Divorce, what is it like? What Aston Bond can do to help.

Posted on by Aston Bond Law Firm

It sounds strange, but as a divorce lawyer you never know what your clients will throw at you.

The other dreaded D word- DIVORCE.

This normally means fundamental changes, upheaval and pretty much the only guarantee is certain uncertainty  for the very immediate future.

Everyone knows someone who “got taken to the cleaners- by their better half or in some cases their lawyers”. It can make  sane people reach for the prozac, a bottle or sometimes both. The truth is it is never an easy step to take. I would compare it to the analogy of having to visit your dentist to have some root canal work carried out. It is painful. Emotionally and financially. However once the pain wears off you can be glad its over and that you took the initial step to do it.

I have never had a client who regretted getting a divorce. The only regret is that they wished they did it earlier and didn’t spend hours talking to “friends, colleagues, people down the pub” giving them their stories that have nothing to do with your individual circumstances. It’s a FACT that each case is different so you cannot generalise.  By the very nature of what you are doing it is not going to be a wonderful experience but it is a FACT that most families move forward and have no regrets. This includes children, who wish their parents had divorced a long time ago.

Studies from adults with parents whom had “unhappy marriages” and ‘put off’ divorcing to keep the family together, wish that their parents had divorced sooner.

Children are more perceptive than we give them credit for. They can see unhappy parents, and sometimes as adults feel guilty that their parents may have sacrificed their happiness to keep the family together.

A good lawyer will empathise with you and not force you to take any rash decisions. This is why  ASTON BOND offer consultations for you to “test the water“ and get  sound advice. For example most people think they have to go to court to get a divorce. It’s a FACT that most divorces are paper exercises and not contested.

Sometimes a little knowledge is a dangerous tool  so always go to a qualified lawyer when it comes to obtaining a full understanding of what’s involved and of course as Malcolm Ford said in preschool (son of Harrison Ford);

“ My daddy is a movie actor and sometimes he plays the good guy, and sometimes he plays the lawyer!“.

Well that’s Hollywood fiction for you… but  it’s the lawyer that can help you get what you want.

 

Monisha Ferguson, Senior Family Solicitor

Is YOUR Section 21 Notice valid?

Posted on by Amarjit Atwal

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Landlords wishing to evict their tenants using a section 21 notice must be aware of the creation of periodic tenancies, which can prevent section 21 notices from being valid.

Periodic tenancies automatically arise when the fixed term expires, and this technically creates a whole new tenancy.

Because of this, the deposit protection regulations apply anew, and as a landlord you must provide your tenant with the correct prescribed information under section 213 of the Housing Act 2004.

While it is prudent to get your tenant (and anyone else who may be paying the deposit) to sign this document, they do not have to. You must bring it to their attention, however.

By following these simple steps, any section 21 notices that you thereafter serve upon your tenant will be valid, subject of course to the s21 notice satisfying all other requirements

A failure to re-lodge the deposit and/or provide your tenant with the prescribed  information can prevent you from obtaining possession of your property, and can even lead to a penalty of 1-3 times the value of the deposit.

To speak to one of our specialist landlord and tenant solicitors, please call 01753 486 777 today and we would be delighted to talk to you.

 

Amarjit Atwal, Trainee Solicitor

October Fund Raising at Aston Bond

Posted on by Aston Bond Law Firm

 

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Throughout the month of October and the run up to Halloween, Aston Bond will be fundraising for the charity Destiny Support , the charities Key Objectives are listed below:

  • Contribute to the Government’s agenda in raising skills and addressing worklessness.
    Regular review of service users needs to ensure the service user gets the best support available.
  • Implement policies on equal opportunities and diversity ensuring complaints are acted upon in a sensitive manner.
  • Engage service users in the way services are delivered.
  • Keep service users informed of what and how we deliver our services.
  • Respect individual rights to privacy and confidentiality.
  • Continuous service improvement through training, support and development for all staff.

 

We will be selling sweets to staff and clients in our reception, with all proceeds going directly to Destiny Support . Further to that, on Friday the 31st of October all staff will be coming to work in fancy dress (lots of pictures will be shared of this). Once we’re all dressed up, the staff will parade down Slough High Street to help raise awareness and money for the charity.

Aston Bond feel that the work Destiny Support do is fantastic,  and for the charity to remain active it is vital for them to be supported.

How YOU can help

Aston Bond will be raising money in our reception by selling sweets to clients and staff. Alongside that we’ve set up an online donations page  so you can support the charity online.

 

 

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The Monday Morning Commute

Posted on by Aston Bond Law Firm

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Two members of the Aston Bond team set off for work this morning, as if it was just a regular commute lasting a short 40 minutes, or so. However, due to signalling failures at Slough, two hours since setting off from their homes they still were not in the comfort of their office chair, instead in the rain at a bus stop in Burnham. The following represents the mornings events:

A mad dash round Reading Station proved fruitless, as trains were simply ‘too full’ to fit any more passengers on, hundreds were left stranded on platforms and in the station. Finally a train bound for London Paddington arrived with space for the hundreds (if not thousands) to get on, amid the madness we managed to board the train.

Things were looking up, until we reached Burnham where the train driver announced that we would not be reaching Slough for a period of time that he could not state. The train sat stationary at Burnham for at least 25 minutes, until we finally decided to get off and catch the bus to Slough, after following advice. As we stood waiting for the bus to arrive, we watched and then panicked as the train decided to pull away! The morning went from bad to worse, and the rain stayed far more consistent than they FGW Trains we regularly use to get to work. A groggy and slow bus ride finally got us to Slough Station.

As we arrived there were hoards of people who likely needed to get to Paddington, but just couldn’t due to the disruption. In that sense we felt lucky, as the people needing to reach London seemed to stand little chance.

A fantastic start to the week!

 

Joel Chapman, Marketing

 

Below is a display of people who were in the same boat:

https://twitter.com/NeilBassett2/status/519064216545001472

And my personal favourite:

Aston Bond’s Landlord & Tenant Seminar

Posted on by Aston Bond Law Firm

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Aston Bond hosted a Landlord & Tenant Seminar on the 25th of September 2014. The seminar covered many topics including Section 8 and Section 21 notices.

We received fantastic feedback from the attendees, with many left wanting more! The feedback received will be essential to make the next seminar an even bigger success.

Alongside talks from solicitors Dion McCarthy and Jagdeep Sandher, the seminar provided a useful networking opportunity and gave us the chance to meet with existing contacts, whilst being introduced to others from the industry.

The team here at Aston Bond all enjoyed the opportunity to host the event, and we would like to thank all attendees for helping to make the event a success.

We will be hosting many more seminars in the near future, for more information please email info@astonbond.co.uk.

If you would like to request a copy of the presentation used on the night, please email jchapman@astonbond.co.uk

 

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Feedback received on the night: 

“Excellent speakers, superb welcome”

“The presentation was informal but practical”

“Delivered clearly and succinctly”

 

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Watch the seminar below:

 

Inheritance Tax – How to make the most of leaving wealth

Posted on by Aston Bond Law Firm

Inheritance Tax Man

Many people are of the view that they spend many years accumulating their wealth so why should they pay tax on it when they die?

However that is often the case with the basic rule being the part of any net estate over £325,000 is subject to tax at 40%. Given the continued increase in house prices in recent years this covers more and more estates. The £325,000 limit used to rise on a regular basis each tax year but unfortunately has not done so since the last election. Some easy options to reduce the effects of the tax are as follows:

 

1. Give as much away as possible! If you do not need the money in your lifetime and were going to give it to someone anyway then if you give away a large amount at least 7 years before death then no tax is payable will be payable on that amount.

2. Certain gifts are exempt in any event – up to £3,000 in any one tax year, usual Christmas/birthday gifts and certain gifts to family on marriage

3. Charitable gifts – these reduce the net tax payable on your estate. If you give more that 10% of your net estate to charity the rate reduces to 36% and any charitable gifts are tax free so reduce the overall tax payable

4. Be aware of “Unused spouse threshold”. In the event that your spouse predeceased you and did not use his/her full allowance it may be possible to substantially reduce the tax payable by transferring the allowance to the second spouse to die. In a recent case a lady had died having been pre-deceased by her husband in 1975. Having transferred his possible allowance the tax on the lady’s net estate was reduced to nil.

5. There are also various specialist allowances for farms and businesses and we would be happy to discuss these with you.

 

For further help and assistance please call 01753 486 777 to arrange an appointment.

 

Helen Barnard, Senior Solicitor

 

Time off for antenatal classes

Posted on by Amarjit Atwal

A pregnant woman’s partner will, from 1 October 2014, be entitled to attend ante-natal appointments by taking unpaid time off work as per guidance produced by the Department of Business, Innovation and Skills.

This is limited to only 2 ante-natal appointments, lasting 6.5 hours per appointment. Employers will be entitled to ask the employee for a declaration stating the details of the appointment, such as date and time. However, they cannot ask for any evidence of the appointment.

This guidance covers individuals who may be in same-sex relationships and even surrogate parents. The individual in question does not need to be the biological father of the child.

Refusal to allow an employee time off to accompany their partner can lead to employees bringing Employment Tribunal claims, and Tribunal can order the employer to pay compensation amounting to twice the hourly rate of pay for each of the hours that the person could have taken off, if they were allowed this right.

If you need employment advice, please contact our team of experienced solicitors on 01753 486 777 or alternatively come down to our offices at Windsor Crown House, 7 Windsor Way, Slough, SL1 2DX.

 

Amarjit Atwal, Paralegal

Tribunal fees: pricing individuals out of the justice system?

Posted on by Amarjit Atwal

Statistics published by the Ministry of Justice on 11 September 2014 show that the amount of people bringing claims in the employment tribunal has decreased rapidly in the last year.

Single claims in the tribunal were down by a whole 70% in the periods between April and June 2014 compared to the same time last year. This substantial decrease in the number of claims can be linked to the new fee system that was introduced last July.

In addition to the imposition of new fees, since April 2014 it has become mandatory to contact Acas prior to bringing a claim at tribunal. This is in a bid to encourage early conciliation.

Frances O’Grady, the TUC general secretary, claimed that although early conciliation, as encouraged through Acas, is enabling cases to be resolved prior to issuing employment tribunal proceedings, it “can’t explain such a large fall in the number of employment tribunals”. She has also called for court fees to be scrapped.

Indeed, it seems as though the introduction of employment tribunal fees of up to £1,200 have deterred many prospective claimants.

An alternative view, as championed by Shailesh Vara, justice minister, is that the introduction of fees is a positive change as it deters vexatious litigants from bringing claims. Mr Vara said ‘hardworking taxpayers should not be picking up the bill for reemployment disputes in tribunals’.

Although this may be the case, it is clear that imposing high fees can price individuals out of the justice system. In response, shadow Business Secretary, Chuka Umunna has even proposed abolishing all employment tribunal fees.

However it is clear that the introduction of the new Acas early conciliation process coupled with the introduction of court fees has made a noticeable impact on the amount of claims reaching the employment tribunal. Whether this impact is positive or negative is yet to be seen.

 

Amarjit Atwal, Paralegal

Company directors beware: Deception can lead to disqualification

Posted on by Amarjit Atwal

build site

Last week two businessmen were sentenced at Winchester Crown Court for fraud and safety offences. The Department for Business Innovation and Skills (BIS) and the Health and Safety Executive brought joint proceedings against the pair after a worker died due to a lack of safety checks on a crane being used at a building site.

In September 2010 a two-tonne metal sand moulding box fell from a crane onto the 40 year old worker, crushing him to death. The Health and Safety Executive’s investigation found that not only had the crane not been checked properly, but the workers were also being exposed to a dangerous amount of lead.

Investigations also found that one of the directors had issued cheques totalling £92,500, all of which had bounced, and even continued to act as a director despite two court orders disqualifying him.

The directors were subsequently found guilty under the Health and Safety of Work Act 1974 and Fraud Act 2006 and also found to have breached section 13 of the Company Directors Disqualification Act 1986. Both were disqualified from being company directors, for 15 and 7 years respectively.

More information on this case can be found here: http://press.hse.gov.uk/2014/disqualified-director-and-accomplice-sentenced-over-worker-death-and-company-deception/

 

Amarjit Atwal, Paralegal

aatwal@astonbond.co.uk