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LEGAL CORNER


Building a business on solid foundations by Owen Hill, Consultant Solicitor premises for 10 years or less but will normally insist on the exclusion of the statutory right to call for a new lease when the current one expires. I worry for the tenants that


I


have just come back from a few weeks away in a place where the lucky few can afford to keep a boat for holidays in the sunshine. I asked at the marina office about the cost


and availability of a suitable berth and was told that there was one available. The current owner of the berth held a lease with 5 years left to run on what had been a lease of 25 years and was willing to sell. The marina staff told me that the marina was developed 20 years ago by private enterprise and the rights to run the marina were held in a lease of 25 years from the local council with 5 years left to run. I asked what would happen when the leases expired and the marina manager shrugged his shoulders. here in the uK it is common practice for businesses to oper-


ate from premises that are leased from commercial landlords. In the old days, business leases would commonly run for 25 years and came with the benefit of statutory rights to call upon the landlord to grant a new lease on similar terms when the old lease expired. Business tenants achieved a level of security of tenure designated under legislation way back in 1954. These days it is much more likely that business occupiers will


negotiate flexible terms and operate from premises held on much shorter leases. commercial landlords have responded to this shift in practice and will often agree to lease business


create successful businesses and goodwill connected to the location of the business prem- ises. What sort of bargaining position will the tenant have when the lease expires? If the landlord has no obligation to grant a new lease and knows that the tenant wants to continue because the business is profitable – then the landlord will want top dollar. near the end of my holiday I found another lovely marina and


asked the manager the same questions as before. he told me that the local government has decided to take control of the marina when the lease to the operator expires and the case is going to court. Viva espana! Dartmouth Office: 01803 832191•


Where there’s a will there’s a war! by Marinella Hollies, Associate Solicitor


but then did not receive it, or, if trustees or executors are not dealing with a trust or estate as they should be, then you may be able to contest the Will. If a Will is to be valid it must satisfy certain specific require- ments. If any of them are not met, the Will may be invalid. • For example, if it can be proved that the person who made


c


the Will (the Testator) did not have mental capacity to make their Will.


• If the person making the Will did not understand the extent of his or her estate or the effect of making a Will. In this situ- ation the Will may be challenged on the grounds of lack of knowledge and approval. • sometimes it can be challenged if changes have been made


to a Will, such as a new Will favouring a particular person. If it can be shown that that person coerced or pressurised the person making the Will it could be challenged on the grounds of undue influence. • Where a person has made a promise during their lifetime,to benefit another on their death and that promise has been broken, it is possible to bring a claim for failure to fulfil that promise. • If an executor or Trustee is not acting in accordance with


ontesting a Will or bringing a claim over a trust or an estate can be distressing and complicated. If you were promised something by someone who has died,


their duties and beneficiaries are unhappy with the running of a trust or the administra- tion of an estate, the benefi- ciaries can ask the court to intervene.


• In cases where a trust or estate has been mishandled and this has led to a loss, Trustees and executors can be pursued for losses suffered by the beneficiaries. • If someone dies and, either under a Will or under the intestacy rules, an eligible person has not been left sufficient provision from the deceased’s estate, that person can bring a claim against the estate under the Inheritance (provision for Family and Dependants) act 1975. The court will consider first, whether a party is an eligible claimant and secondly what, if anything, they should be awarded. For most people, challenging a Will or disputing a trust or an estate will be the very last resort. If you find yourself in that situation give us a call. Our aim is to find solutions for our clients, quickly and with as little worry as possible. Dartmouth Office: 01803 832191•


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