Q:        A downturn in business caused by COVID19 has resulted in me being made redundant. I do not have to work my two months’ notice but am being paid in lieu of it, plus I will be paid for unused holiday. However, my employment package includes a company car which the bosses say they want back the day I go. This is going to make life particularly difficult for me getting to interviews etc, as we only have one family car and my wife needs that to take the kids to school and get to her own work. Can the bosses force me to hand back the car?

Q:        During the first lockdown my wife and I started our own business after I was made redundant. We went from strength to strength, taking on other people at the start of this year to cope with the increasing demand for our products. Now we are ready to take a much bigger step, move into business premises, go into full production and take on more staff. Whilst we put a few basic workplace policies and procedures in place, these will now need to be reviewed and updated. Are there any guidelines as to how this should be done?

Q.        I already have a Will, but I am wondering what will happen regarding it if I get married. Will I need to make a new Will, and if I do make a new Will including my soon to be wife, what would happen if we divorced but I left her in my will?

Q:        Pre pandemic lockdown we quoted for a fancy conservatory for a client which came in at just under £50,000. The client ordered the work and paid £10,000 deposit. There were several delays due to covid, but we eventually finished the work in July this year. We were then unable to contact the client to get the outstanding payment. Now we have heard his business went bust and the bank repossessed his house. Who do we go after for the money? Him or the bank?

Q:        Several years ago, my father agreed to lease out land in one of our fields to a telecoms company for the erection of a mast. That lease agreement is now coming to an end and as I have taken over the farm, I do not wish to renew it as the new terms they are offering are considerably less favourable than previously. Can you advise me how I would go about getting rid of the mast?

The Family department at a leading Oswestry law firm has gained another solicitor following the qualification of one of its trainees.

Five lawyers from one of the region’s top law firms have been hard in training for the Oswestry 10k run scheduled to take place on Sunday 17^th October.

Q:        New neighbours moved in next door before the covid pandemic began. During lockdown they built a monstrous ‘pavilion’ in their garden and turned an open lean-to into a two-storey garage without planning permission. I reported them to the council because they were a law unto themselves, and their constructions were out of keeping with the neighbourhood. Since then, they have continuously harassed me. I had screws left across my drive entrance that punctured my tyres, they lied about me to neighbours, stalked me, and made abusive threats. The police say it is a civil matter because I have not been physically assaulted and have no witnesses. What can I do?

Q:        When walking my dog across the road after dark, I tripped over a heavy iron drain cover on the kerbside that had been flipped open, leaving a gaping hole. I broke my hip in the fall and the dog got free, ran across the road, and was hit by a car. He broke a hind leg in three places and spent several hours at the vets. As well as the inconvenience, pain and anxiety, I have incurred considerable expense, and loss of earnings as I am a self-employed driver. Annoyingly I saw the drain like this once before and manhandled it back into place and called the council, but they just said it was probably due to a big tractor going over it. Could I claim compensation?