Category: Legal Updates

In the Spring edition of Asian Wealth Magazine, linked below,  James Cohen talks through the changes to principal private residence relief.

Asian Wealth Magazine Spring 2015

Please see below the link to the latest Employment Law Update from GSC Solicitors covering:

• Shared Parental Leave
• Antenatal Appointments
• Parental Leave
• Gender Equality at Work: Compulsory Equal Pay

Employment Law Update Spring 2015

In April 2014 court fees were increased across the board.  The Government are now expediting a proposal which will further increase the issue fees for monetary claims, as from April 2015.

The Government’s proposal will see court fees increased for claims of £10,000 and over to a figure which equates to 5% of the monetary claim but with a cap of £10,000.  To illustrate the effects of this:-

Value of Claim	Current court fee	Proposed new fee
£10,000.00	£455.00	£500.00
£15,000.00	£610.00	£750.00
£50,000.00	£910.00	£2,500.00
£100,000.00	£1,115.00	£5,000.00
£150,000.00	£1,315.00	£7,500.00
£200,000.00 plus	£1,515.00	£10,000.00

If the relief sought in the Claim extends beyond a claim for money (e.g. a claim for an injunction or a declaration) further fees (currently £480 in the High Court and £280 in the County Court) will still be payable in addition to the above figures.

The proposal also seeks to increase the fee for applications.  For a Without Notice or Consent Application the fee will increase from £50 to £100.  The fee for Contested Applications will increase from £155 to £255.  This increase in application fees will apply to all proceedings to include those commenced before the new fee structure comes into force.

There will be a 10% discount on fees if claims are issued on-line using the money claims on-line procedure.

If you wish to avoid being caught by the proposed new issuing fee increases then proceedings need to be issued by 31 March 2015 (it is not clear when in April the proposed new fees will come into effect)

For more information please contact Michael Shapiro, Partner and Head of Litigation at mshapiro@gscsolicitors.com or by phone on 020 7822 2222.

Tessa Fry comments here, in an article for CIPD People Management, on the considerations that need to made when using the hot desk system to manage office space.