Short Term Lets – August 2021
Despite curfews and closures, 2020 was a busy year for licensing lawyers due to the ever changing nature of restrictions introduced to combat the Coronavirus pandemic. In February 2021, the Scottish Government withdrew the Licensing Order in relation to short-term lets from the Scottish Parliament to allow guidance to be drafted. That has now been […]
Establishing a Charitable Trust
A Trust is an unincorporated entity set up to hold property to be used solely for charitable purposes. Just how do you go about establishing a charitable trust? The main characteristics of a Trust are as follows: 1. It is simple to set up 2. The Trust Deed (which is the governing document of the […]
Eviction Bans and Notice Periods: Private Sector Tenancies
The Coronavirus (Scotland) Act 2020 (“the 2020 Act”) contains emergency powers relating to coronavirus and health protection in Scotland. In exercising these powers the Scottish Government have introduced rules which have afforded additional protections to tenants by increasing the notice periods required before eviction action can start and banning the enforcement of eviction orders in […]
Up to Date Equalities Training is Key
Many employers take steps to ensure that their staff undertake equality and diversity training within their organisations. Employers can also use this as a defence in any discrimination claims to say they have taken all “reasonable steps” to ensure that no discrimination takes place within their organisation. However, a recent case of Allay (UK) Ltd […]
Letterhead Requirements for Companies and Charities
What are the letterhead requirements for companies and charities? Could you as an individual and/or the company/charity face possible prosecution and a fine of up to £1,000 with further fines of £100 per day being imposed? Under the Companies Act 2006, a company registered with Companies House must include their company’s registered name (as it appears […]
Short-Term Lets and Airbnb
Airbnbs and Short-Terms Lets have become a contentious matter in Scotland in recent times. The Scottish Government have recently conducted research into Airbnbs and Short-Term Lets in Scotland which confirmed there are 31,884 active Airbnb listings, three times as many compared to 2016. It was found that in Edinburgh’s City Centre 16.7% of properties are […]
Furlough to be Extended to March 2021
This lunchtime, the Chancellor, Rishi Sunak, announced that the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (CJRS) will remain open until 31 March 2021, which will allow employers to furlough employees until that point. For claim periods running to January 2021, employees will receive 80% of their usual salary for hours not worked, up to a maximum of […]
New Reforms to Boost Hearing Capacity in Employment Tribunals
New reforms to boost hearing capacity in employment tribunals have been introduced at Westminster with the aim to hear more cases and allow for greater flexibility in light of the COVID-19 pandemic. One of the changes being made will allow the judiciary the option of deploying non-employment judges into employment tribunals and will also allow […]
Enhanced Redundancy Payments and Settlement Agreements
If an employee is being made redundant they will be entitled to a period of notice and, for those with at least two years’ service, a statutory redundancy payment. They should also be paid in respect of accrued but untaken holidays, if appropriate. Statutory redundancy payments can be relatively small therefore some employers offer a […]
Short Term Lets and Airbnb – Update
Short Terms Lets and Airbnb have become a contentious matter in Scotland in recent times. The Scottish Government have recently conducted research into Airbnbs and Short-Term Lets in Scotland which confirmed there are 31,884 active Airbnb listings, three times as many compared to 2016. It was found that in Edinburgh’s City Centre 16.7% of properties […]
