Property practitioners will be aware of the furore created by the Law Society’s proposed update of the Property Information Form to the 5th edition. This update incorporates the material information requirements which estate agents are supposed to have been advertising since November 2023. The Law Society told CQS firms that using the updated form would …
Continue reading “TA6 changes – delayed again”
An expert report obtained after a final hearing was not reliable or procedurally acceptable and was not permitted as fresh evidence on appeal. Care and placement orders were made in respect of a baby girl (T) whose parents had histories of alcohol problems. F also had criminal convictions. Two older children were living with grandparents …
Continue reading “Care proceedings – fresh evidence”
Note that from 2 December 2024 HMLR is changing its address. This might not seem that significant as most firms will use the portal but remember that HMLR will require original deeds to be sent to it for first registrations from 1 October 2024 (see our November edition (p8)). So, the HMLR postal address will …
Continue reading “HMLR – address change”
Where a child is removed from a jurisdiction by one parent with the other’s consent, proceedings under the Hague Convention will likely fail. The question in this case was whether F had in fact consented to M removing the children to the UK from the US. The parties had five children. The youngest born was …
Continue reading “Child abduction – Hague Convention; consent”
HMLR has updated PG31 (discharge of charges) to reflect how applications should be made using its digital systems. Section 6 now reads: ‘6. Electronic discharges An electronic discharge is a discharge of a registered charge sent electronically by the lender’s computer system direct to us. For an electronic discharge, the HM Land Registry computer system …
Continue reading “HMLR – PG31”
Fundamental defects in a suspended committal order prevented the court from activating it. The order for committal suspended for 18 months had been made against F following breaches of various return orders requiring him to procure the return of a child from Algeria to England. M applied for the order to be activated. The activation …
Continue reading “Committal proceedings – sentencing; procedural defects”
HMLR has announced in a blog dated 14 November 2024 that it is simplifying the registration of personal covenants. The idea is to make such entries more consistent – the entry will appear thus: A [deed] dated [date] contains positive and/or indemnity covenants. Note: Copy filed. HMLR states that: ‘We will make this entry regardless …
Continue reading “HMLR – personal covenants”
Practitioners will benefit from a new Commons briefing paper on child maintenance, arrears and enforcement which has just been published. It sets out information on what action the Child Maintenance Service can take and its powers to collect unpaid maintenance. If payments are not made in full or on time under a statutory child maintenance …
Continue reading “Child maintenance – research on collecting unpaid maintenance”
Crimeline aptly described this appeal as ‘odd’. A suspended two-year prison sentence was imposed on A on conviction of a count of robbery following a car theft. He appealed the conviction, criticising the judge’s questions put to the jury. A’s counsel argued that ‘the Crown had always put their case on the basis that the …
Continue reading “Judge’s directions – threats of violence”
New mandatory and discretionary disregards to financial eligibility tests for civil legal aid have been introduced under the Civil and Criminal Legal Aid (Financial Resources and Contribution Orders) (Amendment) Regulations 2024. From 20 November 2024, applications for legal aid made from that date are affected and some people already receiving legal aid (and paying legal …
Continue reading “Legal aid – means testing”