Industrial disease victims need to get help quicker - Compensation and Personal Injury Claims - Andersons Solicitors Nottingham

The insurance industry is facing increasing criticism for failing to help the victims of industrial diseases quickly enough.

Some cases are allowed to drag on for years so that many victims miss out on the help they need to alleviate their suffering and make their lives more comfortable. Some even die before their cases are settled.

Large insurance companies are partly to blame for using delaying tactics to drag cases out unnecessarily.

There’s been a growing problem involving sufferers who developed a disease many years ago while working for a company that has since gone out of business.

In these cases, the victim has to trace his former employer’s insurance company, which can be very difficult. The insurance industry is supposed to help as part of a voluntary code drawn up with the government but recently it’s been failing to do so.

The number of successful traces fell by 14 per cent in 2003, the last year for which figures are available. The insurance industry has given no explanation as to why this should be. They’re very quick to make accusations about so called compensation culture but somewhat slower in helping people in need.

It’s more than two years since the government insisted the success rate for traces must be improved. Insurance companies have done nothing about it and it’s time they were forced to set up a central database that would be quick and easy to search.

That would speed the system up and get help more quickly to those who desperately need it.

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Disabled lecturer wins discrimination case - Personal Injury and Compensation Claims - Andersons Solicitors Nottingham

A disabled lecturer who suffered a voice breakdown and found it difficult to teach large groups of students has succeeded in his claim for unfair dismissal.

The lecturer told his college about his voice breakdown but no action was taken. He then went on sick leave. When he returned, the college said it was restructuring the department. The lecturer applied for a newly created post of co-ordinator but was turned down. He was then offered the chance to apply for redundancy or retirement on the grounds of ill-health.

Instead, he resigned claiming discrimination and constructive dismissal. The tribunal upheld his claim agreeing that he was given less favourable treatment because of his disability.

The college had not made a reasonable adjustment to cater for the lecturer’s needs as it was obliged to do so under the Disability Discrimination Act 1995.
The college appealed against the ruling but failed to get it reversed.

The case illustrates the level of protection now given to the disabled. At the start of the year this protection was extended to many more people who were newly classified as disabled under new legislation.

Anyone who feels they have been discriminated against in any way can contact us to discuss the best way to pursue their case.
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Appeal court ruling provides hope for fathers - Family Law - Andersons Solicitors Nottingham

A court decision limiting access to your child is a devastating blow for any father.

Thankfully, it is possible to appeal against such a ruling and win.
That’s what one father did when a court refused to allow him to have increased contact with his five year old.

The man already saw the child every other weekend and once a week after school. He wanted to do better than that and applied for an increased contact and a shared residence order.

When the application was refused he took the case all the way to the Court of Appeal. This time he was successful with the Appeal Court saying the original judge was wrong in law.

Hopefully most parents won’t have to go that far to gain access to their children. But it shows there is no need to give up hope and it is possible to go to court and win, even if the first court decision goes against you.

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Unmarried partners can now adopt as a couple - Family Law - Andersons Solicitors Nottingham

Unmarried couples have long been able to adopt children but only as individuals – their cohabiting partners had no legal rights over the child.

Now that has changed with the Adoption and Children Act coming into force at the beginning of the year. Unmarried and same sex couples can adopt together and enjoy joint legal rights.

The change has been welcomed by the British Association for Adoption and Fostering as the most radical overhaul of adoption law for 30 years.

Until now, some unmarried couples were put off adopting because the rules prevented them both taking legal responsibility. Now it’s thought that more couples will come forward to adopt, providing new hope for children desperately in need of loving, secure homes.

Foster parents can now apply for special guardianship orders which will allow them to take continuous responsibility for children until their 18th birthday.
The law also makes it possible for parents who have given up their children for adoption to trace them through an intermediary service.

The changes introduced in the Act are complex and wide ranging. Please contact us for more details.

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Why you'll need to get a HIP to get a house - Andersons Solicitors _ Moving Home Nottingham

Buying a house is said to be one of the most stressful events we ever have to face. Sam Tickell says the government’s new Home Information Packs should help ease the strain, but still don’t go far enough to speed up the system. We’ve all heard the horror stories about buying and selling houses. Deals falling through at the last minute, hundreds if not thousands of pounds wasted, not to mention the nail biting stress that you might miss out on your dream home. Soon, according to the government, most of these nightmares could become a thing of the past. Home Information Packs come into force in June 2007. They’re designed to usher in an era of simpler, quicker house deals that will be kinder to your pocket and your pulse rate. The main advantage of the new system is that the house buyer will know far more about a property than he does now before he makes an offer. This is because the seller will have to produce a Home Information Pack providing all the information at the beginning of the sale that under the present system may take the buyer weeks to discover. The packs have to contain a Home Condition Report which, as the name suggests, is a survey of the house carried out by government accredited inspectors. This should put an end to wasting time waiting for a report on a house that looks idyllic but turns out to be plagued by faults that put you off buying. The seller will also have to enclose copies of all planning permissions and building regulation documents relating to the property. This is another big step forward because often it turns out that the seller hasn’t got the necessary permission for that new conservatory or extension. This can also cause long delays or even force the deal to be cancelled. .....View this story in full


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Find peace of mind before health fails - Enduring Power of Attorney - Andersons Solicitors Nottingham

Many people will have felt moved while watching the sudden deterioration of Coronation Street’s Mike Baldwin being played out on our television screens. We’ve seen him go from a hard-headed businessman to a pitifully forgetful and confused shadow of his former self because of Alzheimer’s Disease. Sadly, the portrayal in the popular TV soap was an all too realistic experience for many families. The pain and anguish of the sufferer is matched by the pain of the family as they struggle to cope. One person in 20 between the ages of 70 and 80 suffers from dementia and these figures are expected to rise over the next two decades. While the illness may increase unabated, many of the practical problems it creates can be alleviated if the sufferer makes legal arrangements before the illness develops and takes hold. You need to establish what’s known as an enduring power of attorney. It means that you choose someone and give them the legal right to manage your affairs on your behalf. That person can then do things like withdraw money from your bank, sign cheques and sell property. Obviously you need to do this when you are still healthy and mentally alert. That way you can choose the person you feel you can trust to act in your best interests. If you leave it too late, the matter becomes far more complicated and as portrayed all too dramatically on Coronation Street, can lead to disputes and difficulties. If your family needs to deal with any financial affairs on your behalf they would have to go to court to nominate a receiver. This can be expensive and time-consuming, often at a time when the family are still struggling to cope with the needs of the sufferer. Yet it’s easy and inexpensive to deal with the matter if you consult your solicitor before you fall ill. Sadly, we have no way of knowing when and if the illness will strike, but at least we know we can reduce the stress and suffering of family members by planning ahead.

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Absent dads could be tagged if they don’t pay maintenance - Family Law - Andersons Solicitors Nottingham

The Child Support Agency has faced a barrage of criticism for most of its troubled history. Mothers complain that it fails to make errant fathers pay adequate child maintenance. Fathers on the other hand talk of being hounded and harassed by over zealous agency staff. It’s even been revealed that the agency costs more to run than it manages to raise in unpaid maintenance. It’s been described as a shambles by some politicians and now it’s to pay for its failure by facing a complete overhaul ordered by the government. In the meantime, however, it’s to be given new powers to carry out its duties. The government wants to give it the right to check the financial records of absent fathers to make sure they are paying the correct maintenance. This would give them similar powers to those of benefit fraud inspectors. It will involve changing data protection law so the agency can check things like tax records, credit card statements, loan agreements and even phone bills. The work and pensions minister John Hutton has raised the possibility of tagging fathers who fail to pay maintenance. How much of this is merely political posturing remains to be seen but it’s clear that the government is determined to reform the system in one way or another. Whatever changes are made it’s likely that mistakes will still arise. Fathers and mothers caught up in disputes should make sure they get good legal advice so they don’t lose out. In many cases it’s possible to use mediation services to avoid confrontation and make everything simpler and easier for everyone.

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