The Sevenoaks Business Awards Celebrates Local BusinessesOn Friday 13th September, we supported the Sevenoaks Business Awards, which congratulates the local businesses of Sevenoaks for their hard work and dedication to making the town what it is today. Manak Solicitors were the main sponsor of the event, and our Managing Director Surinder Singh Manak was proud to announce the winner of the first award. We have always believed that the Small and Medium businesses of Sevenoaks are the heartbeat of the town, and celebrating their achievements is important in growing and supporting their work.There were many prominent guests at the award ceremony. Hosting for the evening was former Entrepreneur of the Year Paul Andrews from the Kent Business Bunker Radio Show https://www.kentbusinessradio.co.uk. Paul guided the show and gave a great opening speech about SME’s and their importance in the community.Surinder Manak (centre) with Michael Fallon MP (left) and Sevenoaks Mayor Cllr Nicholas Busvine (right)Also in attendance was the Rt Hon Sir Michael Fallon, Member of Parliament for Sevenoaks. The MP spoke to the attendees about the progress of Sevenoaks over the years and the bright future ahead for the town thanks to the businesses thriving there. Alongside him was the Sevenoaks Mayor, Cllr Nicholas Busvine OBE.Guest Speaker Eddie “The Eagle” EdwardsAs a special guest, Eddie “The Eagle” Edwards was in attendance and was more than open to talking about his incredible Winter Olympics ski jumping career and how hard work and determination got him to the heights he achieved, figuratively and literally! He also reminded us of the feature film that was released of his story in 2015, and his reaction when he found out Hollywood stars Taron Egerton and Hugh Jackman were going to be playing the lead roles! The incredibly entertaining speech gave huge laughs and Eddie’s own character made a great opening to the Business Awards.All of the Winners of The Sevenoaks Business AwardsThere were too many awards and worthy winners to mention individually, but we would like to congratulate all those that were nominated for each award. We would also like to thank the Sevenoaks Town Partnership for putting on the ceremony. It was flawlessly executed and a great time was had by all that attended.We would also like to thank all those that came to the awards ceremony. The theatre at Knole Academy was packed with local business leaders and important people to the Sevenoaks community. It was great meeting you all and we hope to see you again in the near future.Staff of Manak Solicitors with the Winner of The Judge’s Choice Award (Sevenoaks Summer Festival)

Manak Solicitors are extremely proud to be announced at the primary sponsor for Gravesend based football club Punjab United FC. This semi-professional team is run by British Sikhs and took part in the BBC documentary series “Our Lives”, which followed the team in their build up to a crucial season.Following the national attention from the Our Lives series, Punjab United FC have made great renovations to their ground and are building a brand new stadium to celebrate this. We are looking forward to seeing the new facilities in this upcoming season! The newly renovated stadium will be branded as the “Manak Stadium” and will also open the”M Bar” so you can get refreshments during the game!Manak Stadium BrandingPunjab United FC joins the Manak Solicitors sponsored teams, along with Sevenoaks Town FC and Orpington FC U13’s. We are very proud to welcome them into the family!Punjab United FC have some big news regarding their first FA Cup fixture. The game against Broadbridge Heath FC at the newly named “Manak Stadium” will be streamed by the BBC on iPlayer and BBC Sport! The game takes place on Saturday 10th August at 12:30pm. This gives you the perfect opportunity to watch the team in action as they aim to move forward in the competition. We would like to wish the team the best of luck in the FA Cup game and for the season!Manak Solicitors Managing Director Surinder Manak had these words to say – “We are extremely proud to partner with Punjab United FC and further our involvement in the Gravesend community. We have been genuinely impressed with the progress of the club in the past few years which has culminated with the fantastic BBC One documentary. We feel this is the perfect time to support this football club as it aims even higher going forward and invests in new facilities for the new season. This is a multi-year agreement which we hope conveys our commitment to helping the team as much as we can. We’re looking forward to attending matches at Manak Stadium and cheering on the team!”

The 2nd Annual Manak Golf Day took place on Thursday 11th July at Chelsfield Lakes Golf Centre. It was a beautiful day and the course was in great condition, just perfect for a round of golf! Everyone out on the course was playing for the chance to win the coveted Manak Solicitors Claret Jug, as well as to take the prizes for the Nearest To The Pin and Longest Drive competitions. We were once again proudly fundraising for Breast Cancer Care; a wonderful charity we have partnered with numerous times who help those affected by breast cancer.Before we could kick it off however, we needed to ensure we had the energy to spend the next 4 hours in the sun! Chelsfield Lakes laid on an excellent breakfast buffet, and we provided every player with custom Manak Solicitors Titleist golf balls and tees. Once everyone was geared up, it was time to hit the course!(from left to right) The Bandit Trophy, The Manak Solicitors Claret Jug, The Runner Up TrophyThe first group tee’d off at about 10:30 and we were underway. The heat meant that the greens played quite firm for putting. On the course, PGA Professional and entertainer for the evening Paul Barrington joined us for a couple of holes to show us how it is done. After a good round of golf, each group came back to the clubhouse and cooled down before the entertainment.Paul Barrington giving one of the groups a crash-course on teeing offPaul Barrington was all set up on the driving range ready to wow our guests. With his expert golf tricks and sense of humour, he gave a light-hearted but very impressive trick shot show. Members of the audience also participated, with a high tee competition, hitting a bouncing golf ball, a cricket golf competition and an incredible test of trust! A huge thank you to Paul for putting on an amazing show that everyone is still talking about!Paul Barrington testing an audience members trust in his golf skillsAfter the show, it was time to go back inside and get ready for dinner. Chelsfield Lakes hit a hole in one once again with the food, serving up a wonderful three-course meal for our attendees. We had a heartfelt speech from Steph Harrison who told us about Breast Cancer Care and how they helped her when going through the diagnosis of breast cancer.Next up we had the announcement of the raffle winners. Congratulations to all who won a prize and thank you all for buying tickets! We are very proud to announce that we raised £1,100 for Breast Cancer Care at our Golf Day this year! This was a significant increase on last years total and we are incredibly proud to raise over one thousand pounds for the charity! This is all for a very worthy cause and we cannot thank you enough for giving your generous support.Claret Jug Winner Satinder Sandhu with Steph Harrison and Surinder Manak Finally it was time to announce the winners!Winner of the Claret Jug – Satinder Sandhu – 45 pointsRunner Up – Kieran Long – 44 pointsNearest to the Pin – Nimms DingriLongest Drive – Martin PriceBandit – Dan Lautier (41 points off 24 handicap)Congratulations to all our winners! We look forward to seeing Satinder defend his trophy at the next Golf Day!Bottle of Prosecco given to each attendee to thank them for attendingThe golf day was a resounding success and we had an excellent time at Chelsfield Lakes Golf Centre! We look forward to seeing you all again next year!To see the full collection of photos please click hereTo learn more about Breast Cancer Care, Paul Barrington and the golf course, click the links below.Breast Cancer Care – https://www.breastcancercare.org.ukPaul Barrington Golf Trick Shots – https://www.paulbarrington.com/Chelsfield Lakes Golf Centre – https://chelsfieldlakes.co.uk/

We are pleased to say that the Perry Hall School Summer Fair that took place on 6th July raised over an amazing £4,000 for the school! Manak Solicitors and many other local businesses sponsored the event and donated to the raffle prizes, where £900 was raised from raffle tickets alone.Manak donated the top prize for the raffle, family tickets for Legoland and £50 in spending money! Congratulations to all the winners, and thank you for buying a ticket!The money raised from the summer fair will go directly into the school and support the children in their learning. We are proud to have been part of such an impactful event and we look forward to seeing what the fundraising provides for the school.Thank you to the Perry Hall School PTA for putting on such an amazing event and raising an incredible amount of money!

Manak Sponsored competitive swimmer Jaedon Lynch attended the Carifta Championship in Barbados in April, after being selected to represent the Jamaican National Swim team.At the event, Jaedon had an excellent performance, winning two silver medals and one bronze medal. He also posted personal best times in the 200m Butterfly, 200m Individual Medley and 200m Breaststroke.All of us at Manak Solicitors are incredibly proud to support Jaedon and we look forward to the next event!Jaedon is ranked as a Top 5 swimmer in the Kent County and South East region in most 50m and 100m events.

Manak sponsored swimmer Jaedon Lynch was recently selected to represent Jamaica again, this time at the Caribbean and Central American Championships which was held in Barbados from 28th June to 3rd July 2019.This was the 4th call up for the youngster to represent the country.26 countries competed at the championshipsMexicoPanamaDominican RepublicPuerto RicoBahamasBermudaBarbadosArubaVenezuelaJamaicaHondurasTrinidad & TobagoGuatemalaGuadeloupeEl SalvadorSurinameGrenadaNicaraguaSt LuciaCayman IslandsMartiniqueUS Virgin IslandsAntigua & BarbudaCuracaoHaitiSt Kitts & NevisIt was a tough competition for Jaedon as he competed with the best swimmers in that part of the world and had to adjust to the hot weather conditions and time zones.However, Jaedon showed tremendous strength of character and determination by swimming a personal best time on the breast stroke leg of  the 4x100m Medley to help team Jamaica 13-14 year old boys to secure a 3rd place finish and a bronze medal!Jaedon will now return to the UK to focus on his preparation for the English National Championships in August.Jaedon is one of the top ranked 24 English swimmers who have been selected for the championships.The National Summer Meet is Swim England’s biggest domestic swimming event of the year and forms part of a swimming competition structure in Great Britain whereby the top ranked swimmers in each event are invited to compete at the British Swimming Summer Championships.Jaedon will be competing in the 50m Breaststroke event.

Manak Solicitors are incredibly proud to be able to sponsor The Food Fest at Lullingstone Castle this year! We had amazing weather over the two days and we definitely made the most of it as everyone was enjoying the sun, eating food and listening to the best unsigned music acts in the UK! The sun was beating down all weekend making it the hottest days of the year so far, a perfect time to hold The Food Fest!The Food Fest hosted some incredible food stalls from around the world, including Thai, Moroccan, Steak, Pizza, Barbecue and many, many more! It was great to see the community come together and celebrate over some delicious food on a sunny June weekend! The variety of food available was amazing to see, and we loved to see so many independent food stalls attend and show off their products to the public. We felt very full after sampling a lot of the foods on offer!The Food Fest also hosted the best unsigned music acts in the UK, many of which performed on our own Manak Stage. We loved seeing everyone flock to the stage to support the bands and artists, who all put on an amazing show for the crowd. The crowd participation was also excellent, singing along and giving the performers standing ovations. The Acoustic stage also had a great turnout, giving our solo performers a chance to shine!Thank you to everyone that attended the event to make it a very memorable experience. We would also like to say thank you to Lullingstone Castle, all of the businesses, the other sponsors of the event and of course The Food Fest organisers for putting on a great festival. We are already counting down the days until next year!

On 19th February 2019, the Home Secretary announced that Shamima Begum was to be deprived of her UK citizenship on the grounds that she was able to obtain citizenship of another country.This raises the question as to whether it is lawful for the Home Secretary to deprive Shamima Begum of her British citizenship, if by doing so she were to be made stateless.Under section 40 of the British Nationality Act 1981 the Secretary of State may make an order to deprive a person of citizenship status if satisfied that it is conducive to the public good. If such a person were to be made stateless as a result of the order then the Secretary also has to consider whether there are reasonable grounds for believing that they are able to become a national of a country outside the UK.In Shamima Begum’s case, it has been widely reported that she is also of Bangladeshi descent and may therefore be able to acquire citizenship of that country. This is of course subject to the nationality laws of Bangladesh.What is perhaps certain is that there will be an appeal against the Home Secretary’s decision, the outcome of which will be widely anticipated and scrutinised. The citizenship rights of her new born son will also be of primary consideration.Stay informed and visit our immigration law page to find out more.Kemesha LynchImmigration SolicitorManak Solicitors

PRESS RELEASE22nd February 2019Nosheen Bukhari, Solicitor and Director of Manak Solicitors in Kent is urging people to check their eligibility for a lasting power of attorney (LPA) fee refund, after almost two million people were overcharged by the Office of the Public Guardian (OPG) between 2013 and 2017. Claimants can expect to receive a refund of up to £54, with any accrued interested since the registration was made.So far, only 200,000 of the 1.8million people owed have claimed their refund, meaning that there’s £77million still owed to customers.To apply for a refund visit: http://gov.uk/power-of-attorney-refund. The exact amount will depend on when the registration was made, and claims must be made by 1st February 2021.An LPA is an important document that gives a loved one the power to make decisions on your behalf when you can no longer do so. There are two types of LPA: a health and welfare LPA, and a property and financial affairs LPA.Recent research from SFE found that there are only 7% of LPAs in place across the UK, meaning that millions of people are currently unprepared for later life. SFE urges anyone planning for their future to consider setting up an LPA and seek advice from a specialist lawyer.Lakshmi Turner, Chief Executive of SFE, said:“Whilst it’s comforting to know that people are making provisions by putting in place LPAs, millions of families, many of whom may have been going through a tough time with elderly relatives, will have been needlessly overcharged.“It’s good to see the OPG addressing the error, and with the deadline for applications approaching, we’re urging people to check their eligibility for a refund soon.”Nosheen Bukhari said:“It takes about ten minutes to claim online. You’ll need the donor’s bank details and a copy of the LPA, if you have it. If you need help or more information about making a claim, there’s a Refunds Helpline you can contact, either via telephone on 0300 456 0300 or email [email protected].”If you need assistance, speak to your local SFE lawyer. To find an SFE accredited lawyer near you go to: http://www.sfe.legalFor more information on Manak Solicitors please contact 01689 870 769For more information on SFE, interviews and case studies please contact Georgie Wilson on 0203 6965800 [email protected]