How to protect your money when helping to finance a child’s diversification project

It is increasingly common for parents to give money to their children to help them buy a property or set up a new business. You may intend this purely as a gift to your child to help them with their new venture not appreciating that in the event of a separation or divorce, that gift may be “lost.”  How can you protect this money if your son or daughter subsequently divorces?  Loan or ownership: You can protect your investment in the new venture by either taking a share in the ownership or making a loan which may also then be protected by taking a charge. If you opt for ownership your advisers can ensure that you are registered as one of the co-owners in the appropriate proportion. So, for example, if you are contributing 30% of…

Key concerns for farming businesses in 2019

Uncertainty and risk go hand in hand in the farming industry. As well as the unremitting inconsistency of the British weather, disease, changing eating habits, tax demands and outside political factors are constant worries for farmers in the UK. At Ware & Kay, our specialist agriculture lawyers are widely experienced in recognising and dealing with the many issues and risks involved in the farming sector and strive on a day-to-day basis to minimise the variety of stresses which arise for their many farming clients. Our agricultural law specialists at Pearsons & Ward Solicitors in Malton outline four current concerns for farming businesses and offer practical advice on tackling them. Uncertainty of Brexit The UK’s exit from the European Union is currently pencilled in for 31 October 2019, but with the current political turmoil circling Westminster, whether this…

Keeping it in the Family

Deciding how best to protect a farming business before a divorce or separation occurs in the family, requires careful consideration, planning and specialist advice. The most prudent advice would be to ensure as far as possible that a number of measures are taken before any dispute leading to divorce or separation arises.

Has your commercial lease been validly contracted out under the landlord and Tenant Act 1954?

In a recent case FS Stores Limited v The Designer Retail Outlet Centres (Mansfield) General Partners Limited and others [2019] the High Court considered whether six separate commercial leases had been validly contracted out of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1954. TFS Stores Limited (“TFS”) which trades as The Fragrance Shop is a large retail operator with over 200 stores nationwide. TFS claimed that six of its leases at a number of McArthur Glen outlet shopping centres had not been validy contracted out of the 1954 Act so that they were entitled to renew the leases at the end of the contractual term. The court was asked to consider 3 issues: Whether solicitors for the tenant, in the case of two of the tenancies, had authority in each case to accept service of the “warning…