Press Releases

If you’ve seen Legally Blonde, you’ll most likely remember the famous scene where Paulette retrieves her beloved pet dog from her abusive ex-husband with the help of Elle Woods’s fake legalese.

The inaccuracy of Elle’s legal speech aside, the scene is a poignant one about the emotional bond between pets and their owners – and the pain that can result from separation.

This raises questions about the real-life implications of pet ownership – and who is really entitled to get the dog after a divorce.

Pets under the law

Pets are classed as chattel – meaning personal property – under the law.

This means that when a couple divorces, decisions around the ownership of their pets are handled like the division of assets such as furniture.

It is usually left up to the couple themselves to decide who gets their pet in the event of a divorce or separation.

How this is achieved depends upon whether the couple can come to a straightforward decision, whether the couple is married or cohabiting as partners, and whether they purchased/adopted the pet together or not.

Pets are considered joint marital assets for married couples, so a decision may be reached between the couple or dispute resolution sessions, such as mediation.

If the pet is shared, then the couple may consider who has been historically responsible for the pet’s care, whose home would provide the better environment for the pet, and whether the couple has any children who are attached to the pet.

Should a dispute over pet ownership end up in court, the judge will consider factors such as who purchased or paid for the pet’s care, and whose name is on the pet-related records.

If one partner already owned the pet before entering the relationship – evidenced by vet registration, microchip information and purchase/adoption documents – it’s usually clear who legally owns the pet and who will be entitled to take it with them if the relationship ends.

If the other partner attempts to prevent this, this may become a legal matter, but only in the sense of property theft. The partner who owned the pet would need evidence that they are its legal owner to assert their rights under the law.

Disputes over pet ownership

As with all assets, pets can be the subject of highly strung disputes in divorce cases.

A high-profile example is the case of Ant McPartlin and his ex-wife Lisa Armstrong, whose dispute over the custody of their pet labrador (Harley) made media headlines.

The ex-couple eventually agreed on a shared ownership arrangement whereby Harley would split time with both individuals, in a manner not dissimilar to a Child Arrangement.

Although this agreement was reached outside of court, it suggests a path forward for ex-spouses who both want to maintain a connection with their pet.

Is legal reform on the horizon?

Although pets are legally considered property in family law disputes, many argue that this chattel-based approach to deciding pet ownership fails to acknowledge the sentience of pets, their emotional needs, and the deep attachments that often form between the pet and its owner.

Indeed, in a modern world where more and more people view their pets as family members rather than possessions, the current legal framework can seem inadequate to many.

There is growing momentum for legal reform over the status of pets in family law disputes.

For example, solicitor and animal welfare advocate Trevor Cooper has launched a petition that seeks to distinguish pets from other types of property in family law proceedings, as well as make it a legal requirement for courts to take the pet’s welfare into account.

Additionally, a pre-nuptial agreement that details what will happen to the pet if a couple separates may be used as evidence of intent and agreement by the court, although they are not legally binding.

An agreement detailing what will happen to your pet – known as a “pet-nup” whether you’re married or cohabiting – reduces the risk that the pet will become a source of conflict and resentment upon separation or divorce.

A pet-nup also allows couples to make decisions relating to their pet that aren’t an issue of legality and would not be decided on the rare occasion that formal legal proceedings took place, such as payment for food and veterinary care, who looks after the pet when the owner is on holiday, and end of life decisions.

If a pet-nup has been prepared well, the court is more likely to take it into consideration.

Protecting your pets in divorce proceedings

Putting a pet-nup in place when you acquire a pet with your partner means you are more likely to be able to argue for a situation that benefits the pet’s wellbeing and care in the event of a separation.

If you’re already embroiled in divorce proceedings and there is a dispute over pet ownership, establishing your legal right to the pet can prove difficult if you don’t have your name on the veterinary records or microchip.

At Palmers Solicitors, we can advise you on what rights you have to your pet and offer dispute resolution services, such as mediation, to help you and your partner reach a mutually acceptable agreement.

For further advice on pet arrangements after a divorce, get in touch with our expert Family Law team today.

The rules governing Inheritance Tax (IHT) are constantly subject to change.

Even the amendments set to be introduced in April 2026 could be subject to revision and further alterations in the near or far future.

Changes to IHT could affect your carefully laid estate plans, so it is essential to keep your Will under constant review to ensure your beneficiaries receive the maximum amount from your estate with minimal IHT liability.

Inheritance Tax: The ever-changing liability

The Autumn Budget 2024 introduced significant changes to Business Property Relief (BPR) under IHT, effective from April 2026.

Under these rules, 100 per cent tax relief on business assets will be capped at £1 million per individual, with relief 50 per cent thereafter – resulting in a higher rate of IHT upon your death.

Additionally, while many pension pots currently fall outside of IHT calculations, the Government plans to include pensions within the scope of IHT from April 2027.

This change, combined with the freeze on IHT thresholds until 2030, would mean that more estates will likely exceed the £325,000 IHT threshold.

However, these proposed rules are not set in stone, and professional services advisers across the UK anticipate further changes to IHT.

IHT is an ever-changing tax liability, so it is important to review your Will regularly with the help of an experienced solicitor.

This ensures your Will is aligned with the most up to date tax rules.

If you do not have a Will in place, it is essential to prepare one now and revisit it regularly to help you mitigate against tax liabilities.

Ways to reduce IHT

There are several ways in which you can prepare your Will and estate plan to minimise IHT liabilities. A solicitor can advise you on the options available and which avenues are best suited to your wishes.

A flexible Will, such as one that includes a trust, allows you to adapt your asset distribution based on future changes in tax laws, making it a potentially favourable option.

With a discretionary trust, your estate can allocate assets to beneficiaries at the trustee’s discretion, which means that decisions can be taken at the time of your passing, taking into account the tax rules at that time and the personal and financial circumstances of all beneficiaries. As such, trustees can consider how best, at that time, to mitigate IHT in the way they distribute the assets held in trust.

Additionally, you may want to review your lifetime gifting strategy. Making gifts can reduce the IHT burden on your estate.

However, gifts must be made seven years prior to your death to be exempt from IHT, so early planning is vital.

It is important to remember that when making gifts, there may be legal steps and documentation that needs to be put in place for it to take effect.

For example, a gift of property or land requires a formal transfer deed or declaration of trust to document the change of ownership.

Legally documenting each gift’s details including its date, value, and recipient is a safeguard against potential future legal disputes.

For example, you need to be clear about the terms of the gift to avoid the creation of an implied trust.

If the donor appears to retain some control over the gifted asset, it may not qualify as a gift for legal or tax purposes and could lead to disputes or unintended tax consequences.

A solicitor can guide you on how to structure these gifts to maximise the benefit for both you and your beneficiaries.

Secure your legacy with a Will

Beyond minimising the IHT liability on your estate, a Will ensures that your assets pass to the beneficiaries of your choosing, prevents a lengthy and costly estate administration, and protects cohabitees (including unmarried partners) and children (particularly minors and/or those from first marriages).

Dying without a Will can be extremely problematic, costly and stressful.

By not having one, you could inadvertently hurt those you love and cause costly, painful, and lengthy litigation amongst those affected.

At Palmers Solicitors, we make the Will preparation process as easy as possible, giving you peace of mind knowing that your legacy is secure.

Our expert private client solicitors are equipped to help you with all aspects of estate planning, from setting up trusts to preparing for future tax changes.

To find out more about amending your Will and reviewing your estate plan, contact us today.

In a time of great economic uncertainty, everyone is looking for a sense of clarity and stability.

When it comes to buying or selling a property, the idea of removing some element of risk from the process might seem appealing.

Pre-emption agreements can give a buyer exclusive access to buying a property putting them in a stronger position and ensuring that a seller gets some sense of who is going to be buying the property.

However, a pre-emption agreement is not a magic bullet to solve all your commercial property woes.

Such agreements require careful consideration and planning to be utilised effectively.

Types of pre-emption agreement

There are three main types of pre-emption agreements, each of which has a different degree of utility and suitability.

• First refusal: These agreements ensure that the potential buyer is approached before the property is put on the market to determine whether a sale can be made. The buyer has the right to refuse the sale if they wish and this will cause the property to become commercially available. The seller should not approach any other potential buyers until the person with whom they have made the agreement has refused the sale.
• Last refusal: This type of pre-emption agreement gives the buyer the right to match any offer made by a third party. If the offer is matched, the seller must accept this offer as per the terms of the agreement.
• Third party: This type of pre-emption agreement involves the property being sold for a price determined by a third party.

As the main trigger for a pre-emption agreement is the owner wishing to sell the property, pre-emption agreements can remain in place for a significant length of time.

Although pre-emption agreements my sound like a strong prospect, there are certain challenges they can present if you are uninformed.

Always seek professional legal advice when establishing a pre-emption agreement to ensure that it will work for you.

What are the risks?

As pre-emption agreements operate on an amount of goodwill, it is important to ensure that the particulars of the process are well defined within the contract to ensure both parties get a fair deal.

There is no definite end period for pre-emption contracts as default by law.

This is beneficial in the sense that pre-emption agreements can provide a degree of flexibility in when they are triggered.

However, if you do not wish the contract to run indefinitely, it may be necessary to impose your own time restrictions when establishing the contract.

In terms of timing, ensuring that the buyer has a set amount of time to accept or refuse the sale can help avoid the lengthy sale process that the contract was aiming to circumvent in the first place.

A buyer will need adequate time to consider their options but not so long that the seller is left in a state of uncertainty concerning whether the sale is proceeding.

A clear definition of the property is essential and should consider what to do if the owner wishes to gift part of or all of the property.

Facilitating how to handle disputes can also be a vital part of a pre-emption agreement.

It is worth remembering that a pre-emption agreement is designed to be of benefit to both buyer and seller and any agreement that fails to do this may cause problems in the long run.

Legal advice is essential for ensuring that your pre-emption agreements are making the buying and selling process as smooth as possible.

For further advice about pre-emption agreements, get in touch with our team today.

The prospect of having to deal with redundancy situations can be daunting for employers.

The law provides employees with a number of rights in a redundancy situation and, in order to avoid expensive mistakes, it is essential that employers and managers understand those rights.

Employees who are dismissed by reason of redundancy may be entitled to a statutory redundancy payment and may also be able to challenge the termination of their employment as an unfair dismissal. A successful claim for unfair dismissal means that you might be liable for costly compensation payments.

Here’s what you need to know about redundancy.

When is there a “redundancy” situation?

The legal definition of “redundancy” covers three types of situation:

• Actual or intended business closure.
• Actual or intended workplace closure.
• Reduction of workforce.

If fewer than 20 employees are being made redundant at one undertaking (work site) within a 90-day period, this is treated as a number of individual redundancy processes.

If more than 20 redundancies are proposed, this would be a collective redundancy situation.

In the latter situation, an employer must:

• Inform and consult appropriate representatives (these may be trade union representatives or, where no union is recognised, elected employee representatives).
• Notify the Secretary of State on form HR1.

This is called “collective consultation.”

It is important that the requirement for this is observed because a tribunal may award up to 90 days’ gross pay in respect of each affected employee where there has been a failure to collectively consult.

You may also be fined if you fail to notify the Secretary of State.

Redundancy and unfair dismissal

An employee who has sufficient qualifying service has the right not to be unfairly dismissed.

Redundancy is a potentially fair reason for dismissal, but whether it is fair or unfair to dismiss for that reason will depend on whether you (the employer) act followed a fair redundancy selection/ consultation process.

The process to be followed will vary based on the circumstances.

For a fair redundancy process, you will typically need to:

• Inform potentially affected employees of the business case for making redundancies and why their roles are at risk.
• Consider how to fairly select those to be made redundant, which typically involves putting employees with similar skillsets in a selection pool and applying measurable selection criteria to score employees.
• Consult with those at risk about the business case for redundancies and any ways they might think of whereby redundancies might be avoided.
• Consider whether the criteria or scores should be adjusted in response to any points raised in consultation.
• Give notice of redundancy to those employees with the lowest scores if no way of avoiding their redundancies has been identified (e.g. a suitable alternate role).
• Offer a right of appeal.

You are advised to take step-by-step guidance on adopting a fair procedure and to manage the risk of resulting employment tribunal claims.

In certain circumstances, selection of an employee for dismissal on grounds of redundancy will be automatically unfair, such as selecting an employee for a reason connected to pregnancy.

Indeed, pregnant employees, mothers on maternity leave and some recent pregnancy returners are entitled to be offered any suitable alternate roles even if they may not be the best candidate for the role or where others in the same redundancy selection pool have higher redundancy selection scores.

Section 105 of the Employment Rights Act 1996 prescribes various grounds that will make a redundancy dismissal automatically unfair and you should seek specific legal advice to minimise the risk of employees making redundancy selections any of these grounds.

Careful consideration should be given to any redundancy selection criteria used to ensure they are not discriminatory.

For example, using attendance as a criterion could discriminate against those on maternity leave or who have disabilities.

Offering voluntary redundancy only to employees whose age makes them eligible for early retirement could give rise to age discrimination claims.

However, a voluntary redundancy offer made to all employees could include an early retirement package for certain age groups.

Alternatives to redundancy

A redundancy should never be a foregone conclusion.

You should always consider at the outset whether compulsory redundancies can be avoided.

As a first step, you should consider restrictions on recruitment, overtime, hours given to staff whose hours are not guaranteed, and the use of contractors/agency workers.

Some employment contracts allow for workers to be laid off/put on short-time working where there has been a diminution in work with a guaranteed fall-back rate of pay.

If these avenues are not available or sufficient, you might consider inviting employees to:

• Apply for alternative vacancies.
• Volunteer for redundancy.
• Consider early retirement under the pension scheme, if applicable.

Alternatively, where contractual terms allow, it may be appropriate to temporarily lay off employees or reduce their working hours, for example where there is a diminution in work which it is hoped might be very temporary. Such employees may be contractually entitled to a guaranteed fall-back rate of pay.

However, you must be aware that this, in itself, could quite quickly entitle employees to claim a redundancy payment.

Redundancy payments

Employees with at least two years’ service are entitled to a statutory redundancy payment if they are dismissed by reason of redundancy.

Statutory redundancy pay is calculated according to a formula set out in section 162 of the Employment Rights Act 1996, which is based on age, length of service (a maximum of 20 years’ service can be taken into account) and pay (there is an upper limit on the amount of a ‘week’s pay’ that changes annually in line with the Retail Prices Index).

In addition to a statutory redundancy payment, employers should consider whether or not employees are entitled to an enhanced redundancy payment.

This entitlement could be expressly included in contracts of employment or incorporated by being set out in another document, such as a redundancy policy in a staff handbook.

Employment law advice with Palmers Solicitors

The specialist employment team at Palmers Solicitors can, at an early stage, assist you in mapping out a fair redundancy process and provide assistance with implementing that process, including providing template letters where required.

With our help, you can embark on a redundancy process with confidence, knowing that you have taken steps to effectively manage the risks and to put your business in the best possible position to swim through the mire of procedure, legislation and case law.

For tailored advice on redundancy law, contact us today.