Hart Brown news

Hart Brown's Wimbledon and Cobham offices have been taking part in the Princess Alice Hospice "Make a Will Fortnight". During this time, the staff wrote wills for 21 clients for a donation to the Princess Alice Hospice.

We are delighted to say that between the two offices, we managed to raise £2,930 for the Princess Alice Hospice.

Hart Brown named as one of the first firms in the UK to be accredited under the new Conveyancing Quality Scheme

Just 20 firms have been recognised for meeting the Law Society's comprehensive quality standards for residential conveyancing practices

Hart Brown, a leading law firm with offices throughout Surrey and in London, today announced that, it is one of the first law firms to be accredited under the new Conveyancing Quality Scheme (CQS). Launched by the Law Society, the CQS provides a recognised quality standard for residential conveyancing practices, and will therefore enable Hart Brown to enjoy even greater credibility with its key stakeholders, including regulators, lenders, insurers and its clients. Just 20 law firms have achieved this to date.

In addition to assessing the integrity of the Hart Brown's Senior Responsible Officer and other key conveyancing staff, the CQS also examined the firm's adherence to good practice management standards generally, and to prudent and efficient conveyancing procedures. The scheme, which is supported by the Council of Mortgage Lenders, has been open for applications since December 2010.

"The aim of the CQS scheme is not only to improve the quality of conveyancing, but also to encourage the public to work with firms that have proven their ability to meet these stringent standards consistently," says David Knapp, Partner and Head of Residential Property, Hart Brown. "To be in the first batch of those accredited is a testimony to our excellent quality procedures, the staff involved in the conveyancing process, and also to our accounts team, who also needed to be carefully vetted in order for us to demonstrate compliance with CQS standards."

According to the Law Society, the aim of the scheme is not only to reinforce consistency of standards throughout the conveyancing process, but also to reduce the risk of fraud and give consumers peace of mind when it comes to home buying. Practices applying to join the scheme must undergo a robust assessment and will be required to renew their membership of the scheme each year.

In addition to improving the quality of UK conveyancing, the CQS scheme will help to create a trusted community better equipped to deter fraud. As such, although CQS membership will not guarantee acceptance onto lenders' panels, the Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML) has indicated that membership is likely to become a pre-requisite for firms wishing to join/remain on their panels in the future.

"At Hart Brown we understand that whether you are buying or selling a property, you'll want to have the process explained to you in simple and easy to understand language, be kept informed throughout the process, and have the process proceed as smoothly as possible," David Knapp continues. "Schemes like the CQS help us to highlight our expertise in all of these important areas, and to ensure that one of the most expensive purchases or sales you are likely to make is handled properly, and with clear and consistent communication throughout the entire process."

Hart Brown solicitor Emily Wiggins and her horse Basil jumped to victory during their first outing of winter winning the Senior British Novice Championship in Surrey. Despite being hampered by the snow during the winter season, Emily managed to get Basil to the event for their first class of the season.

Sponsored by the Surrey based law firm the young solicitor and her horse were up against fierce competition but, wearing their new Hart Brown branded equipment, managed to win the title run by British Showjumping.

Talking after the event Emily said “It was a challenge to train during the bad weather but the hard work paid off. I’m looking forward to competing in more local and national circuits both show jumping and eventing”.

Emily, who has been riding Basil for 8 years, plans to combine show jumping indoors over the next couple of months with some cross country schooling and fast work to get fit for the next eventing season which kicks off in the spring.

Companies hoping for a return to full production after December’s severe weather and Christmas look set to be disappointed with the first snowfall of January working its way across the country.  As the chill continues, employers are being encouraged to act quickly to formulate or review their policy on absence due to severe weather, and to make sure that staff are aware of the company’s policy.

This time last year, hundreds of millions of working hours were lost due to the weather conditions and 2011 is forecast to be as bad, if not worse. Employers whose output is drastically cut by staff absence may feel that it is only fair to refuse to pay staff who fail to make it to work; as it is the employee’s responsibility to get to their place of work.

But an employer cannot always dock an employee’s wages on the grounds of absence as it depends on the circumstances.

A healthy employee who lives fifteen minutes walk from the workplace hears reports of traffic chaos on the radio one morning. The trains are at a standstill and the Police are asking drivers to stay off the roads. The employee decides to use this as an excuse to spend the day at home. This is a disciplinary matter and he will not be entitled to pay.

An employee who lives twenty miles from work hears the same story on the radio. He cannot get to work by train and to drive to work would be to go against official advice. The employer cannot reasonably expect him to travel to work and so different criteria apply; how he is treated will depend on his employment contract and the company’s severe weather policy. There are various ways in which these could treat the matter.

The staff manual should encourage employees to consider alternative ways of getting to work, or, if there are none, it should encourage employees to work from home where this is possible. It should also remind employees of the terms of the employment contract.

The contract might stipulate that the employee’s enforced absence will be treated as unpaid time off work. This would have to be clearly set out in the contract of employment because otherwise it would be probably treated as an unauthorised deduction from the employee’s pay.

Or the absence could be treated as holiday. Again, this would need to be clearly set out in the employment contract because employers cannot unilaterally force employees to take holiday at a certain time.

Thirdly, the contract might say that the absence will be paid, but the employee must make up the time later.

Another problem which often arises is for parents of school age children when bad weather forces school closures.  So what if the local school announces one morning that it has to close for the day, and employees have to stay at home to look after the kids? Again, company policy should be set out in the employment contract or staff manual. They might, for example, say that the employee can either take the time off as annual leave or as unpaid time off for a dependant.

Said Ursula Kelland, employment expert with Hart Brown: “Having a clear policy that all employees are well aware of will avoid disputes and reduce avoidable absenteeism. Employers should always get advice on changes to the employment contract and to company policy in order to make sure that the provisions are watertight and enforceable.”

The hospital urgently need a supply of wet tinned dog or cat food (but not fish varieties). They use about 80 cans a day and their supply is diminishing quickly.

We are launching a scheme to collect as many tins of food as we can. As of today (1 December 2010) our receptions will be taking delivery of all tins donated. The scheme will be announced on our website and we hope will be covered by local press. Please encourage friends, family and business contacts join in – details of how are on our website. Below is a list of what makes the perfect Wildlife Aid animal breakfast, lunch or dinner!

Pedigree Dog Food – Meat & Poultry Chunks in Gravy

Sainsburys – Two for £5.00

Tesco – Two for £6.00

Ocado – Three packs for £7.50

Pedigree Puppy Food – Mixed packs

Sainsburys – Two for £5.00

Tesco – Two for £6.00

Ocado – Three packs for £7.50

Weebox Chub Roll

50 per pack at both Sainsburys and Tescos

We are delighted to be supporting Wildlife Aid as our charity of the year for 2010/2011. The work they do benefits the local communities surrounding each of our offices and many members of our staff are already actively involved with them.

We will be looking at a number of fundraising initiatives with Wildlife Aid over the next year, and if you are interested in donating to them, please contact marketing@hartbrown.co.uk and we will advise you on the best way to do this.

Hart Brown warmly welcomes three new solicitors to the firm. They are Sue Macleod and Lisa Ellis.

Sue Macleod, a solicitor in Hart Brown’s Trust & Investment Department, is based in Godalming. She has over ten years experience and her area of expertise includes all aspects of probate, wills, tax planning, trusts and taxation.

Lisa Ellis is based in our Family Law department in Godalming. She has valuable experience in all aspects of family law including divorce, ancillary relief, co-habitation disputes and Children’s Act proceedings.

Bettina Brueggemann, Managing Partner, said of the new appointments: “One of the reasons that our firm has achieved 90 years of service is our belief in growing and developing our team and our aim of always striving to provide a quality service. Fresh ideas are important for the lifeblood of a business and we are delighted to be strengthening the team.”

Hart Brown Solicitors, a leading law firm with offices throughout Surrey and in London, has today announced the appointment of James Lamont as its newest Partner. James will bring a wealth of experience to the corporate team at Hart Brown, having previously been a partner in the commercial group of a large London practice.

James' particular areas of expertise include advising on the legal and commercial aspects of business ventures, in the growth, funding & restructuring of businesses and in mergers & buy-outs and the sale & acquisition of businesses as well as advising more generally on company law and commercial contracts.

“James will bring a great deal of knowledge and experience to our highly skilled corporate team, and will thus enable us to enhance our services in this area even further," says Bettina Brueggemann, Managing Partner, Hart Brown. "Over the past 90 years, Hart Brown has earned a strong reputation for growing and developing its team through high profile appointments and fresh ideas, and we are delighted to continue this tradition with the appointment of James Lamont as Partner." 

“Hart Brown is one of the most well-respected law firms in the area and is totally committed to building good long-term personal relationships with its clients, understanding their specific needs, and delivering results,” says James Lamont, Partner, Hart Brown.  "I couldn't be more delighted to be joining such a client focused, committed and progressive local practice."

Educated at Eton College and Bristol University, James trained at the College of Law before starting his career as a paralegal for Reid Minty in Mayfair, London. James subsequently trained with a firm in London, joining their commercial group in 2000 and becoming a partner there in 2006.