Q:    My boyfriend has his own house, and I am considering moving in with him as it has been dreadful having to be apart during the coronavirus pandemic lockdowns. I am prepared to make contributions but am concerned that the property is just in his name. Is there still such a thing as common law marriage, and would I have any rights in relation to the house because of this?

Following a consistent upsurge in new instructions over the past few months, leading independent law firm, GHP Legal, has announced the appointment of Ron Carter as new Head of Corporate Law, together with an expansion of its Corporate and Commercial department.

Q:    I left the military at the end of 2019 after serving for six years. In the summer before I came out, I was involved in an accident when the vehicle I was driving came off the road. It was later proven that the vehicle had not undergone service checks when they were due, and the accident could be attributed to a fault that would have been rectified if the check had been carried out. I did not sustain any serious injuries at the time but during the latter part of this year I began to suffer severe pain that has now been diagnosed as resulting from whiplash. Can I make a claim against the MoD?

Q:    A new access road has been built to service a housing development being constructed adjacent to livery stables I have owned and run for 37 years. Heavy machinery and site traffic are going in and out all day and the noise is causing distress to the horses. COVID is already affecting my business and now I’m concerned that I could also lose clients who feel the standard of care I offer is compromised.

Q:     I have a property and financial affairs Lasting Power of Attorney (LPA), appointing my neighbour as my attorney. I set it up several years ago when the LPA took over from the old Enduring Power of Attorney (EPA). Sadly, my neighbour recently contracted COVID-19 and died. It has now occurred to me that her passing has probably rendered my LPA useless. Will I have to prepare a new LPA?

The Welsh Government’s announcement of a £12.5m package to support a range of services aimed to help vulnerable children and their families whose lives have been affected by the ongoing coronavirus pandemic has been applauded by one of the region’s leading Childcare Solicitors.

Q:    When the government announced the COVID stamp duty holiday on property purchases, values in my area rose and I decided to take advantage of the situation and move.  However, when I got a valuation, the estate agent noticed that from my upstairs windows he could see Japanese Knotweed growing on adjoining land.

Q:    I set up an Enduring Power of Attorney several years ago in which I appointed my children as my Attorneys. However, a friend has just told me that she recently prepared a Lasting Power of Attorney. Do I now need to do an LPA as well, or is my EPA sufficient?

An Oswestry solicitor who, in the 1990’s, acted for the inhabitants of the South Atlantic island of St Helena and its subsidiary territory islands of Tristan da Cunha and Ascension Island in helping them to recover their full British Citizenship, has announced his retirement from the legal profession.

Q:    I live in one of eight houses that have faced open ground since their construction in the 1980s. Beyond the open ground is protected woodland sloping to a disused railway track walk. In 2013 planning permission was granted for a 2-storey house that still afforded us the woodland views. However, the owner added another storey without permission. He also erected 3m high wire fencing that encroached onto the road. We contacted the council several times, informing them what was going on and how the site was an eyesore.