Our Litigation Department provides advice and assistance to a wide range of individual clients, such as -
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Contentious Probate
A will may be challenged on one of the following grounds -
- It is not in the proper legal form or is not properly executed
- The testator was not of sound mind
- The testator lacked knowledge and approval of the contents of the Will
- Undue influence or fraud
- A claim for provision under The Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975
Any Will which is rational on its face and correctly executed will be presumed valid, unless the person challenging it can prove the contrary.
If sanity is contested the burden of proof shifts to the person who is seeking to uphold the Will. Lack of knowledge may be argued where the testator was blind, deaf or dumb or the Will was drawn in a language of which he was not a native speaker. In such circumstances professional advice on the drawing of the Will should have been sought to avoid any potential challenge.
Undue influence or fraud by a third party is a very difficult thing to prove and needs very strong evidence to back the claim.
The Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975 enables certain people who fall within the categories set out in the Act to bring a claim for financial provision from the Estate. There may of course be justifiable reasons for omitting someone from a Will and it is not necessarily the case that any claim would be successful.
In every case it is important to take early advice. There are time limits for some claims and all claims can be prejudiced by delay. For further assistance for your situation please contact John French in our Litigation Department.
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Contractual Agreements
We can advise you about your rights and liabilities under any contractual agreement or arrangement including:
- Mortgages
- Tenancy Agreements
- Credit/Loan Agreements
- Timeshare Agreements
- Hire Purchase
- Purchase Orders / Contracts
- On-Line Commerce
- Credit Fraud
- Insurance
- Sale of Goods, Trading Standards and Consumer Problems
- Building Contracts and Defective Workmanship / Goods
- Personal Guarantees
- Pensions
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High and County Court Judgments
We are familiar with pre-action and litigation procedures involving:
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Costs/Benefit Analysis from the outset and review throughout
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Negotiation and Alternative Dispute Resolution
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Small Claims
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Summary Judgment and Early Disposal Techniques
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Injunctions
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Trial Preparation and Representation
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Costs Recovery
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Enforcement of Judgments
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Conduct of Proceedings in all Courts including –
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Litigation Funding
We are open to discuss funding options and always look for the right solution to suit each client. We will consider fixed fee wherever possible, fee limits, deferred payments (including Conditional Fee Agreements and contingency fees) and insurance options.
We aim to ensure that the chances of recovery of costs from an opponent are maximised whenever that is possible and that our clients are aware of their potential liability for their own costs and for the costs of an opponent.
We recognise that costs and funding are critical issues in every case which we do not shy away from and we shall discuss with you openly from the outset and review whenever necessary.
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Personal Injury and Accident Claims
We specialise in pursuing claims for injury and recovery of losses suffered in all accident claims including -
Band Hatton LLP is a member of Accident Line which is endorsed by The Law Society and provides accident victims with free initial advice with a Specialist Personal Injury Solicitor. Accident Line only refers victims of accidents to experienced Solicitors who have to undergo a rigorous assessment process before they can join the scheme.
Every personal injury claim is handled or supervised by our Partner, Jon Wilby, head of our Litigation Department, who has specialised in personal injury claims for over 20 years. His experience is endorsed by his membership of the Law Society's Personal Injury Panel and the Association of Personal Injury Lawyers who actively campaign for justice for victims of accidents.
The majority of personal injury cases taken on can be dealt with under a Conditional Fee Arrangement (CFA), which is more widely known as a “no win-no fee” arrangement. Through Accident Line Band Hatton is able to provide insurance for the other party's legal costs and for a client’s own expenses (known as disbursements).
All of the Claimant's legal fees and costs (including the insurance premium) can be recovered from the losing party (the Compensator) provided the Court does not consider them to be unreasonable. There no longer has to be any deduction of costs or expenses from the successful Claimant’s compensation.
Also, we are able to provide funding for litigation expenses such as medical report fees and Court fees in order that the claim can be pursued on a no cost basis. This means that the fear of legal costs should no longer be a deterrent to pursuing claims. It enables Claimants to pursue their cases – sometimes over long periods of time – with peace of mind.
Our Personal Injury team can provide expert advice and representation to help ensure that our Clients receive all of the compensation that is due to them without any worries about costs or funding a claim.
Further information If you have been injured in an accident and you think you might have a claim for compensation. You must seek early advice. Please call Band Hatton's Personal Injury Team direct on 024 7649 3114 and make an appointment to see us completely free of charge – you really have nothing to lose and you might have a lot to gain! For more details please contact Jonathan Wilby or Laura Bolstridge.
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Personal Insolvency
We have contacts with Insolvency Practitioners that enable us to provide a complete range of services to help individuals who are facing debt problems.
Early advice and action is essential in relation to:
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Bankruptcy
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Protecting your Home or Business
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Individual Voluntary Arrangements
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Debt Management Orders and Arrangements with Creditors
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Property Disputes
We regularly advise clients concerning property related issues including:
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Road Traffic and Business Prosecutions
We provide advice and representation at both investigation and prosecution stages in relation to all road traffic offences and business-related prosecutions. For example:
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Further information
For a without obligation discussion about the services we can provide, please email either Jon Wilby, head of the Department, John French or Laura Bolstridge or your regular contact at Band Hatton or telephone the Department Direct Line on 024 7649 3114.