The law never stands still, and the way it applies to you and your organisation is constantly evolving. Our people are on top of these developments and can keep you up to date with some of the most interesting aspects of these changes. Check out our articles and updates for our perspective on issues that might affect you.
Brewdog. East Fife FC. Happy Days the Musical. Barack Obama. That's not only the most unlikely list you're ever likely to read in a legal publication, it's also a small selection of the media-grabbing campaigns which show just how pervasive the influence of crowdfunding has become in recent years.
The European Parliament has finally adopted three new procurement Directives to reform the public procurement regime.
Employers who are not paying their workers the National Minimum Wage (NMW) – currently £6.31 per hour for workers over 21 - currently face a penalty of 50% of the total underpayment of the NMW (the minimum being £100 and the maximum being £5,000). Between 2012 and 2013, HMRC identified 736 employers who had failed to pay their workers the NMW. This led to the recovery of £3.9 million in unpaid wages for over 26,500 workers.
As employers will be aware, the Equality Act 2010 ("the Act") prohibits direct discrimination, indirect discrimination, victimisation and harassment in the workplace in respect of religion, religious belief and philosophical belief (or lack of such beliefs).
In the course of the last year, my colleague in the Family Team, Alexis Harper, has spent probably as much time in the evenings and weekends on work associated with her role as a bridesmaid as she has in the office dealing with divorces and separations. She takes her role as bridesmaid seriously. As to whether she should give up the day job, you'd have to ask the brides involved.