In what would, were all the world a stage, be a rather overdone bit of dramatic irony, the final publication of the LSC's future legal aid funding arrangements took place yesterday, as did the showing of 'Evicted' on BBC1, part of the Beeb's 'No Home'...
Assured tenant or trespasser? The waiting begins.
On the vexed question of whether a breach of an old style Suspended Possession Order ended an assured tenancy and left a tolerated trespasser, we now have two first level decisions: Stan v Stadium HA at Willesden CC and Knowsley HT v White at Liverpool CC....
Legal Aid. Not funny. At all.
Now we know that the Lord Chancellor's vow to the Law Society that changes in non-criminal legal aid were postponed for a year only apply, post 'clarification', to Family, it is time for a serious look at the new contract for civil legal aid. First of all,...
Over sensitive
Apologies to anyone who isn't a comment spammer and found themselves blocked from the blog. I was trying out 'Bad Behaviour', which promised to block suspicious activity. It did. It also blocked me. It turned out that a zealous spam IP blacklist that the...
Spitting feathers
Background. Another disrepair case against a private landlord. Another successful application for default judgement, granted about 6 months ago. Solid evidence. All the directions for quantum hearing complied with by us, to nil response from the landlord....
Divorce for the unmarried.
Interesting to see the Government publicising proposals for setting up property distribution mechanisms for ex-cohabiting couples somewhat ahead of the Law Commission's final report. The Guardian's paper account, if not its online report, compared the...
Assured trespassers?
[Amended 21 October] After a comment from Olamide Sanni, and a significant number of visitors from housing associations/social landlords turning up in my logs, it is clear that there is a big grey area for tolerated trespassers and the effect of Bristol CC....
How not to be a landlord
From a recent case, a fairly textbook example of how not to go about things as a private landlord. The client was a shorthold assured tenant, with a years' assured period and a monthly rent. Rent was paid by housing benefit, and the inevitable problems arose...
Kafka didn't do dialogue
But I am very impressed that Brian Barder, the ex-SIAC lay member who resigned on principle does. Mr Barder commented on my post via the trackback at his blog. I've posted a comment in response, but I'd like to post his comment and my response here, for two...
Kafka
Ah yes, the Special Immigration Appeals Commission. Lest we forget, this is the tribunal which hears evidence that is so secret that the Defendant isn't allowed to know what it is, and in which there is no need for the Defendant to actually be charged with...
Liberty on the barricades
Jonathon Freedland has an eminently sensible opinion piece in the Guardian on why legal aid matters and where Carter is a disaster. The article is clear and impassioned, but also sadly true in suggesting that this is unlikely to be an issue that leads to the...
All shall have prizes
On 3rd October, the European Court released its judgement in Cadman v HSE. Few people can have missed this as, for instance, there were large articles in the Guardian and the Times. Moreover, few people can miss that these articles draw deeply divergent...