Archive for the 'secure-tenancy' Category

Full of Sound and Fury…

By NL on 19/01/2012. 1 Comment

Signifying nothing*

(*And yes, I am aware that the preceding line is ‘A tale told by an idiot’.)

The much trumpeted Wandsworth riot related eviction has stalled even before possession proceedings were issued. According to a press release from Liberty, following a meeting with the tenant’s legal representatives (the tenant is represented by Liberty), LB Wandsworth agreed not to bring proceedings.

If you recall (and here is our very first take on the matter, written on the day of the press release and subsequent service of Notice Seeking Possession by Wandsworth), the son of the tenant was charged with riot related offences. The son has now been sentenced … Read the full post

Posted in ASB, FLW case note, Housing law - All, Possession and secure-tenancy.

Annual rituals

By NL on 01/01/2012. 1 Comment

Happy new year to all who read, comment on or write for Nearly Legal!

This is usually a moment to take stock of the past year and look forward to the next, but I’m feeling far too lazy to do it properly. Luckily, the DCLG have made the task easier by shouting again that they propose to crack down on subletting. In what is rapidly becoming an annual tradition, Grant Shapps has announced plans to consult on proposals to make sub-letting a criminal offence. Rather oddly, Mr Shapps says:

For too long this country has turned a blind eye on the multi-billion pound problem of housing tenancy fraud

… Read the full post

Posted in assured-tenancy, Housing law - All, Possession, secure-tenancy and Various (non-housing).

Policy, possession and proportionality

By NL on 31/12/2011. 4 Comments

Denry Okpor v London Borough of Lewisham, Bromley County Court 25 October 2011 [Transcript not publicly available]

This was a rolled up permission to appeal and appeal hearing (on which more later) for appeal to a Circuit Judge from a possession order made by a District Judge at Bromley. At issue was whether the District Judge was wrong to reject a) a proportionality defence and b) a gateway B public law defence arising from Lewisham’s failure to follow its own policy. It is interesting as an example of proportionality/gateway B defences in action in the County Court, but also somewhat frustrating, for reasons which will become clear.

Mr Okpor … Read the full post

Posted in FLW case note, Housing law - All, Possession and secure-tenancy. Tags: , , .

Home, realistically and objectively

By NL on 18/12/2011. 0 Comments

London Borough of Islington v Boyle & Anor [2011] EWCA Civ 1450

This rather sad case was Islington’s appeal on the issue of whether Ms Boyle was occupying the flat she had under a secure tenancy as her ‘sole or principal home’. It is a highly significant case in which the Court of Appeal gives guidance on how the Court should approach both ‘continued occupation’ and ‘occupation as only or principal home’ in contested cases.

Ms B had a secure tenancy of a Highbury flat from 1996. She lived there with her ‘on-off’ partner and their three children. The eldest son, Daniel, was severely autistic and suffered from epilepsy, ectodermal … Read the full post

Posted in FLW case note, Housing law - All, Possession and secure-tenancy. Tags: , .

Water Under the Bridge

By David Smith on 02/11/2011. 4 Comments

Rochdale Borough Council v Dixon [2011] EWCA Civ 1173

Apologies for the late delivery of this case note which has been held up by a blizzard (of work rather than the kind afflicting the Eastern USA).

This case is somewhat complicated and involved so you will have to bear with me. In summary it consists of a defence to a possession claim which was based on non-payment of utility charges for the provision of water and sewerage.

Rochdale rented a property on a secure tenancy to Mr Dixon. He has resided there for more than 30 years. About 2 years ago he stopped paying a component of the charges levied … Read the full post

Posted in FLW case note, Housing law - All, Possession and secure-tenancy. Tags: , .

The assignment that wasn’t.

By NL on 25/09/2011. 3 Comments

Haringey LBC v Theobald. Clerkenwell and Shoreditch County Court 7 April 2011

Hat tip to September’s Legal Action ‘Recent Developments in Housing Law’ for this County Court case, and Daniel Fitzpatrick at Hodge Jones & Allen. Not a very significant case but a good illustration of the unintended consequences of the ad hoc arrangements sometimes made by Local Authority housing offices.

Mr Theobald’s father was given a tenancy of a 4 bedroom property by Haringey in 1962. In 1993, the father, suffering from dementia, moved permanently into a care home. Mr T and his brother applied to succeed to what was now a secure tenancy.

Haringey purported to transfer … Read the full post

Posted in FLW case note, Housing law - All, Possession, secure-tenancy and Succession. Tags: .

Ain’t no Cicero

By NL on 19/08/2011. 8 Comments

This, the second post on the riot related possession proposals (the first is here), looks at an article published on the ConservativeHome website by Jake Berry MP, Parliamentary Private Secretary to Grant Shapps, and Tory MP for the gritty urban constituency of Rossendale and Darwen in Lancashire.

OK, that last bit may be a bit of a fib, but the roads, lanes and bridle ways of Rossendale and Darwen are, it would seem, not without tensions.

“The community in Rossendale and Darwen is strong, with the glue of fantastic schools, strong churches, youth clubs and community groups binding us together. Even with our strong society, we have to

… Read the full post

Posted in ASB, assured-tenancy, Housing law - All, Possession, secure-tenancy and Various (non-housing).
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