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Council legal bill over demolition of a building reaches £95,000
05 December 2011
The council’s legal bill for the demolition of a 50 year old derelict building in Stockton has reached £95,000 after a prolonged legal battle.
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Recent changes to the ownership of private sewers and lateral drains
23 November 2011
Property owners in the Thames Water area may have recently received a notice from Thames Water regarding changes to the ownerships of their sewers.
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Commercial property charges becoming an ‘issue’
19 September 2011
Despite claims that UK commercial property tenants are more satisfied with their landlords’ service than last year, service charge arrangements continue to bring unneeded friction, the Occupier Satisfaction Survey 2011 has found.
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Attack on planning reforms driven by ‘left wingers’ government claims
12 August 2011
The Planning Minister Bob Neill has stated that the high profile campaign opposing the proposed changes to the planning system have been orchestrated by left-wing opposition influencing some of the pressure groups and using this as an opportunity to attack the government.
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Directors' Liability
25 July 2011
A company is deemed to have a separate liability to its shareholders and directors. This is referred to as the “corporate veil” or the company being a “separate legal entity” and will largely prevent a director from being held liable in respect of a company’s obligations.
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Commercial property enquiries improving
13 June 2011
London’s commercial property market looks to have turned a corner after the recent post-recession decline, as a growing number of organisations have begun making enquiries regarding relocation to London
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LOCALISM BILL COULD DISSUADE FARMERS FROM PROVIDING COMMUNITY LAND
31 May 2011
The new Localism Bill, which is due to be implemented next year, contains provisions that may dissuade landowners, such as farmers, from enabling local communities to use their land and property for community purposes such as recreation.
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Business Insight Issue 3 - The Bribery Act 2010 Seminar on Friday 24th June 2011
23 May 2011
You are invited to attend a series of presentations on the new Bribery Act 2010 which comes into force on 1st July 2011 and can potentially affect your business.
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PLANNING POINTS
08 April 2011
A brief overview of planning considerations.
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NO RELAXATION OF SUNDAY TRADING LAWS
25 March 2011
The Government has decided not to go ahead with plans to allow councils to decide whether to allow large retail stores to open for extended hours on Sundays
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Localism Bill
21 March 2011
The Localism Bill is central to the Coalition Government’s “Big Society”, i.e. the plans to decentralise and disperse power so that the local people can obtain funding to deliver what they want for their community. But the question is: how does the Government intend to shift power from Central government to local communities?
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HIGH STREET SHOPS NEED PROTECTION IN LOCALISM BILL
01 March 2011
Members of Parliament have put forward a motion to the Government urging it to take adequate action to protect high street shops from being forced out by out of town shopping developments
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HOPE FOR COMMERCIAL PROPERTY MARKET
01 March 2011
After years of financial strain and unpredictable domestic and foreign markets, UK commercial property could be set for a bumper period of activity, the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) has revealed.
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DRASTIC INCREASE IN HIGH COURT COMMERCIAL PROPERTY DISPUTES
01 March 2011
Legal disputes between disgruntled commercial property landlords and their tenants increased by an astonishing 43% in 2009, according to figures obtained by legal information service Sweet amp; Maxwell.
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LANDLORDS CAN BENEFIT FROM CHARITABLE OCCUPATION
04 February 2011
Ever since the previous government introduced laws requiring landlords to pay tax on empty industrial, office and retail premises, in 2008, the number of charity shops taking short term leases of rented premises has increased
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Registration of floating charges
13 December 2010
It is a well-known provision of company law that a floating charge taken on company property must be registered in order to be enforceable against the liquidator, administrator or creditors of the company
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Commercial property slump as tenants reveal dissatisfaction
17 September 2010
Britain’s commercial property sector prices fared poorly for the fifth consecutive month in August while occupiers have begun voicing their concern over lack of customer service
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Air Conditioning System Inspections - A reminder
16 September 2010
All air conditioning systems with an effective rated output of more than 12 KW must be regularly inspected by an Energy Assessor. The inspections must be a maximum of 5 years apart.
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Compensation awarded over ‘plane old disturbance’
17 July 2010
Homeowners whose house prices have plummeted due to overhead planes are to be awarded £9million in compensation by Manchester Airport
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Subsidence warning for UK properties
06 July 2010
As the nation’s weathermen predict a summer drought, UK property owners and buyers are being warned of the subsidence dangers cropping up across the country
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Mortgage Repossession for Unauthorised Tenants
20 May 2010
On 8 April 2010 the Mortgage Repossessions (Protection of Tenants etc) Bill received Royal Assent and is now close to becoming law. The proposed Bill seeks to strengthen the rights of ‘unauthorised’ tenants that live in a property which is repossessed by their landlord’s mortgage provider.
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Bankruptcy could reach alarming high
05 February 2010
New Insolvency Service statistics have shown that the number of Britons edging towards bankruptcy will swell dramatically as borrowers fail to seek proper help from their creditors.
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How commercial properties are to help reduce carbon emmissions
21 January 2010
Fresh on the back of the Copenhagen summit, the Carbon Trust has published a report, Buildings hold the key to meeting our carbon targets (www.carbontrust.co.uk/publications), highlighting that if the UK is to meet its carbon reduction target, non-domestic buildings must improve their energy rating from the current standard E rating to: