Blog Posts: July 2012

Is there increasing friction between you and your fellow shareholders and/or directors? Are your board meetings starting to bear a striking resemblance to Alan Sugar’s ‘Apprentice’ ones? If so, then you need to take action and start to think tactically. The first points to consider are as follows. Know your legal powers Are you a shareholder, director, or both? The voting powers of directors at Board Meetings are usually equal (although often a Chairman will have the casting vo.... (read more...)

Having worked hard both to win a software development contract and to complete the development, as an IT developer you will be particularly keen to make sure that you are properly and promptly rewarded for your efforts. Making sure you have a clear fee structure and payment procedure in your software development agreement will go a long way towards achieving that aim. For developments where there is a defined piece of work you may be happy to agree a fixed fee. In cases where it is not be possib.... (read more...)

If you’re a commercial tenant trying desperately to find the right commercial premises for your business it can be very tempting to quickly agree the terms you are offered without fully understanding the consequences. The so called ‘heads of terms’ offered by the landlord set out the main commercial terms you are signing up to, so it’s best to be very clear on what the implications are.  There are some important points to consider when settling on commercial lease he.... (read more...)

The Government has announced a consultation on proposals to relax planning laws relating to change of use. The main thrust of the announcement is the desire to rejuvenate the country's high streets where restrictions on change of use hamper efforts by landlords to find occupiers for retail premises. One other change proposed however is that premises currently used as a hotel or guesthouse should be permitted to be changed to residential use without the need for planning permission. With uncer.... (read more...)

As a software developer, you will test the software you are developing as part of the development process, but you might wonder why I would be concerned about dealing with testing in relation to the software development agreement. Having completed a software development, you as the developer want to be sure that your client accepts it, so that you can move on to your next project and, most importantly, you can get paid for the completed work. With these objectives in mind, I would recommend that.... (read more...)

I’m often asked by business owners for my advice when they are in dispute with a customer or supplier. Unlike the current message we get on everything from t-shirts to mugs to Keep Calm and Carry on! my advice is invariably Keep Calm, but don’t Carry On. If you’re in dispute with a customer, for example who refuses to pay or disputes an invoice claiming what you’ve delivered was not what they were expecting, didn’t meet quality standards or wasn’t delivered .... (read more...)

One thing that struck me about the recent news story when the Prime Minister, David Cameron, said that comedian, Jimmy Carr, was “morally wrong” in trying to reduce his tax bill legally was the fact that he had to resort to a plea for morality. As a commercial dispute lawyer, I often come across parties who state that they have a “moral right” to redress. Like all lawyers, I know that a call to morals in a business dispute context is an admission of failure. The subtext I.... (read more...)