Undue Influence in the Family – A 2013 Update – Family Law Week

Posted February 4th, 2013 in families, loans, mortgages, news, undue influence by tracey

“Luke Barnes, barrister at Three Dr Johnson’s Buildings, examines the issue of undue influence in family matters.”

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Family Law Week, 1st February 2013

Source: www.familylawweek.co.uk

Welcome relief? Nationwide v Davisons Solicitors and section 61 of Trustee Act 1925 – Hardwicke Chambers

Posted January 17th, 2013 in fraud, insurance, mortgages, news, trusts by sally

“A topical debate is the extent to which solicitors acting for mortgage lenders (or more precisely, their professional indemnity insurers) should bear the consequences of mortgage fraud.”

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Hardwicke Chambers, 10th January 2013

Source: www.hardwicke.co.uk

Confidence trickster who defrauded banks out of £750m faces jail – The Guardian

Posted January 17th, 2013 in banking, fraud, mortgages, news, recidivists, sentencing by sally

“Britain’s most successful serial confidence trickster, Achilleas Kallakis, faces up to 10 years in jail after being found guilty of duping banks out of more than £750m.”

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The Guardian, 16th January 2013

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Souglides v Tweedie and another – WLR Daily

Posted December 7th, 2012 in landlord & tenant, law reports, leases, mortgages, perpetuities, repossession by sally

Souglides v Tweedie and another [2012] EWCA Civ 1546; [2012] WLR (D) 367

“The reference in section 9(1)(a) of the Perpetuities and Accumulations Act 1964 to ‘successors in title’ referred to successors in title to the lease to which the interest being conferred by the option was reversionary. Accordingly, the successor had to be a successor to the original lessee in respect of the same title, namely that lease.”

WLR Daily, 4th December 2012

Source: www.iclr.co.uk

The right of property under A1P1- Supreme Court sees that it has teeth – UK Human Rights Blog

Posted November 19th, 2012 in confiscation, human rights, mortgages, news, proceeds of crime by sally

“Traditionally, the qualified right to peaceful possession of property conferred by Article 1 of the 1st Protocol (A1P1) has been thought of as a rather feeble entitlement, easily outweighed by public interests. After all, every day of the week, the modern state affects that right – think taxes or planning restrictions, or business bans arising out of public health concerns (e.g. see here), where removal and confiscation or restriction on what we do with property is readily accepted. Last week the Supreme Court ruled that the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 (POCA) needs a bit of remedial HR surgery as and when its blunderbuss rules would otherwise have a disproportionate effect on those affected. But the importance of the ruling extends far beyond the specific statutory context.”

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UK Human Rights Blog, 18th November 2012

Source: www.ukhumanrightsblog.com

Regina v Waya – WLR Daily

Posted November 16th, 2012 in confiscation, fraud, human rights, law reports, mortgages, proceeds of crime by tracey

Regina v Waya: [2012] UKSC 51;   [2012] WLR (D)  324

“The statutory object of Part 2 of the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 was to remove from a defendant the proceeds of his crime and a confiscation order made thereunder was not intended to be an additional financial penalty similar to a fine. A confiscation order which was disproportionate to the benefit obtained by the defendant from his crime would be a violation of article 1 of the First Protocol to the European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms. However section 6(5) of the 2002 Act could, pursuant to section 3 of the Human Rights Act 1998, be read and given effect in a manner which was compatible with the rights under article 1.”

WLR Daily, 24th October 2012

Source: www.iclr.co.uk

Fitness to Practice, Integrity: should you be able to buy a used car from this person? – 11 KBW

Posted November 7th, 2012 in financial advice, fraud, legal profession, mortgages, news, professional conduct by sally

“An important function for regulators of the professions is to ensure that the ‘wrong’ people do not tarnish the reputation and standing of their peers. In this paper, I shall discuss some recent examples of professional misconduct, and identify some common threads between different regulatory regimes”

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11 KBW, 31st October 2012

Source: www.11kbw.com

Aftermath of panel reviews – Law Society’s Gazette

Posted November 1st, 2012 in banking, conveyancing, mortgages, news, solicitors by sally

“It is said that there are more questions on the application form to be a member of a lender’s conveyancing panel than there are to join MI5. Whether or not that is true, it is clear that if you want to do a good job for your homebuying clients, and act for lenders as well as your clients in any conveyancing transaction, chances are you will have to go through onerous vetting procedures now required by banks and building societies to be on their panels of approved solicitors.”

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Law Society’s Gazette, 1st November 2012

Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk

Lenders banned from discriminating against ‘mortgage prisoners’, watchdog says – Daily Telegraph

Posted October 26th, 2012 in consumer protection, financial regulation, mortgages, news by tracey

“Lenders are to be banned from discriminating against ‘mortgage prisoners’ who are unable to get new loans because of negative equity.”

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Daily Telegraph, 25th October 2012

Source: www.telegraph.co.uk

Woman ruined by Spanish property price collapse wins landmark compensation ruling – Daily Telegraph

Posted October 12th, 2012 in compensation, financial advice, mortgages, negligence, news by sally

“A woman who lost everything after investing in the Spanish property market has won a landmark legal ruling that could now benefit many others given bad financial advice.”

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Daily Telegraph, 11th October 2012

Source: www.telegraph.co.uk

Mis-sold Mortgages – The Next Big Claim In The Financial Sector – Hardwicke Chambers

“Type in ‘mis-sold mortgages’ on a Google search and you will discover literally hundreds of internet businesses vying for the opportunity to pursue a claim to the Financial Services Authority (FSA). If you thought PPI was big, you ain’t seen nothing yet; with millions already having been put aside to meet the thousands of potential claims that arise from possible mis-selling of mortgages during the boom years of 2004 to 2009.”

Full story

Hardwicke Chambers, 27th September 2012

Source: www.hardwicke.co.uk

Arrears, warrants and abuse of process – NearlyLegal

Posted October 1st, 2012 in abuse of process, loans, mortgages, news, repossession, warrants by sally

“A report of a County Court mortgage possession case has reached us, in which the secured lender’s behaviour resulted in a finding of abuse of process. The question was when (an if) an arrears payment had been received.”

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NearlyLegal, 30th September 2012

Source: www.nearlylegal.co.uk

Mortgage fraud solicitor jailed – Law Society’s Gazette

Posted September 21st, 2012 in fraud, mortgages, news, sentencing, solicitors by tracey

“A former criminal defence solicitor has been jailed for two years for her part in a £1.3m mortgage fraud in east London.”

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Law Society’s Gazette, 20th September 2012

Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk

Broken promises? Sale and rent back is no answer to a mortgage – Hardwicke Chambers

“Owner occupiers unable to afford their mortgages have sometimes entered into sale and rent back arrangements (‘SRBs’). Under a SRB, the house is sold, often at a discount, but the vendor remains in occupation under a lease granted by the purchaser. According to a 2008 OFT study, even though SRBs were a relatively new phenomenon there had been about 50,000 of them. At that time the SRB market was unregulated. The FSA began to regulate it in 2009. According to a recent FSA press release, ‘the entire SRB market is temporarily shut’. Nevertheless, it is apparent that many tens of thousands of SRBs must have taken place by now.”

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Hardwicke Chambers, 24th May 2012

Source: www.hardwicke.co.uk

Financial adviser fraudsters told to pay back £1 each – BBC News

Posted March 26th, 2012 in assets recovery, financial advice, fraud, mortgages, news by sally

“Two financial advisers who conned investors out of £3m in a property scam which they lost gambling have been ordered to pay back just £1 each.”

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BBC News, 24th March 2012

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Cohabitees’ Property – All Clear Now? – Hardwicke Chambers

Posted February 8th, 2012 in appeals, cohabitation, mortgages, news by sally

“It is only a short time ago since the House of Lords was asked to consider the issue of beneficial interests of an unmarried couple in Stack v Dowden. The recent decision of the Supreme Court in Jones v Kernott highlights again the ongoing problems that can arise when unmarried couples separate and there is no clear agreement as to the ownership of their property interests.”

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Hardwicke Chambers, 2nd February 2012

Source: www.hardwicke.co.uk

New mortgage lending rules set out by FSA – BBC News

Posted December 19th, 2011 in financial regulation, mortgages, news by tracey

“New rules to stop a resurgence in risky mortgage lending are likely to be imposed in 2013 by the Financial Services Authority (FSA).”

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BBC News, 19th December 2011

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Ministers to decide on ‘missing’ people law change – BBC News

Posted December 1st, 2011 in missing persons, mortgages, news, select committees by sally

“Ministers will decide by next April whether to change the law on missing people in England and Wales.”

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BBC News, 30th November 2011

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Judgment of the Supreme Court in Jones v Kernott [2011] UKSC 53 – Hardwicke Chambers

Posted November 14th, 2011 in cohabitation, mortgages, news by sally

“How should the court approach the determination of the beneficial interests in a property acquired in joint names by an unmarried couple? The Court of Appeal had held the decision of the House of Lords in Stack v Dowden did not allow the court to impute to the parties an intention that they would divide their beneficial interest in their property fairly. The Supreme Court revisited the decision in Stack v Dowden and disagreed with the Court of Appeal: If the presumption of joint beneficial ownership is rebutted, the court can, in the absence of finding any intention as to the shares, impute to the parties an intention that their beneficial interest would be divided in a manner that the court considers fair.”

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Hardwicke Chambers, 9th November 2011

Source: www.hardwicke.co.uk

Cohabitees’ property rights: still as clear as mud – The Guardian

Posted November 10th, 2011 in cohabitation, mortgages, news, precedent, Supreme Court by sally

“The Jones v Kernott judgment does little to resolve the grey area of ex-cohabitees’ entitlements to a share in their former home.”

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The Guardian, 10th November 2011

Source: www.guardian.co.uk