My parents have not provided anything for me in either of their Wills. What can I do?

Dogs and other pets are often seen as a much loved member of the family but sadly when it comes to divorce, in the eyes of the law a pet falls into the same category as a TV or a toaster as nothing more than a person’s personal property. As such the court is likely to be more interested in who owns the dog by considering factors such as:

• who paid for the dog (ideally backed up with receipts)
• who is registered at the vet
• who is listed on the microchip database, and
• who is the provider of key supplies and food

This person is more likely to have a successful claim over the dog, even if the other party has a better emotional attachment and spent more time looking after the dog.

If it is unclear who owns the dog, a sympathetic judge may consider who is best placed to look after the dog but parties should be prepared for a fairly rough and ready decision. The court is often reluctant to deal with disputes such as pet ownership as it is more concerned with the bigger picture such as arrangements for the children and the overall financial division. It is therefore far preferable for the parties to reach an agreement themselves, perhaps with the assistance of mediation.

Read our recent article to find out more.

Yes.

An employer which is aware that a worker or agency worker is or ought to be self-isolating, should not knowingly allow that worker or agency worker to leave the place that they are self-isolating in (“the designated place”).  To do so without reasonable excuse would amount to an offence which could result in the employer being issued with a fixed penalty notice.

The value of the fixed penalty varies depending on if it is the first or subsequent fixed penalty notice to be issued:

The current position is that the PSC is responsible for assessing whether IR35 applies. This current regime has been difficult to police by HMRC and HMRC considers there is widespread flouting of the rules by contractors.

From April 2021 the responsibility for assessing whether IR35 applies will shift to the end user/client (with the exception of ‘small’ companies) which will require an assessment to be carried out on a contract by contract basis. HMRC anticipates that this will be easier to monitor and that end user businesses will be more compliant.

The reformed regime will apply to payments made on or after 6 April 2021 for services carried out on or after this date.

Employers have a statutory right to require employees to take annual leave at their direction, subject to providing staff with notice equal to at least double the length of the leave that you are directing them to take (e.g. 10 days’ notice for five days leave). However, this measure is not likely to achieve any urgent cost savings or alleviate immediate cash-flow pressure as holidays would need to be paid.

Clearly, annual leave can be taken on furlough so you could have staff on furlough and annual leave.

Partner at Ward Hadaway Adrian Ballam talks to corporate finance expert and CBILS specialist Chris Silverwood (CorpFin and cashflow.co.uk) to explore the practical ins, outs, dos and don’ts of CBILS applications, answering the questions:

1. How are banks making their assessments of whether a business can afford a CBILS loan when for many they cannot accurately forecast their revenues for at least the next three months?
2. What are the red flags that banks are looking for when assessing whether or not to grant a request for a CBILS loan?
3. What cost mitigation measures should a business have already implemented prior to applying for a CBILS loan?
4. What level of information should a business provide to support a CBILS application?
5. What common mistakes are businesses making when applying for funding?
6. What general tips do you have for businesses seeking CBILS funding?

Click read more to view the video.