Maintenance claims and life partners
More and more couples are opting to live together as permanent life partners rather than enter into a formal marriage. The risk for such couples is that whilst our law is steadily (if slowly and cautiously) extending many of the protections of formal marriage to unmarried life partners, that process is not by any means […]
BAD BUREAUCRATS: THREATEN THEM WITH PERSONAL LIABILITY
Whilst the vast majority of state officials are competent and honest, and deserving of our full support, there will always be a few “bad eggs” to contend with. We’ve all had our run-ins with state bureaucracy, and where it causes you significant loss of any sort, ask your lawyer if you can sue. Act quickly; […]
SIGNING SURETY: THE STING’S IN THE TAIL
“She just did not want to be liable if he defaulted, a common regret felt by those who stand surety for defaulting debtors” (extract from judgment below) In the beginning … You are totally relaxed. The bank won’t give your son / daughter / spouse / partner / company / friend a loan unless you sign […]
BABY BOOMERS: AT WHAT AGE MUST YOU RETIRE?
Employers need to be particularly on their guard for cases in which a workplace dismissal is automatically unfair. Our courts take a particularly dim view of discrimination cases falling into this category. Age discrimination is one such instance, and an employer faced with such a claim can defend it only by proving (the onus is […]
PROPERTY AGREEMENTS – AN ALTERATION COULD SINK YOUR SALE!
“Agreement makes law” (Old legal maxim) Although in our law most verbal contracts are binding, property sale agreements are an exception. They must be in writing and signed by the parties to be valid, the reason being that it greatly reduces the risk of confusion or dispute as to what the buyer and seller […]
BODY CORPORATE v NIGHTMARE NEIGHBOUR: COURT TO THE RESCUE
“His demeanour at this time was highly aggressive, flying his arms about and it was clear to me that he had to prevent himself from lashing out at me physically” (Trustee quoted in judgment below) The irrational, aggressive and disruptive “Nightmare Next Door” owner is regrettably a well-known and much-disliked feature of all too many […]