#Legal Dispute

[scotianostra]

On 14th January 1529 after a long legal dispute, Euphemia Leslie secured her position as Prioress of Elcho near Perth.

Euphemia Leslie seems to have been the illegitimate daughter of Walter Leslie, the Parish Priest at Kirkton of Menmuir in what is today Angus. She was brought up in the Nunnery at Elcho, south east of Perth. The circumstances are unclear, but on 6 November 1526, Euphemia sought Papal dispensation to become Prioress of the Convent. She needed the dispensation because of her young age - she was only 18 - and because of her parentage.

This caused a problem, because there was already a sitting Prioress of Elcho, Elizabeth Swinton, who had no intention of relinquishing her post to Euphemia. Quite how this came about, and why Papal dispensation was given in light of this, is unclear. In 1527, Euphemia pressed her case more strongly by arriving at the nunnery with her brother and a hundred armed supporters, imprisoning Elizabeth Swinton in her rooms until she agreed to resign, which she duly did. The legal dispute between the two rumbled on until 14th January 1529, when Euphemia Leslie finally secured her position as Prioress.

Euphemia’s first move was to grant leases of land to her brother and to others who had supported her during her dispute with Elizabeth Swinton.

The Nunnery was damaged by the English in 1547 and had not recovered by the time of the Reformation in 1560. Elcho carried on in a diminished form after the Reformation.

When she died in 1570, Euphemia left a will (the only will left by a Scottish Prioress to have survived) in which she set out the pension rights of the nuns who remained at the nunnery.

Not much remains of the Abbey, the castle , as seen in the pic, which was adjoined to the Abbey has survived but only the occasional remnants of Elcho Abbey can be seen.

[buzzblend]

Widow loses life savings after ‘firetrap’ developer fails to repay €150k loan

A controversial developer who asked to borrow the life savings of an 81-year-old widow has failed to repay the money after half a decade of broken promises.

In 2017, the widow gave €160,000 in cash to developer Paddy Byrne, who built the Millfield Manor estate in Co. Kildare where six houses burnt to the ground in under 30 minutes in 2015.

The cash was for a penthouse apartment in Dublin she planned to move into.

The development was built by Victoria Homes, a company that was established by Mr Byrne’s sister Joan just before Mr Byrne was precluded from acting as a company director in Ireland for five years.

After viewing plans for the €630,000 property, in a development called Greygates in Mount Merrion, the pensioner withdrew the cash from her bank and gave it to Mr Byrne.

Some €10,000 of this was a deposit, with the remaining €150,000 provided on the advice of a third party who was known to Mr Byrne and the widow, who said the cash would secure a good price.

According to a handwritten receipt, signed by Mr Byrne, the money was provided on May 29, 2017.

But in November 2017 the widow, a retired primary school teacher, found a more suitable home and asked for her money back.

Mr Byrne agreed to this, saying he would have no problem selling the penthouse and promptly refunded the €10,000 deposit.

However, he asked that the remaining €150,000 be treated as a 14-month loan and promised to pay a 10% annual interest rate.

This effectively turned the widow into an unwitting creditor of Victoria Homes.

According to a handwritten agreement, signed by Mr Byrne, the loan was to be ‘paid back from the sales proceeds’ of the penthouse at his Greygates development.

More than half a decade later, the loan remains unpaid – even after the widow made a criminal complaint to gardaí and took legal action to secure a judgement.

As it is a civil matter, the Garda investigation faltered. And because various other unpaid creditors had previously secured judgements against Victoria Homes, the widow is now unlikely to get her savings back. During the Celtic Tiger years, Paddy Byrne was renowned for his €2.4m Sikorsky helicopter and sponsorship of the Irish National Hunt festival.

But in 2011 his then-firm, Barrack Homes, went bust and Mr Byrne declared bankruptcy in Britain with debts of €100m.

He was banned from acting as a UK director for 10 years in 2012.

This ban was scheduled to end in 2022 – and ran the full course – but it only applied in the UK and Wales.

According to the UK insolvency register today, Mr Byrne’s discharge from UK bankruptcy is ‘suspended indefinitely’ until the fulfilment of conditions made in a 2012 court order.

Separately, in Ireland, he was also restricted from acting as a director for a period of five years – which ended in January 2018.

Mr Byrne is also known for building the Millfield Manor estate in Newbridge, Co. Kildare, where half a dozen houses were razed to the ground within 30 minutes in 2015.

A report into the blaze found ‘major and life-threatening serious shortfalls and discrepancies and deviations from the minimum requirements of the national mandatory building regulations’ at Mr Byrne’s development.

Today, having exited bankruptcy, Mr Byrne is best known as the figurehead behind Victoria Homes and associated businesses, which was set up by his sister and her husband in December 2012, while he was bankrupt.

Mr Byrne was not a director or owner of Victoria Homes during the period of his bankruptcy. But, in 2017, Mr Byrne’s sister and her husband stepped back from Victoria Homes, transferring their shares to an offshore entity in Belize city called Victoria Holdings.

In November 2022, the main lenders to Victoria Homes – the Lotus Development Group – forced the firm into receivership for the second time.

In 2020, Lotus had forced a previous short-lived receivership before agreeing a deal that saw Victoria Homes begin trading normally once more.

Today, Mr Byrne appears to have left Victoria Homes behind and seems to be focusing on a new firm instead.

Set up in the summer of 2020, Branach Developments is entirely owned by Mr Byrne and is not encumbered by any bank debt or mortgages as Victoria Homes was.

According to the latest filed accounts, for the year ended 2021, Branach Developments held ‘tangible assets’ of €210,000 and ‘stocks’ of €600,000.

The accounts also show that, in 2021, Mr Byrne provided the company with an interest-free loan of €1,024,438.

Just last week Mr Byrne’s new firm was one of the winners at the National Property Awards sponsored by the Business Post and Deloitte, among others.

At the award ceremony, Branach Developments took home the prize for best sustainability initiative of the year.

However, Mr Byrne, who shuns publicity and is rarely photographed, does not appear to have attended the ceremony and the award was accepted by a colleague.

This week the Irish Mail on Sunday sent queries to Mr Byrne via his mobile phone, his email at Victoria Homes and his email at Branach Developments, without response.

Queries to his solicitor and the separate accountancy firms representing Victoria Homes and Branach Developments also went unanswered as did calls to the numbers on the websites of these firms.

Mr Byrne also previously declined to respond to questions from the MoS relating to the establishment of Victoria Homes during the period of his bankruptcy.

At the time, Mr Byrne appeared to be living at Ballinrahin House, close to Rathangan on the border of Offaly and Kildare.

The home is a luxury build on 26 acres of stud-railed paddocks with six stables and a 1.3km tree-lined avenue behind electric gates.

The property was on sale for €2.8m in 2009, but land registry records confirm that, in November 2014, it was sold to Victoria Homes for a knockdown price of €484,000.

Ownership of Ballinrahin House was transferred offshore to Victoria Holdings in Belize on April 10, 2018, just weeks before Mr Byrne was due to repay the €150,000 back to the widow.

[thehappyspaceman]

Hey y'all.

You may have noticed that several of my reviews are no longer available on YouTube. Well, unfortunately, a lot of them have been blocked in the U.S. during the YouTube/SESAC legal dispute.

Reviews that were affected by this dispute include:

Top 10 Surprising One-Hit Wonders

A Look Back at Gangnam Style

Top 6 Most Hated Christmas Songs

Caress of Steel by Rush

High School Musical 3: Senior Year

Slave to the Grind by Skid Row

Another Top 10 Worst Censored Lyrics

Sorry. :/

I really am sorry, guys. This is super disheartening, especially as I'm still dealing with YouTube's copyright BS with my Rudolph review, and I wish there was something more I could say or do besides that. But I guess this really just highlights the need for another platform to break up YouTube's monopoly on the video sharing business. Because this is unfair, and it's the biggest reason why I've lost motivation to keep making reviews.

In the meantime, all of those videos are available on Vimeo if you want to watch them.

[justnownews]

Election Commission Seeks Further Clarification from Supreme Court on PTI Reserved Seats

Islamabad, September 26, 2024– The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) has once again approached the Supreme Court, seeking clarification regarding the reserved seats for Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) in light of recent legal developments.In its appeal, the ECP has requested guidance on how to reconcile the July 12 court decision with the newly passed Election Amendment Act. The commission…

[lawtoppers]

InterDigital Patent Case Against Oppo, RealMe, and OnePlus

[global-newz]

Tesla vs. Tesla Power: The Trademark Battle Unfolds

Elon Musk's Tesla Inc. has taken legal action against Gurugram-based Tesla Power India Ltd for trademark infringement, as revealed by a Delhi High Court record. The electric vehicle (EV) giant, headquartered in Delaware, United States, alleges that the Indian company is unlawfully using the trade names "Tesla Power" and "Tesla Power USA."

In response, Tesla Power has asserted that it has no plans to manufacture EVs and will not market any other entities' EVs under the disputed trademark. Despite this, Tesla Inc. contends that the Indian company continued to use its brand name even after receiving a cease-and-desist notice in April 2022, prompting the lawsuit.

The Delhi High Court has granted Tesla Power three weeks to submit written responses following the presentation of supporting documents. The next hearing is scheduled for May 22.

This legal dispute emerges amidst discussions of Tesla's potential entry into the Indian market. Elon Musk's anticipated visit to India was canceled in April, followed by a surprise trip to China. Meanwhile, Tesla Power, reportedly present in India prior to Musk's Tesla, asserts having obtained all necessary government approvals.

India's recent reduction of import duties on electric cars aims to attract investments in the EV sector, a move seen as facilitating Tesla's potential entry into the Indian market.

[lowlightsahead]

You wouldn't last a day in the asylum I was raised in

[sojourner-between-worlds]

SEASON FOUR IS HERE

[hereissomething]

well THAT sucks big time

[sea-buns]

So do we have any idea what happens when the Fey doesn't hold up their end of the bargain? It was her responsibility to ensure they all lived, right? Is there a precedent for this? Do we take it Fey court? Is there a Fey Phoenix Wright that can represent us?

[librawritesstuff]

Two-Fer Twosday

Since due to multiple contractual violations (currently in legal dispute) the number of new tux pics has become severely reduced, here’s a couple of paired picsets for your enjoyment

[phoebosacerales]

hello! I'm curious about something, what houses or planets in solar return chart/transits can indicate getting in trouble with the law?? I get it may be a very ambiguos question and dificult to answer. Maybe Jupiter has something to do with it?

It probably depends on what you mean by trouble with the law. I enjoy this question, because I never thought about this, so don't take this as my definitive answer, this is just me trying to think about this by establishing principles first.

I think there is often a misunderstanding in the interpretation of Jupiter as the law. I think it's more about Jupiter's role as justice itself and as keeper of the "order of the cosmos", of morals, ethics; he makes the laws, but he's a benevolent judge, he rejoices in the 11th house, and as Vettius Valens says he signifies "relief from troubles, release from bonds, freedom"¹, so I think Jupiter will be actually of help in these circumstances.

At first I think a planet that might be worth watching for is the Sun, which according to Valens is about "the ordinance of the gods, judgement, authority"² and a bad relationship to solar themes is what I think could be the closest thing to trouble with the law. Combustion can be read as servitude or imprisonment. And the 9th house, also known as "God" and the Sun's joy, signifies the court and judiciary.

Saturn is the ultimate challenger of authority actually, he's irreverent, he signifies imprisonment as it's the opposition to the authority, the Sun. He's Nemesis. I think it's pretty safe to say that if you have anything to do with the 12th house or Saturn it's always better to try to stay out of trouble. Valens says Saturn signifies "interminable lawsuits, subversion of business, secrets, imprisonment, chains, griefs, accusations".³

The 7th is famously used in the judgement of legal disputes. It's about enemies, adversaries.

Now, I couldn't really think of charts of people who "get in trouble with law" often, so I got in a tangent and I was trying to think of the anti of this character: people who are famous for escaping punishment, or just for doing well for themselves in court or legal disputes. Funny that I ended up thinking of 4 people and coincidentally all of them are Leo risings: OJ Simpson, Donald Trump, Johnny Depp and Ted Bundy. Even if at the end they get a negative balance, these are all very authoritative and charismatic people, who always try and have something go their way. For now I think it's just coincidence, maybe it's just because the Sun is in Leo right now and that's the energy that came first, but given what we know about the Sun, this probably a situation of "who watches the watchmen", right?

Let's look at Trump, for example. He's an obvious orange Leo rising who also has Regulus on the ascendant, the alpha star of the Lion. The Sun is in the 11th house, which, as we've already estabilished, it doesn't harm him at all and gives him much much luck. The Sun also has dignity in the 9th by exaltation and sees Jupiter by trine. Jupiter is relieving him ALL the time. Recently that immunity story sounded a lot like Regulus giving a god-king status, he's the watchman and no one will watch him. The danger comes from the north node on the Sun, Mars (9th ruler) on the ascendant and the Moon (12th ruler) opposing the Sun. But Mars is disposed by the Sun in a good and superior aspect, so Mars just works for him. The Moon is disposed by Jupiter, his benefic and reliever. This year he's in a 7th house profection, activating his Saturn in the 12th, and his Solar Return doesn't look good at all, which is one of the reasons why he won't win this election and why he's been having a tougher time. But Saturn doesn't have anything to do with the Sun or the ascendant, so it's hard to say he'll ever get imprisoned.

My second example is Johnny Depp, who similarly has the Sun in the 11th. Jupiter is IN the 9th house (the court), exalting him and making good aspects: a sextile to the Sun and a trine to the ascendant, so this is insane protection. Jupiter is on Alpheratz, a star that also gives freedom and relief from troubles. The ruler of the 11th is Mercury conjunct Venus in the most powerful house, which means his fandom is really there for his public image. Both are with Algol, which sometimes can be the strongest (vengeful) protector especially with benefics. The Moon doesn't see him, Mars is already way behind in comparison to Jupiter, and Saturn is a strong enemy but not really working as well against him as Jupiter for him. I won't get into it, but during the famous trial against Heard he was in an 11th house profection, his SR was really interesting and it also had Leo rising.

In OJ Simpson's chart we see the same ascendant again, so we'll look at similar things, but this is the first chart that has a clearer indication of someone who gets deprived of freedom or excluded from society, and he did go to jail for a little bit eventually for something else, because he does have the ascendant ruler in the 12th, together with Mercury and Venus while the Moon sees them, and Saturn in the 1st, so his reputation doesn't escape as well. Mars is in the 11th house, which can signify judgement working for his benefit. His Sun is also with the star Sirius, of the nature of Jupiter and Mars, which gives honors, fame, popularity, besides being also dangerous. His "dream team" is Mercury, and they're in another star that gives much of the same significations. During his long murder trial he went through a 12th house profection and it ended in his 1st house profection. Interesting, right? The Sun in Cancer exalts Jupiter and makes a beautiful trine to it, and ultimately relieves him. Jupiter is close and right in between the stars of the Scales, which I'll come back to.

Ted Bundy was the most charismatic serial killer who gained fans during his trial, which was one of the craziest ones in this regard. He has Saturn in the 1st, same as OJ Simpson, but the Sun is in Sagittarius. And his chart doesn't look as good: the Sun was just eclipsed, it's conjunct Mars, it applies a trine to Saturn and can't see Jupiter or Mercury, so there's no saving him. His fandom (Mercury) is strong but obscure and weird in the 4th and doesn't save his reputation (Venus). This is also the first night chart that we're looking at, so the Sun isn't as strong and Saturn is the greater malefic: disputes go worse for him and he doesn't have Jupiter or Mercury in sight to relieve him. He was executed in a Saturn profection. And also like in OJ's chart, there are 2 significant stars on those planets in Scorpio: the northern and southern scales of Libra, also known as the scorpion's claws. The 10th ruler is with the northern one, of the nature of Jupiter and Mercury, and this one is famous for making lawyers and giving success in legal disputes. He was a law student and arrogantly tried to act as his own lawyer. This is a good star to have for reputation and to stay out of trouble for a little bit, but it wasn't enough, Venus is still in bad shape. He was sentenced to the death penalty: Jupiter as the ruler of the 8th house of death is with the southern and punishing scale, of the nature of Saturn and Mars. You'll find exactly how significant this star is in his chart on the Constellation of Words website, but to keep it short I'll just emphasize Robson's signification for when it's with Jupiter: "Hypocrisy, deceit, dishonesty, pretended religious zeal for business purposes, danger of imprisonment".

________________________

¹ Valens, The nature of the stars, Anthologies Book I (translation by Mark Twain).

² ibid.

³ ibid.

[torilaa]

So....just saw this....

Why the fuck would they not just refund people?

[edenfenixblogs]

British or European friends: where do you buy audiobooks that isn’t audible or Apple Books?

[cipher-legal-and-ethics-dept]

Hot take: Maybe we should vote for Snattle.

I mean yes, he's a criminal and a terrorist, but so are many politicians and unlike them, Snattle will stop if you just beat him in a Pokémon battle

[jazelock]

YOOOOOOO LET'S GOOOOOOOO