Accept no substitutes – NearlyLegal

“Purewal v Ealing Borough Council (2013) CA Civ Div 05/11/2013.
This was Ealing’s appeal from a s.204 appeal brought by Ms Purewal. At the s.204 appeal, the Circuit Judge had varied Ealing’s review decision that Ms P was intentionally homeless and substituted a decision that she was unintentionally homeless.”

Full story

NearlyLegal, 6th November 2013

Source: www.nearlylegal.co.uk/blog/

Deaf and blind man fears losing home over “bedroom tax” as disabled legal challenges mount – The Independent

Posted October 29th, 2013 in benefits, disabled persons, housing, news, social services by sally

“A deaf and blind man who uses his spare bedroom to store braille equipment fears that he could lose his home due to the ‘bedroom tax’ as lawyers warned that the controversial measure is having a discriminatory impact on the disabled.”

Full story

The Independent, 28th October 2013

Source: www.independent.co.uk

When a decision-maker gives retro-reasons – UK Human Rights Blog

Posted October 28th, 2013 in appeals, housing, judicial review, local government, news, planning, reasons by sally

“This planning judicial review tackles the problem posed by an authority who says one thing in its formal reasons granting planning permission, and another thing in the court proceedings when the grant is challenged.”

Full story

UK Human Rights Blog, 25th October 2013

Source: www.ukhumanrightsblog.com

Why We Can’t Trust Judges to Beat the Bedroom Tax – Garden Court Chambers Blog

Posted October 17th, 2013 in benefits, housing, news, political parties, social security by sally

“Liz Davies explains that, although the courts may be able to help a few individuals, we need to step up the political battle.”

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Garden Court Chambers Blog, 17th October 2013

Source: www.gclaw.wordpress.com

The House That Jackson Built – Zenith Chambers

Posted October 15th, 2013 in budgets, civil procedure rules, disclosure, housing, news, witnesses by sally

“It is now almost 6 months since the Brave New World of Jackson. This article considers the impact (if any) the reforms and stated ‘culture change’ have had, and are likely to have, upon those practising housing law.”

Full story

Zenith Chambers, 15th October 2013

Source: www.zenithchambers.co.uk

POSHFA! – NearlyLegal

Posted October 15th, 2013 in confiscation, crime, housing, landlord & tenant, news, rent by sally

“The Prevention of Social Housing Fraud Act comes into force tomorrow (Tuesday 15 October 2013) in England only. The text of the Act is here. A key point is the introduction of ‘Unlawful Profit Orders’, which get around the decision of the Court of Appeal in Sumal v Newham London Borough Council [2012] EWCA Crim 1840 that confiscation of rent was not possible because ‘the continued receipt of the rent was not the product of the appellants crime’. (Admittedly that was a prosecution for an unlicensed property in a selective licensing area under section 95(1) of the Housing Act 2004, but the point about confiscation not being enabled under statute had broader application).”

Full story

NearlyLegal, 14th October 2013

Source: www.nearlylegal.co.uk

Do you have a Right to Rent? – NearlyLegal

Posted October 11th, 2013 in bills, housing, human rights, immigration, landlord & tenant, news by sally

“The Government has today published the Immigration Bill in the Commons. We have previously commented on this planned bill and we had been hoping that it might be quietly shelved or downgraded. However that appears not to be the case. From our point of view we are only interested in the housing related provisions in Chapter 1 of Part 3 (which start here) and I am not going to discuss the rest of the Bill.”

Full story

NearlyLegal, 10th October 2013

Source: www.nearlylegal.co.uk

Playboy lawyer in dispute with ‘hunny bunny’ – Daily Telegraph

Posted October 10th, 2013 in barristers, housing, news by tracey

“A judge has refused to rule that an ex-model who was part of a playboy lawyer’s ‘hunny bunnies’ club has no claim to flat and Range Rover he bought her.”

Full story

Daily Telegraph, 9th October 2013

Source: www.telegraph.co.uk

May: Living in UK to get tougher for illegal immigrants – BBC News

Posted October 10th, 2013 in banking, bills, health, housing, immigration, news by tracey

“Home Secretary Theresa May says illegal immigrants will find it much harder to set up home in the UK under new laws. The Immigration Bill will require banks to check the immigration status of people applying to open accounts, and private landlords to make similar checks on their tenants.”

Full story

BBC News, 10th October 2013

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Bedroom Tax – Exciting but steady on…! – Hardwicke Chambers

Posted October 8th, 2013 in appeals, benefits, housing, news, regulations, social security by sally

“I was fortunate at the end of September in two respects when delivering seminars on the subject of welfare reform; firstly I had been allocated the primary subject of the bedroom tax to talk upon, and secondly I was able to report and expand on exciting news that was breaking in this field.”

Full story

Hardwicke Chambers, 2nd October 2013

Source: www.hardwicke.co.uk

Genesis Housing Association Ltd v Liberty Syndicate Management Ltd for and on behalf of Liberty Syndicate 4472 at Lloyd’s – WLR Daily

Genesis Housing Association Ltd v Liberty Syndicate Management Ltd for and on behalf of Liberty Syndicate 4472 at Lloyd’s [2013] EWCA Civ 1173; [2013] WLR (D) 368

“The inadvertent naming of the wrong builder in a proposal form for insurance against latent defects including cover for the insolvency of the builder during the construction of social housing units, constituted a breach of warranty entitling the insurers to avoid the policy.”

WLR Daily, 4th October 2013

Source: www.iclr.co.uk

The (absence of) reasons in Redcar – NearlyLegal

Posted October 7th, 2013 in appeals, benefits, disabled persons, housing, landlord & tenant, news by sally

“You may well have seen or heard press stories on a First Tier tribunal bedroom tax appeal decision in Redcar and Cleveland. There has been a lot of excitable comment about it representing a ‘landmark appeal‘ and ‘hope for 440,000 disabled’. Even the tenant’s landlord, who supported her, described it as ‘fantastic news’ which ‘which should give hope to hundreds of thousands of disabled people right across the country’.”

Full story

NearlyLegal, 5th October 2013

Source: www.nearlylegal.co.uk

Lord chancellor faces legal aid court action – Law Society’s Gazette

Posted October 4th, 2013 in housing, judicial review, law firms, legal aid, news by sally

“A leading East Midlands firm is to take court action against the lord chancellor Chris Grayling over restrictions on its legal aid contract.”

Full story

Law Society’s Gazette, 3rd October 2013

Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk

And another one… – Nearly Legal

“Another bedroom tax judicial review has just been issued.”

Full story

Nearly Legal 30th September 2013

Source: www.nearlylegal.co.uk/blog/

Munir Farooqi case: Family home set to be seized under terrorism laws – The Independent

Posted October 1st, 2013 in appeals, assets recovery, forfeiture, housing, news, terrorism by sally

“The family home of a man convicted of attempting to recruit two undercover police officers to fight British soldiers in Afghanistan is set to become the first to be seized in the UK under terrorism laws.”

Full story

The Independent, 30th September 2013

Source: www.independent.co.uk

Westminster clear up – NearlyLegal

Posted September 30th, 2013 in appeals, benefits, disabled persons, housing, landlord & tenant, local government, news by sally

“There has been a lot of excitement about the Westminster FTT bedroom tax appeal by Mr Surinder Lall (eg Guardian, CAB). As I mentioned in my last post on the FTT bedroom tax decisions, it was hard to tell what had happened by looking at the decision itself and the press reports. Some, like the CAB, have taken the view that it was Mr Lall’s use of the second room to hold and use equipment related to his disability (he is blind) that was the basis of the decision. If so, this would be a ‘current use’ decision and highly significant, in view of the DWP’s position that ‘tenant use’ should not be a factor.”

Full story

NearlyLegal, 28th September 2013

Source: www.nearlylegal.co.uk

Court of Appeal to rule in terror house seizure case – BBC News

Posted September 30th, 2013 in Afghanistan, appeals, families, housing, news, repossession, terrorism by sally

“The Court of Appeal could pave the way later for the first ever seizure of a family home as a terrorist asset.”

Full story

BBC News, 30th September 2013

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Bedroom tax defeat for Westminster council in landmark case – The Guardian

Posted September 27th, 2013 in benefits, disabled persons, housing, local government, news, social security by tracey

“A housing association tenant in central London has won an appeal against the imposition of the bedroom tax by Conservative-run Westminster city council, in what is thought to be the first such victory in England.”

Full story

The Guardian, 26th September 2013

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Council to pay out after housing families in B&Bs for longer than six weeks – Local Government Lawyer

“A local authority is set to pay out thousands of pounds after it housed 40 homeless families in bed and breakfast accommodation for longer than the recommended limit of six weeks.”

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Local Government Lawyer, 24th September 2013

Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk

Changing rooms – NearlyLegal

“The bedroom tax First Tier Tribunal decisions are coming in now. And they are intriguing. In some ways, not a surprise, in others somewhat opaque. As well as the first Fife decision, there are another four Fife decisions that I’ve now seen, and a rather frustrating one from Westminster.”

Full story

NearlyLegal, 24th September 2013

Source: www.nearlylegal.co.uk