The Court of Session has reinstated a tribunal's decision that an employee, dismissed for an alleged domestic assault on his partner (who also happened to be his colleague), was unfair under section 98 of the Employment Rights Act 1996. Since the dismissing officer expressly accepted that the employee had acted in self-defence, it could not be said that he believed in the employee's culpability. In these circumstances, the tribunal had been entitled to find that the employer had not established that the reason, or principal reason, for the employee's dismissal was misconduct. In any event, the employer's investigation was inadequate and unreasonable.

A guide for director's who suspect an insolvency event is imminent.

The government has published the draft Collective Redundancies and Transfer of Undertakings (Protection of Employment) (Amendment) Regulations 2013. The draft regulations reflect the government's response to the consultation on proposed changes to TUPE, which was published in September 2013. In particular, the amendments will allow transferees to collectively consult with transferring employees before the transfer if the transferor agrees. They also provide that post-transfer changes to location can amount to an ETO reason so that redundancies due to a simple change of location will not be automatically unfair.

Criminal proceedings by the Serious Fraud Office have commenced against two companies by written charge. Gyrus Group Ltd, a UK subsidiary of Olympus Corporation, and Olympus have been charged with offences of making a statement to an auditor which was misleading, false or deceptive, contrary to section 501 Companies Act 2006.

Dates for the Judicial Review hearings in both Scotland and England have now been fixed. These hearings are to determine the legality of the introduction of fees at the Employment Tribunal. The Court of Session will hear the Scottish challenge on 26^th September 2013. The hearing in England will be heard by the Court of Appeal on 22^nd and 23^rd October 2013.

Today (9th July 2013) is the first day of the Judicial Review at the Court of Session in Edinburgh. The hearing is expected to last until tomorrow (10th July 2013) with a decision expected shortly after. A similar Judicial Review application is being considered in England although no date has yet been assigned for this hearing.

Last week the Supreme Court issued its decision in the case of North v Dumfries and Galloway Council. This has been a long running case with the key question being "who could be considered to be a comparator?" The Supreme Court interestingly upheld the original decision of the Employment Tribunal.

If you play any part in business these days, you will rely on your standard terms and conditions of trade to protect your interest and to limit your potential liability when providing goods or services to customers. Over time these standard terms and conditions often become outdated as the legal framework underpinning them changes. To ensure that your business can rely on its limitations of liability and is adequately protected standard terms and conditions should be regularly checked and where necessary updated.

This business briefing explains what a franchise is and highlights the advantages and disadvantages of franchising a business from the franchisor's perspective.

On 7th February 2013 the Scottish Government announced plans to alter its Debt Arrangement Scheme (DAS) the Scottish Government’s Debt Management tool.  The DAS, which is uniquely Scottish, freezes interest and assists people struggling with debt to repay their indebtedness over a longer period.

Two directors of Smart Credit & Debit Limited, a debt advice firm in Keighley, have been disqualified from acting as directors for six years each for failing to maintain proper accounting records or to account for substantial cash withdrawals from the company.

The government has issued a consultation on a number of proposed changes to the Transfer of Undertakings (Protection of Employment) Regulations 2006. The proposals include:

Three directors of an internet trading company based in Liverpool have been disqualified from acting as company directors for over 20 years for filing incorrect VAT returns.

Business Minister Jo Swinson today recently announced a review that will ensure creditors achieve value for money from procedures carried out by insolvency practitioners.

Two connected London based companies, 10 Little Pigs and Magic Berries have been wound up in the public interest for the misleading promotion of franchise opportunities. The petition to wind up the companies was presented to the High Court following an investigation by Company Investigations, part of the insolvency service.

In Sycamore Bidco Ltd v Breslin & Anor [2012] EWHC 3443 (Ch), the High Court has considered whether express warranties in a share purchase agreement could found an action for misrepresentation in the alternative to a claim contractual claim for breach of warranty.