Why do people do it? Why do they sign up for joint tenancies with private landlords together with people they have only just met? I'm sure it all seems terribly exciting, but what are you letting yourself in for with your shiny new shorthold assured tenancy?...
Human Rights and possession claims after Kay v Lambeth
The House of Lords decision in Kay v Lambeth [2006] UKHL 10 addressed Human Rights defences to possession claims, attempting to unify Harrow v Qazi [2004] 1 AC and the subsequent European Court judgement in Connors v United Kingdom [2004] 40 EHRR 189. Qazi...
An exercise in avoiding the point
In an adjournment debate on Legal Aid reforms on 11 January 07, the following exchange took place: Ms Karen Buck (Regent's Park and Kensington, North) (Lab): The Minister said that 60 per cent. of cases will generate more income, and that is the key point,...
Obvious filler 3
I'm having a think about a post on housing law and human rights, but I am busy, tired and having to stand up on the train. In a week that brought us exposed judges, the inadvertent end of solitary confinement as the jails fill up, John Reid begging for...
Social landlords seek to avoid disrepair claims. No repairs involved.
Searching for something else entirely, I stumbled across a press release from the Social Housing Law Association detailing their representations to the DCA on funding for disrepair claims, made late last year. Headed "Move to repel tenants' bogus disrepair...
Blawgs, hurgh, what are they good for?
Navel gazing (or meta blogging) on the future of the law blog seems to be the flavour of the moment in the USA, and on this side of the pond, human law and binary law have weighed in with some thoughtful views on the future of law blogs. With this in mind,...
Comment spam
Apologies if you have had problems accessing the site. There is a torrent of comment spam posting going on and it is hitting my server heavily at the moment. None of it gets through, as I use Askimet for Wordpress, but each attempted spam comment means a...
What do we do with a problem like Ground 8?
To those not acquainted with housing law, Ground 8 is one of the mandatory grounds for possession of an assured tenancy listed in Housing Act 1988 Schedule 2. It forms one of the major differences between an assured tenancy (typically Housing...
And a happy christmas to me.
Unlike Charon QC or even Geeklawyer, I have been away doing the christmas necessaries, and actually very pleasant they were too. On my return today, I find that to my surprise and delight, I have received a Blawg Review Award for 2006. Hurrah and indeed...
Equitable interests and right to buy discounts
A fairly abstruse discussion after the recent fun and games, but, to someone like me who was intrigued and amused while studying equity, an enjoyable one. A recent case involved the client's equitable interest in an ex-council house, formally purchased by...
What did you say?
I've been to Court a few times over the last week or two, including a several day trial (on which more another time, as there were interesting arguments involved). Across these hearings, there have been some significant concerns raised over witness...
Banned from court!
The Law Society's 'what price justice' campaign hits a snag when solicitors are banned from wearing these small, well designed and unobtrusive badges in Magistrates' Court Actually, on closer inspection, it turns out to be a great PR opportunity based on one...