As noted in the previous post, the Govt has announced that the ban on evictions in England will be extended to the end of March 2021. It was due to end on 22 February. The regulations putting this into effect have not been made public yet. We will have to...
New last minute rule changes! (Well, directions)
It was the Friday afternoon on the date that the old rules were due to expire, so naturally, as is now utterly traditional, new rules appeared without notice or fanfare. CPR Practice Direction 55C was updated this afternoon, 29 January 2021, on what was to...
Eviction Stay Redux
Breaking with the tradition of laying such regulations on a Friday evening the day before they come into effect, the Govt has laid The Public Health (Coronavirus) (Protection from Eviction) (England) Regulations 2021 on the Friday lunchtime. These...
PSED, breach and ‘subsequent compliance’.
Taylor v Slough Borough Council (2020) EWHC 3520 (Ch) An appeal on the issue of whether a Council landlord's initial failure to have regard to the Public Sector Equality Duty on commencing possession proceedings could be remedied by later performance of that...
Overcrowding, children getting older and ‘deliberate acts’.
Flores, R (on the application of) v London Borough of Southwark (2020) EWCA Civ 1697 The was an appeal to the Court of Appeal from a first instance judicial review (our sceptical report here) of Southwark's decision that the Flores family being in a...
Finally, lawful non-evictions
Why yes, we have been going on about the apparent unlawfulness of the Lord Chancellor suspending evictions by, well, just asking bailiffs not to evict people. We said it in the first place, and also when it was extended for the national lockdown. Today it...
Water Sellers
The Mayor & Burgesses of the Royal Borough of Kingston-Upon-Thames v Moss (2020) EWCA Civ 1381 This was RB Kingston upon Thames' appeal of the High Court's finding that it was a 'water reseller' under the Water Resale Orders 2001 and 2006, and thus not...
Death and Notices.
Gateway Housing Association v Personal Representatives of Ali & Anor (2020) EWCA Civ 1339 In which the Court of Appeal grapple with the requirement to serve a copy of a notice to quit on the Public Trustee, when serving notice on the personal...
Lockdown 2 evictions
Look, I have to be honest, this is getting silly now. On evictions during the now commenced lockdown, the Lord Chancellor, Robert Buckland QC, has once again written a letter to the High Court Enforcement Officers Association (and one has to presume written...
Assortimenti – pre action protocols and stay of eviction hearings
A couple of notes of things of interest and concern. Firstly. The Civil Justice Council is currently conducting a review of the Pre-action protocols. As part of this review we are seeking preliminary views from interested parties on the purpose and operation...
Which Tier are you in, or out?
Via the High Court Enforcement Officers Association, comes sight of a letter from the Lord Chancellor to the HCEOA requesting that no evictions are carried out: a) where Tier 2 or Tier 3 restrictions are in place, and b) during the 11 December 2020 to 11...
Updates on possession notice requirements in Wales
We are once again very grateful to Mike Norman (now of Harrow Law Centre) for the following guest post updating the position on possession claims and notice periods in Wales. Keeping up with England has been more than enough for me... A careful observer...