Mayor and Burgesses of the London Borough of Tower Hamlets v Khan (2022) EWCA Civ 831 A Court of Appeal judgment on whether a freeholder, LB Tower Hamlets, was entitled to contractual legal costs under the lease, following a money claim for unpaid service...
Management transfers and public functions: R(TRX) v Network Homes
This judicial review of R(TRX) v Network Homes (2022) EWHC 456 (Admin) CO/3538/2021 is a useful restatement of the principles which apply in determining when decisions of Private Registered Providers of social housing (Housing Associations) can be judicially...
Unlawful eviction – but landlord not liable
Brem v Murray & Marchant (2022) EWHC 1479 (QB) An appeal judgment from a first instance judgment on a claim for unlawful eviction, which deals with the landlord's liability for the unlawful eviction that had taken place. Mr Brem ran a hairdressing salon....
Freezing Houses
Still lots of cases and other things to write up, now including an appeal decision on liability for unlawful eviction damages by an intermediate landlord where the superior landlord illegally evicted the sub-tenant, and tomorrow (or today, depending on when...
Failure of section 189B duty
Our grateful thanks to Daniel Grütters of One Pump Court for this note of a recent section 204 appeal judgment on Westminster City Council's performance (or lack thereof) of the s.189B Housing Act 1996 duty (the 'help to secure' or relief duty). Mr Miro...
A deliberate act needs options to choose between.
Milton Laines Roman (R OAO) v London Borough of Southwark (2022) EWHC 1232 (Admin) This was a judicial review of LB Southwark's refusal to place the claimant in Band 1 of its Allocation Scheme, on the basis that the claimant's current overcrowding in a...
Fire Safety updates
A couple of fire safety updates of relevance to leaseholders. The Fire Safety Act 2021 sections 1 and 3 came into force on 12 May 2022. The FSA amended the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 in order to make it clear that the duties under the 2005...
And no extensions
Kalonga, R (On the Application Of) v London Borough of Croydon (2022) EWCA Civ 670 The Court of Appeal was faced with the question of whether a local authority had the power to extend time for a flexible tenant to request a review of the authority's decision...
Unravelling – the effect of a debt moratorium on enforcement steps taken during it.
Lees v Kaye (2022) EWHC 1151 (QB) This is another judgment on the operation of the Debt Respite Scheme (Breathing Space Moratorium and Mental Health Crisis Moratorium) (England & Wales) Regulations 2020. (The first was part of the Brake v Axnoller...
Suitable for the likes of you
Today (Weds 11 May) the Govt sneaked out The Homelessness (Suitability of Accommodation) (Amendment) (England) Order 2022. This comes into effect on 1 June 2022 and is stated to expire on 1 June 2023 The regs amend The Homelessness (Suitability of...
Something to look forward to
The Queen's Speech was delivered earlier today. As is usually the way, the speech itself didn't have much to say about anything. What matters - and what contains the details - is the Briefing Pack produced after each speech. It's available here. It looks...
Notes and gloats.
It is being reported that reform of the private rented sector, including the abolition of section 21, will be in the next Queen's Speech. It may not be a renters reform bill but part of a larger 'levelling up' bill, which does make one wonder about its...