'My New Year’s resolution is to stop procrastinating. I’ll start tomorrow.' (Anonymous) Most New Year’s resolutions are vague, unwritten, and destined to be forgotten in the first week of January’s hustle and bustle. But please don’t neglect this Top Ten list of legal issues that we’ve put together for you. Focus on those that are important to you, taking a few minutes to write down exactly what action you’ll take under each heading. Then set and diarise realistic deadlines t

'I have heard that in war, haste can be folly, but have never seen delay that was wise.' (Sun Tzu, The Art of War) Collecting debt from a recalcitrant debtor can feel very much like going to war, particularly if you have to slog through the trenches of a series of increasingly costly court battles. Which is where Sun Tzu’s warning against delay comes into play because not starting collection in time could defeat your claim entirely. The reason of course is that debts - with o

'There's no trust, no faith, no honesty in men.' (William Shakespeare, in Romeo and Juliet) A recent Labour Court decision is a stark reminder to employees that an employment relationship is founded on trust and that any breach of that trust could justify dismissal. Pocketing a 50c coin to balance her till The responsibilities of a bank teller included 'balancing cash daily, reporting differences, as well as maintaining effective security controls, including maintaining a hig

'If you suspect deceit, hit delete!' (Online cybersecurity slogan) October is Cybersecurity Awareness Month, a good time to note that as cybercrime continues to grow, more and more businesses and individuals are falling victim to the dreaded 'BEC' or 'Business Email Compromise' fraud. The million-dollar question: Who takes the hit? Typically in a BEC fraud, email or other electronic communications between a creditor and debtor (often a seller and buyer, or service provider an

In today's complex world, legal matters can arise unexpectedly. Whether you're facing a family dispute, need help with a business...

'An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.' (Benjamin Franklin’s warning to fire-threatened Philadelphians in 1736) Cases of...

'Good in parts' (Like the curate’s egg) Transfer duty threshold increased by 10% You pay no transfer duty if the property you are buying...

'The minute you read something that you can’t understand, you can almost be sure that it was drawn up by a lawyer.' (Will Rogers, cowboy...

' It’s important to remember your competitor is only one mouse click away' (Doug Warner) Your website, social media profiles and other...

'[The buyer] must in the circumstances take responsibility for her failure to protect herself against a known risk' (extract from...

'Externally, trustees cannot disagree. In the external sphere the Trust functions by virtue of its resolutions, which have to be...

'The first thing we do is, let’s kill all the lawyers.' (Shakespeare) Shakespeare must have had an unhappy experience or two with the...

'MTl's business clearly amounted to an unlawful ponzi-scheme i.e. a fraudulent investing scam promising high rates of return to investors...

How much will you be paying in income tax, petrol and sin taxes? Use Fin 24’s four-step Budget Calculator here to find out. The unchanged...

Load-shedding continues to plague us and our businesses, and when tenants are connected during power cuts to their landlord’s alternative...

'A bad neighbour is as great a calamity as a good one is a great advantage.' (Hesiod, poet of Ancient Greece) Your neighbour’s business...

'The infectiousness of crime is like that of the plague.' (Napoleon Bonaparte) This October marks the 20th anniversary of the globally...

'He that filches from me my good name robs me of that which not enriches him and makes me poor indeed.' (Shakespeare) As our lives move...

'…data messages or electronic signatures are now recognised in our law as equivalent to a proper basis upon which a written contract can...

'MTl's business clearly amounted to an unlawful ponzi-scheme i.e. a fraudulent investing scam promising high rates of return to investors...