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Declaration of Parentage Granted Despite Missing Consent Forms

Unmarried couples who hope to have children together via fertility treatment must comply with a number of requirements in order for both partners to be legally recognised as parents, but if a mistake is made in the documentation, the courts can often assist....

Landlord Served With Improvement Notice Wins Appeal

Can a local housing authority serve an improvement notice under Section 12 of the Housing Act 2004 in respect of a hazard that may or may not exist? This question was raised in a landlord's recent appeal to the Upper Tribunal (UT). The landlord had been...

Businessman's Final Will Ruled Invalid

The High Court has ruled that a businessman's final will, which left most of his estate to his two youngest children and largely disinherited his two eldest children, was invalid. The businessman had been diagnosed with a brain tumour in 2010. Before making...

Life-Sustaining Treatment Not in Disabled Boy's Best Interests

In cases of serious injury or disability, judges may be called upon to make difficult decisions about whether it is in the patient's best interests to continue life-sustaining treatment. A tragic High Court case concerning a severely disabled four-year-old...

Wife's Needs Must Be Met Despite Pre-Marital Agreement

When couples divorce, the courts will take pre-marital agreements (PMAs) into account but will also consider the needs of each spouse. This principle was demonstrated recently in financial remedy proceedings before the Family Court. The couple had signed...

Woman and Ex-Husband Must Repay Funds Missing from Mother's Estate

A woman and her ex-husband who allegedly lost substantial funds belonging to the woman's mother have been ordered by a judge to pay back the missing money. After the mother died in 2019, at the age of 86, the woman's sister brought proceedings in an effort...

Tenant Succeeds in Reducing Insurance Costs

Tenants who feel that they are being overcharged for services in connection with their properties are able to challenge the reasonableness of their charges. The First-tier Tribunal (FTT) recently reduced the amount a tenant was required to pay for insurance...

RTM Company Cannot Recover Legal Fees from Tenant

When incurring costs in respect of a property, landlords should consider at an early stage whether these will be recoverable through the tenants' service charges. A right to manage (RTM) company recently failed to persuade the Upper Tribunal (UT) that legal...

Court of Appeal Overturns Finding of Inflicted Injury

The Court of Appeal has overturned a Family Court decision that tibia fractures sustained by a 10-month-old girl had been inflicted deliberately or recklessly by one of her parents. The parents were in a long-standing, stable relationship. The girl had...

Will Made Following 'Predatory' Marriage Set Aside

The will of a man who married his carer less than a year before he died and left everything to her has been set aside after his daughter challenged its validity. The man was 93 years old when he married his carer, who was then aged 54. Following the...
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