The London Borough of Croydon v Lopes [2017] EWHC 33 (QB) Costs on settled s.204 Housing Act 1996 appeals - the issue that never goes away. The latest instalment also brings with it some rather sharp findings by the Court of Appeal on the extent of inquiries...
Leases, tribunals and contractual costs
87 St George’s Square Management Ltd v Whiteside [2016] UKUT 438 (LC) The vexed issues of costs in service charge disputes rumble on. Willow Court Management Company (1985) Ltd v Alexander [2016] UKUT 0290 (LC) (our note) set out guidance for how and when...
In the Tribunals…
Quick notes on a couple of Upper Tribunal (Lands Chamber) cases. Cardiff Community Housing Association Ltd v Kahar [2016] UKUT 279 (LC) Ms K had a weekly tenancy of a flat (initially her daughter's flat but assigned to her in 2014 by mutual exchange). The...
Please sir, can I have some more?
This is really a costs issue, though it was on a leasehold disrepair claim. A county court decision, so not binding, but as we'll see, consonant with a High Court decision and on an issue on which there appears to be some debate. This was an application...
The wheels of justice turn slowly, but grind small
Or how to end up with a personal liability for £100,000 within 5 years of qualification as a solicitor. The Charles Henry/Legal Action fallout continues, and very painfully for some involved. For those who have missed the saga of Charles Henry, the pretend...
Money down the drain
Court v Van Dijk & Anor [2016] EWCA Civ 483 Nuisance cases are tricky. There is a lot to establish for causation, for liability and for loss. This case is perhaps a cautionary tale about the need to be constantly alert to changes in the facts and expert...
Tis aw a muddle – costs edition
Morales v Enver (2016) QBD (Irwin J) 28/04/2016 (Not on Bailli - note of judgment on Lawtel) Another case to file under 'things not to do'. Mr M had brought injunction for re-entry proceedings against a landlord and agents. Mr M was the tenant of a...
Disrepair miscellany: Good, bad and ugly.
Perhaps illustrating the need for the Court of Appeal to deliver the judgment in Moorjani (see preceding post), the December 2015 issue of Legal Action has Beatrice Prevatt's excellent annual 'housing repairs update'. We have covered many of the cases...
When to call it a day…
Gitere, R (on the application of) v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2015] EWHC 3336 (Admin) The risks of a client deciding to go it alone at the last stage of judicial review proceedings. Mr G is an asylum seeker, awaiting the outcome of his...
Over egging it.
NJ Rickard Ltd -v- Holloway (CA 03/11/2015) (Lawtel note of extempore judgment only so far) Sometimes winning isn't enough... A cautionary tale, in all sorts of ways. This was a Court of Appeal hearing on an appeal on costs. The original case was the...
Trial judge and costs. Ooops.
I've heard about a few costs decisions by trial judges recently which might be considered, to put it politely, interesting, or brave, in the Yes Minister sense. So it was with some interest that I read the Court of Appeal decision in Begum v Birmingham City...
Extremely loud and incredibly close
This is about loud and disturbing noises. I was going to write up Coventry & Ors v Lawrence & Anor [2014] UKSC 13 when it came out in February, given that it made some significant changes to common law nuisance claims. But it was 249 paragraphs and...