The Student Room Group

Interesting legal loopholes and strange laws!

Scroll to see replies

Original post by IceWater
Was just wondering, how does "bylaw" work?


I think in this context it means that it's still technically legal to shoot them, but Assault with a Deadly Weapon, ABH, GBH, Manslaughter & Murder (as well as the attempted versions of the aforementioned crimes) are still criminal offences.

So you can shoot someone, but the follow up crimes introduced in more recent times will still end up with you in front of a judge.
(edited 12 years ago)
Original post by IceWater
Any examples?



The easiest one that almost every rich person does........ to circumvent the higher rates of income tax, they start a shell company.

Suddenly from 50% tax liabilities it becomes merely 22% :smile:

Nearly every footballer or professional musician does that and best part is you could reduce it until it is almost zero if you know what you're doing :biggrin:
Original post by IceWater
Was just wondering, how does "bylaw" work?



Original post by Wattsy
I think it's one of those conventions of old law which is overridden by more current statute law but because of the poor accessibility of every part of the British Constitution they aren't removed.

(Don't take my word for this, I'm not 100%)



http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Byelaws_in_the_United_Kingdom

I haven't checked the accuracy of the article to see if I agree with it but the opening lines are correct.

Basically, they only apply to certain areas e.g. the City of York.
Original post by Erich Hartmann
The easiest one that almost every rich person does........ to circumvent the higher rates of income tax, they start a shell company.

Suddenly from 50% tax liabilities it becomes merely 22% :smile:

Nearly every footballer or professional musician does that and best part is you could reduce it until it is almost zero if you know what you're doing :biggrin:


How would you bring it down to zero?

By simply claiming expenses against the profit on the company's accounts?

Or something more complex than that?

Tax law interests me. :biggrin:
Original post by Erich Hartmann
The easiest one that almost every rich person does........ to circumvent the higher rates of income tax, they start a shell company.

Suddenly from 50% tax liabilities it becomes merely 22% :smile:

Nearly every footballer or professional musician does that and best part is you could reduce it until it is almost zero if you know what you're doing :biggrin:


So what they do is to get their employer e.g. football club to actually employ their shell company, who employs them for a nominal sum of e.g. £1, but then since they're the sole shareholder of the shell company - and it has negligible running costs - they get all the 'profit', and it's only subjected to Capital Gains Tax at 22% not Income Tax at the new highest rate of 50%?
Original post by Vinchenko
So what they do is to get their employer e.g. football club to actually employ their shell company, who employs them for a nominal sum of e.g. £1, but then since they're the sole shareholder of the shell company - and it has negligible running costs - they get all the 'profit', and it's only subjected to Capital Gains Tax at 22% not Income Tax at the new highest rate of 50%?


Something like that... but they also could do things like leasing assets, or buying out stuff that they like through the company and then further depreciating it which again nets a saving.

Original post by cocacola2
How would you bring it down to zero?

By simply claiming expenses against the profit on the company's accounts?

Or something more complex than that?

Tax law interests me. :biggrin:


Yah, plus you could cleverly use depreciation as a very clever way to enjoy some of the nicest things there are while saving money at the same time :biggrin:

There are thing like your tax accountant fees and the wages you pay your maid and masseurs that you could use to offset the total amount required to be paid in taxes as well.
Reply 26
Original post by quattro94
Well it is legal to kill any Welshman in Chester city walls on the first Sunday of the month (market day) providing it is done with a longbow. Unfortunately it is a byelaw and has no defence against murder which is pretty disappointing :frown:

I live there and I've never heard anything about the first sunday of the month.
I've always heard it as being after curfew (which was after sunset I believe)

And they have to be in a group of three or more I think.
Reply 28
have been charged with being concerned in the production of cannabis but the charge sheet says at location, place, county, post code were concerned in the production of 8 plants cannabis, the location, place, and county are correct however the post code is wrong on the charge sheet is this a loophole as I cant admit to being guilty as I dont even know the property the postcode is at???
Original post by Dave1963
have been charged with being concerned in the production of cannabis but the charge sheet says at location, place, county, post code were concerned in the production of 8 plants cannabis, the location, place, and county are correct however the post code is wrong on the charge sheet is this a loophole as I cant admit to being guilty as I dont even know the property the postcode is at???
This is a forum for students who have aspirations of becoming lawyers. This is not a forum for legal advice. You need to instruct a solicitor, and thereafter he or she can advise you as needed.
My favourite is that landlords cannot prevent you from keeping a pet rabbit, even if the tenancy agreement says you can't keep any pets.

Allotments Act 1950, section 12.
My favourite piece of trivia relevant to this is that even though it's commonly quoted that it is illegal to drink alcohol in pubs, this is just a misunderstanding of the licensing laws preventing the sale of alcohol to already drunk people. It's not that you can't drink, it's that technically you can't be drunk :wink:
One for the City corporate solicitors on the site. Ever thought of exercising your right of audience to conduct a jury trial defence in a theft case in Doncaster Crown Court?

You have no criminal higher rights, I hear you say.

Stuff and nonsense, I say. You don't need higher rights of audience to defend crims tried for either-way offences in Doncaster. All you need is a practising certificate.

Don't believe me?

Then read [1972] 1 All ER 144



Posted from TSR Mobile
(edited 8 years ago)
Its quite right English Law is not 'codified' that is to say no law is ever stricken from the records when replaced by a new updated law it also serves the prosecutors who can win a case based on 500 year old laws. By the way EVERY taxi driver in this country is breaking the law which states they have to carry adequate Hay and Drinking Water to feed the horses...... (Cars run by Horsepower).
Original post by Vinchenko
So what they do is to get their employer e.g. football club to actually employ their shell company, who employs them for a nominal sum of e.g. £1, but then since they're the sole shareholder of the shell company - and it has negligible running costs - they get all the 'profit', and it's only subjected to Capital Gains Tax at 22% not Income Tax at the new highest rate of 50%?


A good example of a Legal Fiction....
Original post by nulli tertius
One for the City corporate solicitors on the site. Ever thought of exercising your right of audience to conduct a jury trial defence in a theft case in Doncaster Crown Court?

You have no criminal higher rights, I hear you say.

Stuff and nonsense, I say. You don't need higher rights of audience to defend crims tried for either-way offences in Doncaster. All you need is a practising certificate.

Don't believe me?

Then read [1972] 1 All ER 144



Posted from TSR Mobile


I tried searching for the case to no avail.

Are you sure the citation is correct\/
Original post by tehforum
I tried searching for the case to no avail.


You went to a thick blue book and when you looked for page 144 there was just a blank page between pages 143 and 145. :colone:


Are you sure the citation is correct\/


Perhaps this will help.
I will add one or two strange laws that have been abolished in living memory.

The "dry" Welsh Sunday (abolished 2003)

http://www.morningadvertiser.co.uk/Running-your-pub/Training/Final-nail-in-Wales-dry-coffin

The game dealers' two licences

http://www.woking.gov.uk/planning/envhealthservice/food/gamelicences

and two that still exist:-

You cannot run a nail bar in Greater London without a licence.

http://camden.gov.uk/ccm/content/business/business-regulations/licensing-and-permits/licences/other-licences/massage-and-special-treatments/massage-and-special-treatments.en?source=action-nav

You cannot sell secondhand books in Northallerton without a licence.

http://www.northyorks.gov.uk/article/26073/Second-hand-goods
I think you will find the actual law is, it is legal to kill a Scotsman in the walls of York as long as he is carrying a long bow.
I thought the law and the legal system were 2 separate things. What may be legal isn't necessary lawful. Although they would like you to believe it's one and the same.

Quick Reply

Latest