Lana Wilson v London Borough of Harrow [2010] EWHC 1574 (QB) This was the combined permission/appeal hearing in the High Court from a first instance hearing by a CJ of a defence to a possession claim based on an NTQ served by a joint tenant. The principal...
Housing Benefit limits
You've probably already seen this, but new upper limits on housing benefit rates are to be introduced from next April (2011). For a three bed house, the upper limit will be £340 per week For a four bed house, the upper limit will be £400 per week LHA will be...
All mimsy were the borogoves
The Jabberwock of the tenancy deposit scheme came whiffling again, in the tulgey wood of Northampton County Court. This time it was the clause that catch to beware of. And there's a disrepair claim in there too. Paula O'Brien v Jacqueline Jones & Andrew...
The quietus of the tolerated trespasser
Austin v London Borough of Southwark [2010] UKSC 28 It has been a long story for Mr Austin and a long, long, long story for the tolerated trespasser. But this Supreme Court judgment should be the last time the Supreme Court is troubled by the legacy of...
A farewell to the pink campervan?
It appears that the Tenant Services Authority is living on borrowed time and is on route to being the shortest lived social housing regulator ever, having got its full powers only in April 2010. There will probably be an announcement at the Chartered...
Measuring a measured duty
Lambert & Ors v Barratt Homes Ltd & Anor [2010] EWCA Civ 681 This was the Court of Appeal hearing of an appeal by Rochdale MBC (the anor in this case) against the judgment of HHJ Grenfell in the Technology and Construction Court. The issue was the...
A bumper pack of unlawful eviction – updates from Legal Action
In the second post of County Court cases you will already have read in June's Legal Action Housing updates, we turn to unlawful eviction and harassment. And it appears to have been a rich few months in this regard, with no fewer than five cases to note....
Re-entry and re-opening: updates from Legal Action
June's Legal Action housing updates have a bumper collection of interesting county court cases, as you'll already know. For our archives, this is the first of a couple of posts. This one deals with cases on post-eviction re-entry and on re-opening possession...
Pulling the Rugg out from under them
Housing Minister Grant Shapps has now confirmed that not only the National Landlord Register is finished as a proposal. Also dead in the water are regulation of letting and managing agents, and compulsory written tenancy agreements. Councils are 'urged to...
Housing policy dribbles
Or the good, the bad and the ugly from the Housing minister and the Communities and Local Government secretary. Grant Shapps, housing minister has been setting out some plans, or perhaps aspirations. Mostly, these seem to involve encouraging people to buy...
Care Home closure – not admissible to ECtHR
Louisa WATTS v the United Kingdom - 53586/09 [2010] ECHR 793 This was the admissibility hearing of a case brought by Yvonne Hossack on the closure of a care home by Wolverhampton BC and transfer of the residents to other care homes. Ms Watts was a resident...
Accommodating an abducted child
EA v GA & Westminster City Council & Salford City Council [2010] EWCA Civ 586 [Not on Bailii, transcript on Lawtel] This is a little outside our usual grounds, but as it concerns the Court's power to direct Local Authorities to accommodate a child and...