking a look at the pros and cons of settlement agreements for small businesses.

Key learnings to help employers grapple with continuous regulatory changes
September 20 2023 - With so many regulations in so many areas to keep track of, effective compliance checks are critically important to prevent financial, civil and even criminal penalties.

Reasons an Employer May Need Legal Employment Advice in Scotland
September 8 2023 - In this article, we're looking at some of the reasons an employer may need legal employment advice in Scotland.

Getting the legal side of your freelance business right
March 27 2023 - From hiring and firing to workplace safety, GDPR, benefits and pay, and more, there is a lot to understand if you will be effective.

Protect your Firm against Money Laundering
February 21 2023 - If your business handles money, then you mustn't be unwittingly drawn into a money laundering operation.

Improving the Morale in Your Law Firm
November 12 2022 - Working as a lawyer can be stressful at the best of times, but it is even worse if the working environment you are in is toxic and the morale is poor.

Getting To Grips With Compensation: Who Is Eligible?
August 15 2022 - This guide is here to help you get to grips with compensation, outlining what it is and who is eligible.

What are the different options for business resolution?
August 10 2022 - When businesses undergo a resolution, it’s usually a result of a commercial dispute between two organisations.

Guide To British Citizenship For Overseas Adopted Children
April 12 2022 - In some cases, the child of a British citizen does not immediately qualify for a passport of the United Kingdom.

Can employers enforce a compulsory retirement age?
February 15 2022 - An employment tribunal recently ruled that asking older workers when they plan to retire can amount to age discrimination.

How to talk to staff about potential redundancies
October 30 2020 - Employees are understandably worried about their futures. So, what can managers do to inform their workers while seeking to limit the stress it will cause?

Everything You Need to Know About Avoiding Defamation in the Workplace
October 19 2020 - Defamation in the workplace is on the rise in the UK, which means it's more important than ever to know how to avoid it at your company.

When You Should Seek Out Legal Advice as an Employee
October 17 2020 - In this article, we are going to discuss when you should seek out legal advice as an employee, so keep reading to see if your situation necessitates professional help.

What Makes An Employee Eligible To Make A Work Accident Claim?
July 16 2020 - If you find yourself with injuries related to a workplace accident, then you may be eligible for compensation. Check out the following to see if you meet the requirements.

What a recent Ex-NHS employee disability discrimination win can highlight to employers and HR professionals about the processes to dismissal
May 13 2020 - When considering disciplining or dismissal of an employee, employers should tread carefully in order to avoid discrimination cases, where there is no limit to the damages which the Tribunal may award.

Samira Ahmed and unconscious bias: there must surely be a sell-by date on such justifications?
February 5 2020 - Such institutional blindness was recently highlighted by television presenter Samira Ahmed's victory in her Employment Tribunal case against the BBC.

How To Prepare For An Employment Tribunal
December 29 2019 - It's important to know exactly why your ex-employee is taking you to an employment tribunal.

Can you Sue the Human Resource Department?
December 29 2019 - You may want to know a bit more about what sort of action can be taken against HR departments.

An Employee's Guide to Sickness Rights
December 20 2019 - Knowledge and awareness are at the heart of it all, which is why every employee should be made aware of their sickness rights by law and within their company.

What To Do When Your Business is Facing Legal Action
April 30 2019 - Businesses can face legal action for a variety of reasons. Some reasons are deserved; others can feel like harassment.

Successfully handling disputes at work
April 4 2019 - It's no secret that workplace conflict can have a negative impact on an organisation and its employees.

On-the-job training: the key to meeting client needs
January 4 2017 - The training of young lawyers is still wedded to 20th or even 19th century thinking: they are taught how to look for and identify problems, not how to solve them.

First Round to the Drivers
December 14 2016 - The Uber case is a salutary lesson for all employers - whether in the gig economy or not - to look carefully at the terms and conditions of their employment contracts. Try and outrun the law by being too clever and it will eventually catch up with you.

Discrimination in Financial Services - the role of the Financial Ombudsman Service
December 9 2016 - When financial services are withheld with less legitimate cause, the individual in question may have the right to seek redress.

How employment tribunal decisions can impact your business
December 5 2016 - Whatever the size of your business, employers need to keep abreast of changes in employment law. There have been some interesting cases in 2016 which have given clarification on key decisions which employers may face in the workplace.

Brexit and Employment Law - just business as usual?
November 24 2016 - Since the UK's decision to leave the European Union, uncertainty surrounding the legal implications have been widespread; particularly within the UK employment law landscape.

European Commission Announces Initiative Package
June 23 2016 - The European Commission is in the process of implementing a wide-ranging strategy to create a genuine ‘Digital Single Market' across the EU.

Jonas Gutierrez Case: Understanding discrimination in the workplace and how to avoid it
December 8 2015 - Zee Hussain, employment partner at Simpson Millar explains what constitutes discrimination in the workplace whilst providing practical guidance on how to avoid it.

The 1st July Rule Change on Holiday Pay Claims
June 30 2015 - The recent case of Bear Scotland Ltd v Fulton has been responsible for two important developments in the law relating to holiday pay.

TUPE Regulations changes 31st January 2014
February 17 2014 - The reforms which come into force on January 31 2014 are intended to reduce bureaucracy and increase flexibility surrounding the regulations. For many employers though, particularly small businesses, the new TUPE rules still do not go nearly far enough.

Employment law - what to expect in 2014
January 15 2014 - Happy New Employment Year! 2014 promises to be another year of substantial change in UK employment law.

Further Changes to Employment Law - October 2013
November 8 2013 - 2013 has been a significant year where changes to employment law and tribunal rules are concerned; but the change is still on-going. October brought further amendments to the law regarding executive pay, national minimum wage, third party harassment provisions and pension protection from TUPE.

Unnecessary Redundancy Payouts in the NHS
July 21 2013 - According to a report by the Government spending watchdog, the National Audit Office, large sums of money have seemingly been wasted on unnecessary redundancy pay-outs in the NHS.

How to fire for poor performance
November 2 2012 - Much has been said recently by the Government about how its current package of intended employment law reforms will help create a climate in which it will be easier for employers to dismiss under-performing staff.

TUPE - What businesses need to know about the retention of employment model
November 1 2012 - In essence the underlying purpose of TUPE is to protect employee rights in the event of a transfer or service provision change.

LLP departure lounge - getting ready to board the exit flight
September 20 2012 - Your role as a member of an LLP in a professional or financial services firm has been identified as at risk. What should you do as a prudent member who has been asked to pack their bag before heading for the departure gate?

Can Partners in Professional Partnerships claim Employment Status?
July 31 2012 - For businesses operating as a partnership, promotion and ownership of the business can be controlled by means of operating different levels of partnership, for example a salaried partner, fixed term partner or equity partner.

Sickness during annual leave - it's not as bad as it seems!
July 31 2012 - In a timely case - given that the holiday season is upon us - the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) in ANGED v FASGA and others has decided that workers who fall sick during their annual leave must be permitted to reschedule the time affected by illness.

The importance of managing employee performance before problems arise
July 19 2012 - The abolition of the default retirement age in April 2011 and the recent decision of the Supreme Court in Seldon v Clarkson Wright and Jakes have focused attention on the issue of performance management. These recent developments highlight the increasing importance of having proper performance management processes in place.

Letting a banker go - pitfalls for the unwary
July 11 2012 - So what happens when a bank decides that the time has come to cut the Gordian Knot and let its thrusting trader venture out to pastures new i.e. sack him?

Protected Conversations: an exciting new initiative or counter-productive for employers?
July 11 2012 - The idea of the "protected conversation" is that employers can talk to their employees about possible termination deals or severance packages without having to worry about those conversations being referred to in subsequent Employment Tribunal cases if the discussions come to nothing and the employees then say they have been unfairly dismissed.

Religion & Equality
February 11 2009 - Equality and discrimination issues never seem to be out of the public eye and new legislation being unveiled this year will likely lead to a rise in claims.

Winter Weather - Key Tips for Employers
February 5 2009 - The months of December, January and February are officially classed as the 'winter' months. Weather conditions and travel disruption, similar to those we have been experiencing this week, could lead to employees being unable to get to work.

Equal Pay Q&A
On average an employment tribunal costs £10,000. Employment law specialists Empire HR recommend that organisations ensure that their pay structures are transparent, fair and easy to understand. According to Donna Gibb, Senior Employment Law Advisor at Empire HR this should minimise the risk of any potential equal pay claims.

'Provocation Paper' Argues Against More Employment Legislation
January 31 2007 - A recent "provocation" paper from the Industrial Relations Research Unit at Warwick Business School argues against more legislation to extend justice in employment but for new initiatives to promote fairness at work and compliance with legal rights already in force.

Appeal Court Rules Against Health and Safety Executive
May 24 2006 - The Court of Appeal has made a landmark ruling against the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) which attempted to argue that employers should still be required to take reasonable steps against unforeseeable risks and that negligent actions by employees are irrelevant to an employer's guilt.

World Cup Matches, Employees and Discrimination
May 24 2006 - Employers who let employees watch the World Cup during work time could be laying themselves open to discrimination claims, according to some specialist lawyers.