NB: We are in the process of reviewing the contents of this article in the light of the changes recently introduced to the Charities Act. A charity’s property is a great resource and a gift from God. You may be approached by someone from your community who would like to hire your property for … Read more …
A recent ruling by the European Court of Justice has put the issue of copyright back in the headlines. The Court held that a secondary school had infringed a photographer’s copyright after a student used one of the photographer’s pictures in a school presentation which the school subsequently published on its website even though the … Read more …
New rules came into force on 1 August 2018, expanding the circumstances in which a person can be automatically disqualified from acting as a trustee of a charity. These include unspent convictions for bribery, terrorism, money laundering, contempt of court, misconduct in public office, and being on the sex offenders register (see s.178 and s.178A … Read more …
So they went to the king and spoke to him about his royal decree: ‘Did you not publish a decree that during the next thirty days anyone who prays to any god or human being except to you, Your Majesty, would be thrown into the lions’ den?’ (Daniel 6:12 NIVUK) The case of Lee v … Read more …
If your church or Christian organisation is the landlord of residential property leased using an Assured Shorthold Tenancy (‘AST’) then there have been some amendments to the law that you need to know about. From October 1st 2018, all ASTs in England are subject to the Deregulation Act 2015 (DA 2015) even if they were … Read more …
The way reference requests are dealt with can cause problems long after employment has ended. Do I have to give a reference? Generally employers do not have to provide a reference, but there are some exceptions (such as financial services and some aspects of social services). However, it is accepted practice to do so. Acting … Read more …
Before an employee can claim they have been “unfairly dismissed”, they normally need to have had at least two years’ service (“continuous employment”) with you. Calculating continuous employment Two years’ service is completed the day before the second anniversary of employment. An employee who starts on 1 January will have two years’ service on 31 … Read more …
One of the issues we are most often asked about is about the relationship between the “trustees” of the church and the people responsible for its spiritual oversight – i.e. its pastor, minister, elders or other spiritual leadership team. This is a tricky question, and there is no perfect answer to it. The article below helps you navigate the legal issues, as a … Read more …
NB: We are in the process of reviewing the contents of this article in the light of the changes recently introduced to the Charities Act. Please note that the following advice only refers to churches in England due to differing regulations in the rest of the UK. For a church that has a manse, … Read more …
