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Well done to all the staff who have contributed and worked very hard in achieving the highest accolade awarded by the Law Society.

Compromise agreements are used extensively on termination  of employment, and usually provide for a severance payment by an employer in return for which the employee agrees not to pursue any claim before an employment tribunal.

Section 147 of the Equality Act 2010 set out the requirements that must be satisfied to avoid employment tribunal claims through compromise agreements. Crucially, it stipulated that employees must receive advice from an ‘independent adviser’ about the terms of an agreement.

Law Society President John Wotton commented: “The wording of this section casts doubt on whether a solicitor for the employee could be recognised as an ‘independent adviser’ for the purposes of preparing a compromise agreement. This could have rendered unenforceable any discrimination-related elements of a compromise agreement made following an employment dispute on which the solicitor had up until that point given advice to the employee.

‘Employers would not have been able to safely rely on these agreements without the risk of challenge due to the ambiguity in the legislation.’

The  Equality Act 2010 (Amendment) Order 2012, which comes into effect on 6 April, will amend section 147 by confirming that an employee’s lawyer can be an independent adviser for the purposes of preparing a compromise agreement.

If you are an employer or employee and require advice on any aspect of employment law including compromise agreements then please do not hesitate to Contact us

The NewBuy scheme assists buyers who have a deposit of at least 5 per cent to buy a new build home. This is a smaller deposit than is normally required. The scheme will allow more borrowers to secure up to a 95 per cent Loan to Value mortgage on new build properties (houses and flats) from participating builders in England.

NewBuy was launched on Monday 12 March 2012. The initiative was developed jointly by the Home Builders Federation and Council of Mortgage Lenders. The Government is backing the scheme to help those home buyers who have found themselves excluded from sections of the market because they don’t have a large enough deposit.

NewBuy is expected to assist up to 100,000 households in buying a new home. All mortgage lenders and house builders operating in England are welcome to join the scheme; that includes lenders and builders who are not members of the Council of Mortgage Lenders or the Home Builders Federation.

For further information on the scheme  please do not hesitate to contact Mark Lynn on 0191 2840363 or mark@carrandcosolicitors.com

Buying a property for the first time is one of the biggest financial commitments you will ever make. It is therefore imperative that when considering whether to purchase a property through a shared ownership scheme to consider the pitfalls before proceeding.

Shared Ownership Schemes are usually run through a Housing Association and involve acquiring an initial share in the property, normally 25 or 50 per cent with the purchaser then paying rent on the part of the property that still belongs to the Housing Association. Those who cannot afford to buy a property outright should
consider such schemes.

The purchaser then has the option to buy further shares in their property as and when they are able, eventually, staircasing their initial percentage share to full ownership. In doing
this, you are investing in your own home rather than just paying rent.

Shared ownership properties enable first time buyers to get on the property ladder and provide them with the merits of owning a property such as security. In contrast to renting, it
also removes the headache of constantly being served with notice to vacate every 12months and the stress of possibly having to find new accommodation.

One of the mains pros of such schemes is that they enable you to buy a larger property than you would otherwise be able to and you may need little or no deposit.
Conversely, there are also a number of disadvantages to these schemes. The problems you experience will normally depend on the terms of the shared ownership scheme. One of the
main issues is that there may be limited properties available for shared ownership in your area but even you do find the right property you may not even qualify for the scheme. You will also have the responsibilities of a homeowner but your home does not only belong to you. As it is not completely yours, there will no doubt be selling restrictions written into the paperwork and you will normally require the permission of the Housing Association should you wish to redevelop or redecorate the property.

Finally, when you have saved the money required to buy further shares in the property the share is normally valued by the Housing Association and you will usually have to pay the fees of the valuation. Therefore, the help and guidance of an experience Solicitor is essential.

For specialist advice on Conveyancing matters please contact Mark Lynn on (0191) 2840363 or mark@carrandcosolicitors.com

Responding to the Norgrove Family Justice Review, justice secretary Kenneth Clarke said the government would implement many of its recommendations, including introducing a six-month time limit to resolve care and adoption cases and creating a single family court across England and Wales, with a single point of contact.

But, contrary to the recommendation in the review, Kenneth Clarke said the government will legislate to emphasise the importance of children having an ongoing relationship with both their parents after divorce or separation, where that is safe and in the child’s best interests.

The government’s response says: ‘Children are entitled both to receive financial support from both parents and to maintain contact with both parents, where this is safe. It is difficult to conceive how withholding either of these things meets the welfare needs of the child.’

A new ‘child’s arrangement order’ will be introduced to make practical arrangements for childrens’ upbringing.

The Norgrove Review rejected legislating for shared parenting, saying it risked creating a presumption of a parental right to shared time and could cause problems in custody cases.

In light of this, the government has said it will ‘consider very carefully’ how legislation can be framed to ensure that a meaningful relationship is not about equal division of time, but the quality of parenting received by the child.

Clarke said: ‘The reform of family justice and child protection is a critical priority for government. Our reforms are ambitious and system-wide and particularly tackle the crucial problem of delay.’

Children’s minister Tim Loughton said: ‘The introduction of a new six-month time limit on care cases sends a clear signal to everyone involved in the process that we want to see radical improvement.

‘Speeding up the court system, and getting earlier decisions about a child’s future, will help ensure that more children are found loving homes more quickly,’ he said.

Whilst current cases will not be affected until the Government have finalised the detail and a reform timetable has been set, Carr & Co will of course continue to keep you updated.

Whilst you will see from our Family Law pages that we can assist you with all of the above what happens when you reach an agreement yourselves, without the assistance of a solicitor?

We would strongly advise that in reaching an agreement with your former partner or spouse that you are fully aware of both of your financial circumstances. This will include having sight of certain documentation. As family pracitioners we follow certain guidelines and we would usually expect documentation to include; 12 months bank statements of all accounts held, details of any liabilities held (for example credit card or loans), redemption figure for the mortgage along with three independent valuations of any property held, Cash Equivalent Transfer Value of any pensions held, details of any shares, savings or any other assets held, three months wage slips and P60 for last financial year, valuation of any business or business interests.

Although the above is not an exhaustive list it is a guide as to what you would expect to see before conducting negotiations and reaching a financial settlement.

If you are considering negotiating yourself then why not have us on board in the background asssiting and advising you as to what would be an appropriate and fair settlement. This would save you with the costs of solicitors negotiating but at the same time will give you piece of mind that you are on the right track, or that the settlement you are considering is far below what would be considered as fair. We can also ensure that any agreement reached is drafted into an appropriate format to outline the agreement reached and ensure it is legally binding upon you both.

Please do not forget to include your Pensions and possible entitlement when negotiating. For many spouses who have supported the other who went out to work by raising the children, then you may need to consider “topping up” your state pension by transferring some of your spouse’s national insurance contributions to your state pension. We can assist you with this to ensure you receive what the law says you should. On Divorce you would not require your spouses agreement for the above as the DWP should automatically do this for you.

Other private pensions should not be ignored either. Under a law that came into effect in December 2000, spouses were for the first time entitled to half of the main earner’s occupational pension on divorce when courts divided their assets. In most cases, the pot is split into two new funds at the time of divorce to achieve a clean break.

These pension-sharing orders were seen as improvement on earlier schemes where retirement funds could be offset against other assets at the time of the divorce, or where one spouse could receive a share of the other’s pension when they retired.

All of us at Carr & Co wish them well and cannot wait to meet the little bundle of joy.

The Government have announced that the current exemption which means that first time buyers are free from the 1% Stamp Duty Tax on homes costing below £250,000.00 will finish on 24th March 2012.

There are concerns that with the current exemption ending the housing market will be further affected, especially for those who are struggling to get a foot on the property ladder.

The government has however announced a further housing strategywhich included a mortgage guarantee scheme to encourage lenders to offer 95% mortgages to buyers of new homes. Hopefully this will encourage the current fragile housing market.

If you are thinking of purchasing a property then time is of the essence and it is important to act now. Our dedicated and reliable Conveyancing Department are on hand to provide a no obligation, free quote either online or by telephone, so contact us today.

If you would like to complete our online Conveyancing Quotation Form then please click here or alternatively contact us.

Mr Justice Mostyn in the High Court in Kremen v Agrest (No.11) (Financial Remedy: Non-Disclosure: Post-Nuptial Agreement) [2012] EWHC 45 (Fam) has dismissed the post-nuptial agreement made by the parties and awarded the former wife a lump sum of £12.5 million, including £8.3 million constituting maintenance.

Ms Kremen signed the agreement with her former husband, Boris Agrest, a Russian financier, after the couple had been married for 10 years. Its purported effect was to limit her claims on divorce to about £970,000.

In a judgment which Mostyn J hoped would be the final instalment in a ‘chronic and complex piece of matrimonial litigation’ he said that he had no hesitation in concluding that:

i) the wife did not freely enter into the agreement with a full appreciation of its implications. It was the product of pressure from the Husband and there was a material absence of independent legal advice and disclosure.

ii) Moreover, it is doubtful that the parties ever actually intended that the agreement should govern the financial consequences of the marriage coming to an end.

iii) It would be grossly unfair to hold her to an agreement which deprived her of her fair share of a fortune to the formation of which she has, in her own way, equally contributed.

iv) Moreover, the agreement did not then, nor does it now, remotely meet her reasonable needs.

v) And the agreement grossly prejudices the needs of the children.

At Carr & Co we have family specialists that can assist you if you are considering entering into a Post-Nuptial Agreement (similar to a Pre-nuptial agreement but post marriage). There is now clear guidance issued by the courts and although this is of course always subject to development and change, Carr & Co keep in tune with these developments to ensure any agreement is as binding as possible.

Contact us today for an appointment.