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Nicola Gooch

A Blast from the Past or History Repeating: Are Starter Homes making a political comeback?

Three years ago, Starter Homes were the Government's 'big idea' for tackling the affordability issue at the lower end of the Housing...

03/05/18
Elizabeth Thomson

The Importance of defining disputes

By George Mills, Paralegal at Irwin Mitchell LLP  The case of Empyreal Energy Ltd v Daylighting Power Ltd [2020] EWHC 1971 (TCC)...

08/09/20
Elizabeth Thomson

Insolvency and adjudication: Bresco, Primus et al

Adjudication by a company in liquidation where there are cross-claims is possible but futile; companies in a CVA may be in a better...

11/02/19
Joanne Moseley

Knowledge and disability: what should you do if you find out someone is disabled after you've dismissed them?

Most disability discrimination claims are brought under section 15 of the Equality Act 'discrimination arising from disability' and...

22/11/21
Nicola Gooch

Select Committee launches inquiry into UK housebuilding capacity

On 5 July 2016, the Communities and Local Government  Select Committee launched a new inquiry into the housebuilding industry. In...

08/07/16
Joanne Moseley

Managing opposing beliefs: what employers can learn from two recent cases

Most employers would consider themselves very unlucky to become embroiled in a tribunal claim arising from a staff meeting chaired by a...

20/03/25
Alex Delin

TCC confirms adjudicator’s power to award payment to responding party in VMA v Project One

A short judgment was handed down by the TCC recently in VMA Services Ltd v Project One London Ltd [2025] EWHC 1815 (TCC) which is well...

12/08/25
Nicola Gooch

Is it time for a more holistic approach to 'sustainable' development?

It's not easy being green.* Admittedly, when those words were first sung, it wasn't in the context of planning or development, but it is...

15/10/21
Philip Middleton

Building resilience for Manufacturing businesses in challenging times

As British factories experience their weakest month in almost three years, with shrinking orders and a decline in economic activity,...

01/09/23
Nicola Gooch

New Draft Fees Order Published - Planning Fees to rise on 1 April 2025

On Monday, the Government laid a draft statutory instrument before parliament that, once made, will increase a wide range of planning...

14/01/25
Alexandra Addington

Redundancy selection: qualifications and age discrimination

To dismiss someone fairly for redundancy you must adopt a procedure that is fair and reasonable in all of the circumstances.  Part of...

25/06/25
Claire Petricca-Riding

The Great Retrofit: an opportunity or a threat?

As a speaker at the recent Resource & Waste Management Expo 2023, I had the opportunity to address a captive audience of professionals in...

18/09/23
Nicola Gooch

Legislation Alert: Extension of Planning Permissions and New Appeal Procedures to land this week

Yesterday, MHCLG announced that they will be introducing 'measures' this week to: Automatically extend the life of planning permissions...

23/06/20
Jeremy Ladyman

WhatsApp messages can be valid contracts

The High Court has delivered a pivotal ruling recently in Jaevee Homes v Fincham [2025] EWHC 942 (TCC)  that confirms enforceable...

29/07/25
Nicola Gooch

Spring Forecast 2025: Labour plans to build its way to economic growth

Earlier today, the Chancellor delivered her Spring Statement and… well… let's just say that it caught me a little by surprise.  It is now...

26/03/25
Joanne Moseley

Discrimination and long-term sickness: keeping employee in the dark about changes to her role cost employer £1.2m

While absent from work having chemotherapy, an employee discovered via LinkedIn that a colleague had been given her job. We consider the...

27/08/25
Irwin Mitchell

Employment agencies and the new insolvency laws – can the supply of labour be stopped?

By Ted Powell and Richard Payne  On 26 June 2020, the Corporate Insolvency and Governance Act 2020 (“CIGA”) became law in the UK and made...

04/08/20
Nicola Gooch

Keep Calm and Keep on Building: Can Malthouse deliver on his 'Moral Mission' to build 300,000 homes a year?

If you missed Kit Malthouse's interview in the Times, earlier this month, I recommend tracking it down (or clicking the link at the...

15/01/19
Nicola Gooch

A tale of two reports: What "Strong Suburbs" and "Coming Home" tell us about perspectives on the housing crisis and the planning system.

Since my last post we have seen the release of two influential reports addressing the UK housing crisis and how to solve it; namely:...

25/02/21
Joanne Moseley

Government abandons legislation that would have protected workers from third party harassment

Under our current laws, it can be difficult for workers to bring successful claims against their employers for harassment they experience...

20/07/23
Joanne Moseley

Court of Appeal revisits law on suspending employees

In 2017, the High Court decided in the case of  Agoreyo v Lambeth that suspension isn't a "neutral act" and if mishandled, could result...

07/03/19
Alexandra Addington

Why clear contracts and proper processes matter: lessons from a nursery worker's employment tribunal claim

Contracts, policies and procedures regulate the relationship between employee and employer, but what happens when they are not clearly...

04/09/25
Joanne Moseley

Do you really need to suspend an employee?

The Court of Appeal in H v Barking, Havering and Redbridge University Hospitals NHS Trust has set out some useful tips for employers...

23/01/20
Bryn Davey

On the Twelve day of Christmas - Bryn Davey

On the 12th day of Christmas Bryn Davey from Irwin Mitchell’s Real Estate Disputes team considers an interesting case where Doherty...

18/12/23
Nicola Gooch

CIL Appeal Decision: Failing to discharge pre-commencement conditions will not avoid CIL Liability

It is an age old proverb that that the only two certainties in life are death and taxes. A proverb which can feel depressingly apt when...

12/02/18
Alex Delin

Grenfell: The Next Steps

The Grenfell inquiry found Arconic concealed the extent of the risk its Reynobond 55 PE cladding panels presented, Celotex misrepresented...

12/09/24
Anna Dyde

Will 2023 be the year of MMC?

It would probably be fair to say that, whilst often talked about, adoption of ‘modern methods of construction’ or MMC (which encompasses...

23/05/23
Joanne Moseley

Workplace bullying: should you excuse the behaviour of someone who says they didn't mean to upset colleagues?

I am, of course, referring to Priti Patel's explanation for bullying staff in her department. According to the Guardian newspaper she has...

20/11/20
Victoria Crozier

The Building Safety Regulator and the Power to Obtain Injunctive Relief

This year and for the very first time since the enactment of the Building Safety Act 2022 (BSA), the Health & Safety Executive (HSE) in...

19/12/25
Irfan Ali

Right to work checks: five tips to ensure that your processes protect your organisation

All employers in the UK have a responsibility to prevent illegal working. Employing individuals without valid immigration permission can...

10/12/25