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13 January 2021 / Stephen Gold
Issue: 7916 / Categories: Features , Procedure & practice , Civil way
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Civil way: 15 January 2021

Hands off companies; Hands off stock; Hands off house; Feet up for divorce

LAWBITES

Wound down The restrictions on the use of company statutory demands and presentation of winding up petitions introduced by the Corporate Insolvency and Governance Act 2020 (see ‘Civil way’, 170 NLJ 7895) are extended from 31 December 2020 to 31 March 2021 by SI 2020/1483.

What a business The paralysis in forfeiture or re-entry of business premises for non-payment of rent has been extended from 31 December 2020 to 31 March 2021 by SI 2020/1472 in England and SI 2020/1456 in Wales (see ‘Civil way’, 170 NLJ 7904).

Much ado about little? From 28 January 2021 the civil legal aid financial eligibility cap on the disregard of any mortgage or charge on the applicant’s interest in land is removed. Instead of a limited secured sum of £100,000 of debt being reckoned, the whole lot will be taken into account. Disposable capital of between £3,000 and £8,000 requires a contribution and scoring over £8,000

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MOVERS & SHAKERS

Switalskis—Naila Arif, Harriet Findlay & Ellie Thompson

Switalskis—Naila Arif, Harriet Findlay & Ellie Thompson

Firm awards training contracts to paralegals through internal programme

Ward Hadaway—Matthew Morton

Ward Hadaway—Matthew Morton

Private client disputes specialist joins commercial litigation team

Thomson Hayton Winkley—Nina Hood

Thomson Hayton Winkley—Nina Hood

Cumbria firm appoints new head of residential property

NEWS
Freezing orders in divorce proceedings can unexpectedly ensnare third parties and disrupt businesses. In NLJ this week, Lucy James of Trowers & Hamlins explains how these orders—dubbed a ‘nuclear weapon’—preserve assets but can extend far beyond spouses to companies and business partners 
A Court of Appeal ruling has clarified that ‘rent’ must be monetary—excluding tenants paid in labour from statutory protection. In this week's NLJ, James Naylor explains Garraway v Phillips, where a tenant worked two days a week instead of paying rent
Three men wrongly imprisoned for a combined 77 years have been released—yet received ‘not a penny’ in compensation, exposing deep flaws in the justice system. Writing in NLJ this week, Dr Jon Robins reports on Justin Plummer, Oliver Campbell and Peter Sullivan, whose convictions collapsed amid discredited forensics, ‘oppressive’ police interviews and unreliable ‘cell confessions’
A quiet month for employment cases still delivers key legal clarifications. In his latest Employment Law Brief for NLJ, Ian Smith reports that whistleblowing protection remains intact even where disclosures are partly self-serving, provided the worker reasonably believes they serve the ‘public interest’ 
Family law must shift from conflict-driven litigation to child-centred problem-solving, according to a major new report. Writing in NLJ this week, Caroline Bowden of Anthony Gold outlines findings showing overwhelming support for reform, with 92% agreeing lawyers owe duties to children as well as clients
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