This is a guest post by Michelle Caney and Nicholas Towers of St Ives Chambers. Anyone wanting to enforce possession orders should keep an eye on Cardiff County Council v Lee (Flowers), scheduled to be heard by the Court of Appeal on 18 or 19 October 2016,...
Oppression and the rent arrears protocol
Home Group Limited v Jacqueline Emery & anor, Edmonton County Court 08/08/16 (County Court decision unreported elsewhere). This is a county court case, so not binding, but involves an interesting issue on what might amount to oppression in obtaining a...
Wrong warrants? Issues in N325 compliance
This is a guest post by Jonathan Holt of Garden Court North Chambers. GCN’s Jonathan Holt sets out below the background and detail to the recent emergence of a potential argument employable by those facing a warrant for possession, whether it be as the...
Conditions of repentance – SPOs
City West Housing Trust v Massey [2016] EWCA Civ 704 When considering a suspended possession order, how should the judge exercise their discretion where the tenant's evidence has been disbelieved, in whole or part? And should an SPO impose conditions which...
Rent increases and rent lawfully due
This is a guest post by Prof. Ian Loveland of Arden Chambers, first published in Legal Action June 2016, and gratefully posted here with permission. A few years ago now, I was instructed by Luton Law Centre in a series of possession cases brought by BPHA (a...
Curiosities and wonders
When the First Respondent in a possession case is styled "The Sovereign Indigenous Peoples of Scotland" and the second, named, Respondent describes himself as "A Member of the Government of Scotland", you suspect that you know in advance how things will go....
The mystery of the Minister’s many bits
There might be much to mock and/or weep at in the Housing and Planning Bill, but this afternoon reached a degree of the surreal, as the Bill returned to the House of Lords following the Govt vote in the Commons to reject all the Lords amendments. Shelter...
Not thinking things through – miscellany
Assorted bits on the theme of acting hastily and not thinking things through... Exhibit 1. The Housing and Planning Bill. This evening, it completed third reading in the House of Lords and heads back to the Commons. While there will no doubt be some ping...
Misc on taxes – council and bedroom
Some notes on council tax liability and bedroom tax Upper Tribunal cases. Council tax - how do you go about setting aside and/or appealing a council tax liability order? It turns out to be far from straightforward (you might already have known this. I...
Private parts.
Macleod, R (on the application of) v The Governors of the Peabody Trust [2016] EWHC 737 (Admin) Ever since R (Weaver) v London and Quadrant Housing Trust [2010] 1 WLR 363 (our report) there has been an ongoing issue as to whether housing associations (or...
High Court enforcement continued
In what has turned into a continuing series, there are further updates on enforcement of possession orders via the High Court, obtaining writs and the scandalous conduct of many High Court Enforcement Officers. (Previous posts here and here) Secretary of...
Find a new place to dwell
Or spousal rights after notice to quit served by joint tenant. Derwent Housing Association Limited v Taylor, Court of Appeal (Civ Div) 19 January 2016 (unreported as far as I can see, apart from this note by Shoosmiths, for which we are suitably grateful)....