Kerseys Solicitors June 2024 Newsletter
Kerseys Solicitors June 2024 Newsletter
Just a click or call away for all your legal services needs
Legal Updates
Key Dates
Employment Law
With Rishi Sunak announcing that the General Election is to take place on 4 July 2024, no further laws will be reviewed until after the general election results and government back in the Houses of Commons, however it is expected that the below employment laws will be considered for later in 2024.
- A new law and code of practice on how employers must distribute tips and service charges to their workforce. The Government expects this to come into force from July 2024.
- A new code of practice on dismissal and re-engagement (‘fire and rehire’). For more information on this issue see the Library briefing on Fire and rehire practices. The Government expects the code will into force by summer 2024.
- A new law creating a right to request more predictable working patterns for eligible workers. This is expected to come into for from around September 2024.
- A new law requiring employers to take reasonable steps to prevent sexual harassment of their employees. This will come into force from October 2024
Property
Legal Updates
Family Law Advice – Fixed Fee Appointments Available
Kerseys Solicitors are pleased to announce that you can now obtain bespoke family law advice from us in our initial 45 minute appointment for only £195.00 inclusive of VAT.
We know that in times of family trouble the cost of obtaining legal advice can be scary and often prohibitive. Our aim is to provide you with the best possible advice, tailored to your circumstances for a fixed amount so that you can obtain the information you need without breaking the bank. Your advice will be given by fully qualified experienced family law solicitors and we offer online, telephone and face to face consultations.
Whether you need advice on divorce, separation, money and property, injunctions or children contact us at Kerseys Solicitors in Ipswich at [email protected]
or telephone 01473 213311, Kerseys Solicitors in Felixstowe at [email protected] on 01394 834557 or Kerseys Solicitors in Colchester at
[email protected] on 01206 584584 to arrange your fixed fee consultation.
Legal Services for your Business – helping your business at difficult times
If your business is looking to renew a lease, acquire another business or property or requires employment law/HR advice our business teams are offering a 30 minute free Initial Consultation for your business to see how we can help support your business and become a part of your team.
Contact us at Kerseys Solicitors in Ipswich at [email protected] or telephone 01473 213311, Kerseys Solicitors in Felixstowe at [email protected]
on 01394 834557 or Kerseys Solicitors in Colchester at [email protected] on 01206 584584.
Legal Updates
Notice Periods
Questions and Answers with our Employment Law Team
How long should a notice period be?
Employers
As a minimum, employers must provide the employee with the following statutory minimum notice period in order to terminate a contract of employment:
| Period of Continuous Employment | Minimum Notice |
| 1 month – 2 years | 1 week |
| 2 years – 12 years | 1 week for each year |
| 12 + years | 12 weeks |
This must be stated in their section 1 written statement of terms.
Parties may agree a longer notice period, but it must not fall below the statutory minimum. In the absence of an express agreement, the notice must be of a reasonable length.
Employees
If an employee has worked for an employer more one month or more, they must provide a minimum of 1 week notice to terminate their contract of employment. However, if the contract states a longer period, employees must comply with the same.
Do employees have to work their notice period?
If the employment contract has a Pay In Lieu Of Notice (PILON) clause in it, the employer has a right to pay the employee in lieu of the duration of their notice period. This means that the contract will end immediately and therefore so will any benefits the employee is entitled to.
If the employment contract does not contain a PILON clause and the employer pays the employee in lieu of notice, there will be a breach of contract. However, provided that the employee has been paid all monies that they are entitled, there may be minimal loss. On that basis, employees may wish to seek legal advice before pursuing a claim in relation to the same.
Lastly, if an employee wishes to leave earlier than the expiry of their notice period, they will be in breach of contract. This means that the employee will only be paid for the period they have worked and any accrued untaken annual leave as at the termination date.
Can I be placed on Garden Leave for the duration of my notice period?
Garden leave is when an employer instructs an employee not to attend their place of work for all or part of their notice period. Employees will still remain employed during this period and therefore must get paid as usual, including any benefits they are entitled to.
If the contract of employment contains a garden leave clause, the employer is entitled to exclude the employee from the workplace during their notice period. If it is not expressly provided for in the contract, there is a risk that the employer will breach an express or implied right for the employee to be provided with work on their notice period.
Our charity of the year voted by the charity committee at Kerseys for 2024 is ihAg – Ipswich Housing Action Group.
With desk bingo, bake sales, euro sweepstake events taking place to raise money for our charity, the committee also wanted to encourage more socialising and fun at work which is an important part of our culture.
We recognise that it is important for our staff’s mental health and stress levels to be able to have a few minutes down time during the day to relax.
Candles & The Darby Rimmer MND Foundation
A great achievement Karen, we are very proud of you.Staff at Kerseys also attended the Palmer & Partners event in Colchester supporting the 500 Club who were also raising money for Candles by hosting a darts charity night. Our pink ladies and John Travolta were in attendance to support Candles and the incredible work they do.
Kerseys are sponsoring the arts Colchester & Ipswich Museum Services’ An Eye For Life exhibition which will be on display at the Wolsey Art Gallery at Christchurch Mansion in Ipswich from 29th June 2024 to 27th April 2025. This exhibition celebrates themes of portraiture, identity and home by Ipswich-based photographer John Ferguson.
Our Ipswich office joined in with turning the town blue to wish ITFC luck for the final game of the season.
We were then delighted that we heard more good news for the Blues as Kieran McKenna signed a new contract for Ipswich Town Football Club. We send our congratulations to Kieran McKenna and Ipswich Town Football Club for successfully renegotiating another contract for four years.
Kerseys Solicitors look forward to continue supporting ITFC following this fantastic news as the team makes its first Premier League debut in 22 years and to host guests in our corporate box at Portman Road this coming season.
Following the recent speculation regarding Kieran McKenna’s next move, our employment law team detail some of the key queries they receive from clients who are exiting and entering a new contract of employment. – click to read more.
Reminder to protect your computers
Microsoft will end Windows 10 support for security updates on 14 October 2025. Your device may be able to be updated to Windows 11 but if not please seriously consider adding a new computer to your Christmas list. Running on Windows 10 after that date is a dangerous option and puts yourself at risk.
Scams
Be Aware – Think before you CLICK or SPEAK
Protect yourself from scams – Kerseys Solicitors
You will have heard of phishing but have you heard of smishing?
Smishing is a phishing scam that uses text messages or phone number to device you into giving our sensitive information without downloading malicious software. The text message may appear come from a trusted source such as your bank or business and may claim that you have won something and to take a survey or that you have an urgent issue with your bank account. Royal Mail and Amazon texts are quite common also.
The text message contains a link, phone number or an email address for you to contact where you are then prompted to share details. These types of scams can result in financial and personal data loss. If you are in any doubt do not click on any links in messages. Close the message down and telephone your provider directly to double check.
Is public Wi-Fi safe?
It is common to connect to Wi-Fi when entering a coffee shop or hotel. We all do it don’t we to save using our own data. However if you see two Wi-Fi channels with the same name displayed, do not connect to either but let the staff know there is a concern.
It is more common now that fraudsters use what is called pineapple router called “a man in the middle attack” which looks like a router to hack into the Wi-Fi and display the same name. You connect to it thinking you are safe and secure. You are not. It is tracking everything you type into your phone, for example login name and password and before you know it they have access to your data.
