Best Endeavours: Make sure of your intentions

Jennifer Chappell discusses a case highlighting the importance of ensuring that contractual obligations do not take priority over commercial interests ‘The obligation to use ‘best’, ‘all reasonable’ or ‘reasonable endeavours’ can crop up in any commercial or property contract, and the parties must be sufficiently certain as to what these terms mean.’ Property owners and …
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Contractual Endeavours: New homes and cheap flights

Alan Woolston and Chris Farrell assess the outcome of two recent cases ‘There have been two cases this year, one recent and one not so recent, which have provided some examples of scenarios where the courts will find that an ‘endeavours’ obligation was breached or complied with.’ Commercial contracts require certainty, so it is perhaps …
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Business Rates: Reducing the pain

Martin Dawbney and Frances Edwards looks at the outcome of two recent decisions that will come as welcome relief to ratepayers ‘Following an exemption period of three months for most properties after the property becomes unoccupied, landowners now face the additional burden of having to pay business rates at the same rate as if the …
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Planning And Environment Focus: Case law update

Juliet Munn provides a reminder of the salient points from some recent cases ‘The main issue for the court was whether the various D1 uses that had occurred at the property since 1994 could be amalgamated together such that the ten-year time limit had been surpassed.’ Many aspects of planning law continue to exercise the …
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Easements: How car parking easements can prevent development

Sarah Dawe reviews a case where at long last a right to park a car in a single, identifiable space has been upheld as an easement ‘A burdened landowner does not in general have the unilateral right to extinguish an easement over one area of land simply by providing an equivalent easement somewhere else.’ Car …
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The Modern Law Of Nuisance By Smell: Barr v Biffa

William Hanbury explains the recent Court of Appeal decision in Barr v Biffa Waste Services Ltd [2012] and asks whether it is any defence to a nuisance claim that the activity concerned is socially useful? ‘There has always been a tension in the law of nuisance between activities, which, by their very nature, cause a …
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