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Marsden Rawsthorn launch free Employment Law Clinic
Employees and employers alike can book a half hour free appointment to attend the clinic which is run by our employment law specialists. This offers both clients and prospective clients alike the opportunity to speak with our team to identify if they potentially have a claim. If you would like to arrange an appointment call 01772 799678 and speak to Karen Maysmor.
Recent Case LawBritain’s Got Talent Contestant sues Simon CowellIt has been reported that Emma Amelia Pearl Czikai, a former contestant on Britain’s Got Talent is suing Simon Cowell for £2.5 million because she was humiliated and degraded on the show*. Czikai lodged a claim in the employment tribunal in January and argues that the (unsuccessful) audition amounted to a job interview. Her claims included disability discrimination and she seeks compensation including loss of earnings and injury to feelings. The former nurse claims that she was not given a fair audition and her performance suffered as a result of cervical spine neuritis, which can cause head and shoulder pain and which affects her ability to hear her own singing voice in noisy environments such as the audition arena.
Number of Employment Tribunal Claims on the rise Tribunals Annual Statistics for 2009-2010 were recently published and show a significant increase in claims submitted to the employment tribunal. The recession is most likely to have been a factor contributing to the increase…
Beware of unregulated Will Writers!We welcomed the airing of BBC's Panorama " Wills: The Big Rip Off" on the 9th August 2010, which exposed some of the problems with Will Writers. Marsden Rawsthorn have for some time been warning about the dangers of using unregulated and unqualified Will Writers to prepare your will, and worst still execute probate.One the attractions of Will Writers is initially the cost seems very attractive . Often, as we saw in Panorama, initial fees quoted are low, in the example yesterday £60. However, once the salesperson visits, this is soon inflated as the Will Writers charge based on the number of clauses that are added, often these are unnecessary and can cause further problems if not they are not written correctly. Some examples we had dealt with include an instance where the client wished to exclude a family member from their will and the will writer used a generic term i.e. children rather than naming the individual beneficiaries. We have also seen examples where beneficiaries cannot be indentified as they are members of a class, for example, grandchildren whenever born, which would prevent distribution of the estate until no further grandchildren could possibly be born. Often tying up the estate for many years.
Leyland gets a unique new coffee loungeRoccoco, a new coffee lounge, has just opened in Leyland but it is no ordinary coffee lounge! Local residents can also benefit from a unique advice service whilst enjoying a coffee, along with one of the freshly baked cakes or pastries. This unique venture, which is situated on Chapel Brow, Leyland has been founded by the Brothers of Charity in conjunction with Help Direct, and will provide advice on a wide range of issues from benefit advice through to housing problems. The centre will also provide help for residents with learning difficulties in a comfortable and friendly environment. All profits from the venture will go to charity.
Facebook referenced in 1 in 5 divorces!
With 50% of Facebook users over the age of 25, the prospect of connecting with an ex-partner is a becoming ever more likely, especially when one out of every six minutes online is spent on a social media website. Though the idea or reconnecting with the past seems harmless and is usually pursued with good intentions, it is not always advisable...
Fit for work or not fit for work, that is the question!
Marsden Rawsthorn Opens The Regeneration of Preston Discussion
The second in a series of events was opened by Stephen Hodgson, a Chief Executive here at Marsden Rawsthorn Solicitors. A Preston man, through and through, Stephen commented on the history and assets of the City and how he believes proposals for regeneration should be made local, considering the needs of those in and around the city itself.
Sad Loss of Barbara KerridgeIt is with great sadness we announce the loss of Barbara Kerridge. Barbara died peacefully on Saturday 12 June after a valiant battle with cancer. Barbara worked with Jane Ashworth-Wilson, a Partner at Marsden Rawsthorn, for almost 20 years. Barbara had excellent organisational and listening skills and as a qualified executive was a highly valued member of Jane’s team. Aside from her work for Marsden Rawsthorn, Barbara spent one day a week as a debt counsellor and she also supported a number of charities, most particularly Vine House, a day care centre for people with cancer and their families.Barbara will be greatly missed and our thoughts are with her family.
How to Prevent a World Cup Hangover in Your Business
Lisa Clark, Solicitor at Marsden Rawsthorn explains how in some cases prevention is better than cure and having done your homework prior to big sporting events can result in a happy workplace, rather than an empty, unproductive one!
Sahida Ahmed appointed Partner
Employment Law Changes from 6th April
* The Additional Paternity Leave Regulations 2010: Provides a new right for new mothers to transfer the second 6 months of their 12 months maternity leave entitlement to the father, subject to certain criteria. The regulations, although now in force, only apply to children whose expected week of birth begins on or after 3rd April 2011.
Preston solicitors raise over £5k for two local Barnardos projects in Preston
Consisting of three teams, the Apprentice Challenge saw employees organising events including a Golf Day, a Race Night, staff dressed in “Grease” style outfits out on the streets of Preston to collect money, raffles and a charity dance featuring live music from The Rockabelles; a band fronted by Marsden Rawsthorn Legal Executive Kim Seward.
HSE campaign for worker involvement launchedEmployers will welcome a new initiative from the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) to help them comply with their legal obligations regarding worker involvement in health and safety. The ‘Do Your Bit’ campaign is a year-long initiative, offering free or subsidised training courses to help businesses get their employees more involved in improving their health and safety. To support the campaign, HSE has launched a new website which provides practical advice and materials for businesses and details of the upcoming series of training opportunities. In addition, it features first-hand accounts from businesses which are already benefiting from actively involving their workers in health and safety.
Pre-nup's and Pitfalls Despite the growing trend in pre-nuptial agreements across Europe and celebrities in the limelight such as Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt consenting to separation agreements, the Brit’s still seem squeamish about family law and financial planning. Everything we do in life is tied up in contracts and disclaimers - we take out life insurance as a sensible step in case the worst happens, employers draw up official contracts in order to ensure they gain the best from their staff and yet, when it comes to marriage and family we tend not to take sensible steps in planning the future.The possible divorce of Cheryl and Ashley Cole could demonstrate the value of pre-nups. Ashley chose not to insist on a pre-nup. Although Cheryl is worth an estimated £6 million in her own right, Ashley's wealth is much higher and mostly accrued during the marriage leaving the way open for Cheryl to seek a substantial settlement from Ashley.
Implications of Lying on a CV
A Titanic Affair kicks off our Apprentice challenge to raise money for our local Preston projects
The event is to be held at Fives Penthouse, Guildhall Street, Preston. The night includes two music acts and DJs, and some lovely sweet treats!
Legal eagles go head to head for Charity
Consisting of three teams, the Apprentice Challenge will see employees organising events including a Golf Day, a Race Night, staff dressed in “Grease” style outfits out on the streets of Preston to collect money, raffles and a charity dance featuring live music from The Rockabelles; a band fronted by Marsden Rawsthorn Legal Executive Kim Seward.
Marsden Rawsthorn and Clitheroe law firm Chenery Maher announce association
Chenery Maher, a well established firm in Clitheroe currently offers specialist legal advice covering divorce, family law, conveyancing, wills, probate and inheritance tax. Carol Maher, Partner at Chenery Maher commented, “Teaming with such a reputable firm as Marsden Rawsthorn will allow us to expand our offering to existing and potential clients and we look forward to working together on the association.”
Property, Adversity & Opportunity in 2010
Stephen Hodgson, CEO and Commercial Property Specialist at Law Firm Marsden Rawsthorn LLP, looks ahead to 2010. At the end of 2009 the Marsden Rawsthorn Commercial Property Team negotiated the lease on one of Preston City Centre’s largest single letting units and the site of the former Woolworths store. The new tenant, Next, signed a 15 year lease, demonstrating real long term commitment to the High Street. 15 years is a long time in Retail. So was Next’s decision unfounded optimism or sensible business practice?
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Marsden Rawsthorn have just launched a free employment clinic which is held every Friday morning at our Fulwood and Chorley offices.
With 400 million active Facebook users, the possibility of reaching people through social networking sites is becoming increasingly simple. Social media websites provide many people with the perfect opportunity to reconnect with faces from their past, whether this be an old friend, long lost relative or an ex-partner.
The new "Fit Note" forms were introduced on 6th April 2010. The main aim was to emphasise what employees can do, not what they can't do, and to reduce the number of people off work. Whilst it is still early days, a number of problems appear to have surfaced with them already...
Local businessmen and women were treated to a discussion on the impact and implications of the regeneration of Preston as part of Lancashire Business Week organised by Downtown in Business.
Unsurprisingly staff cannot expect to be entitled to time off during the World Cup but how should employers manage holiday requests and the possible increase in sick leave on major match days?
We are delighted to announce that Sahida Ahmed has been promoted to Partner from the 1st May 2010. Sahida joined Marsden Rawsthorn in 2003 and specialises in all aspects of family law with a particular focus on financial settlements in divorce, including family businesses, and other practice areas relating to domestic violence, cohabitation disputes and both Private Law and Public Law Children disputes. She is on the management committee for the Preston Women's Refuge and is also on the local Resolution Committee.
It is that time of year again where 6th April sees new changes in employment law introduced, and which will no doubt lead to some interesting cases making their way through the employment tribunals. New changes introduced on 6th April 2010 include:
As the demand for quality
employees increases and with a growing number of people seeking work it is vital
that employers are able to identify CV’s that have been embellished. Employees
are under great pressure to stand out from the crowd and often this is achieved
by ‘extending the truth’ or creating a ‘little white lie’ in order to get a
foot in the door. However, whilst claiming ‘salesperson of the year award’ or ‘fluency
in Japanese’ can give prospective employees the upper hand in securing an
interview, there are legal implications. In addition, recruiting someone who
has an embellished CV can have damaging effects on business.
During February our teams are going head to head to raise money for our charity partner - Barnardo's. Three teams are competing in a Apprentice style challenge 
Marsden Rawsthorn and Clitheroe law firm Chenery Maher have formed an informal association in a move to offer clients in the Ribble Valley access to top quality legal advice on areas including Commercial law, Employment law and Personal Injury.
