The future for me is already a thing of the past – Nearly Legal

Posted November 13th, 2019 in appeals, costs, housing, landlord & tenant, news, repairs, third parties by sally

‘This is an important Court of Appeal decision concerning Landlord and Tenant Act 1985, s.19(2) and the reasonable sum payable in advance on account of works where the landlord may be able in future to recover some of the costs from a third party.’

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Nearly Legal, 12th November 2019

Source: nearlylegal.co.uk

Accidental death verdict for man electrocuted on football pitch – The Guardian

Posted October 3rd, 2019 in accidents, health & safety, inquests, news, repairs, sport by tracey

‘A jury has returned a verdict of accidental death at the inquest of a man who was electrocuted as he climbed over a fence to retrieve a football while playing a five-a-side match.’

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The Guardian, 2nd October 2019

Source: www.theguardian.com

New Acts – legislation.gov.uk

Posted September 11th, 2019 in brexit, EC law, leases, legislation, parliament, repairs by tracey

Parliamentary Buildings (Restoration and Renewal) Act 2019

European Union (Withdrawal) (No. 2) Act 2019

Kew Gardens (Leases) Act 2019

Source: www.legislation.gov.uk

Whose windows are these? – Nearly Legal

Posted September 3rd, 2019 in housing, landlord & tenant, news, repairs by sally

‘As should be well known, when it comes to landlord’s repairing responsibilities, an awful lot depends on the wording of the tenancy agreement. See for example, Welsh v Greenwich LBC (2001) 33 HLR 40 CA line of cases where a tenancy clause committing the landlord to keep the property ‘in good condition’ or ‘fit to live in’ made the landlord liable for condensation mould.’

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Nearly Legal, 2nd September 2019

Source: nearlylegal.co.uk

Case Comment: Sveriges Angfartygs Assurans Forening (The Swedish Club) and others v Connect Shipping Inc and another [2019] UKSC 29 – UKSC Blog

Posted July 11th, 2019 in insurance, news, repairs, shipping law, ships, Supreme Court by sally

‘John Butler is a senior associate in the insurance and reinsurance group at CMS, specialising in maritime disputes. John is dual-qualified in Hong Kong and England & Wales, and regularly acts for international clients in Hong Kong litigation and international arbitration, particularly in international trade disputes under charterparties, bills of lading, letters of credit and contracts of affreightment.’

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UKSC Blog, 10th July 2019

Source: ukscblog.com

Council wins Upper Tribunal battle over service charge and replacement central heating – Local Government Lawyer

‘The Upper Tribunal (Lands Chamber) has ruled that the London Borough of Southwark can recover a service charge for work in a leaseholder’s flat after the First Tier Tribunal (FTT) said nothing was payable.’

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Local Government Lawyer, 7th March 2019

Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk

Property Litigation column: Wednesbury unreasonable and landlords: No.1 West India Quay – Hardwicke Chambers

Posted February 19th, 2019 in appeals, consent, interpretation, landlord & tenant, leases, news, repairs, Supreme Court by sally

‘In property law, discretionary powers are common. Such discretionary powers most often confer, on one contracting party, a discretionary power to grant or withhold consent for such things as changes of use, building, or alterations including the grant of consent. They are frequently found in restrictive covenants and in leases and include, for example, “Jervis v Harris” clauses which allow a landlord, during the term of a lease, to enter the demised premises and carry out works to remedy disrepair. The question of how a Court should approach a challenge to the exercise, under a contract, of a discretionary power is an old chestnut.’

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Hardwicke Chambers, 15th February 2019

Source: hardwicke.co.uk

Climate change: ‘Right to repair’ gathers force – BBC News

‘It is frustrating: you buy a new appliance then just after the warranty runs out, it gives up the ghost.’

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BBC News, 9th January 2019

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Landlord fined £25,000 over lack of hot water for disabled tenant – The Guardian

‘The wife of Britain’s most controversial buy-to-let landlord, Fergus Wilson, has been ordered to pay £25,000 in fines and legal costs after a court ruled that she had failed to supply hot water to a disabled tenant.’

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The Guardian, 12th December 2018

Source: www.theguardian.com

New Judgment: S Franses Ltd v The Cavendish Hotel (London) Ltd [2018] UKSC 62 – UKSC Blog

‘This appeal considered the construction of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1954. It specifically considered whether a landlord which intends to carry out works if, and only if, those works are necessary to satisfy s 30(1)(f), and which offers an undertaking to carry out those works in the form of the undertaking given by the respondent in the present case, has the requisite intention for the purposes of ground (f). It also considered whether a landlord whose sole or predominant commercial objective is to undertake works in order to fulfil ground (f) and thereby avoid the grant of a new lease to the tenant, and which offers an undertaking to carry out those works in the form of an undertaking given in the present case, has the requisite intention for the purposes of ground (f).’

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UKSC Blog, 5th December 2018

Source: ukscblog.com

Improvement clauses needing improvement – Nearly Legal

Posted November 23rd, 2018 in appeals, drafting, housing, injunctions, landlord & tenant, news, repairs by sally

‘An object lesson in the need for clarity in tenancy agreements. This was an appeal from a first instance decision of HHJ Luba QC. Mr H was Network’s assured tenant of a flat in a block used for a sheltered housing scheme. Following a fire safety inspection, Network proposed to replace all the flat entrance doors. Mr H would not give access to Network to do so unless certain conditions were met. No agreement was reached and Network applied for an injunction for access.’

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Nearly Legal, 22nd November 2018

Source: nearlylegal.co.uk

‘Dilapidated’ courts need millions for repairs, says top judge – The Guardian

‘Courts in England and Wales are suffering from decades of neglect and need an injection of hundreds of millions of pounds for repairs, the lord chief justice has told MPs.’

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The Guardian, 20th November 2018

Source: www.theguardian.com

Naomi McLoughlin Discusses the Recent Case of Surrey County Council v Hilliard (2018) – Park Square Barristers

‘The legal test in considering a breach of s41 remains to be found in James v Preseli Pembrokeshire DC [1993] PIQR P114 and Jones v Rhondda Cynon Taff CBC [2008] EWCA Civ 1497. Whilst the appellant was successful on the basis two pieces of evidence had not been considered with the correct weight, the lower Court had nonetheless applied the correct legal test.’

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Park Square Barristers, 30th October 2018

Source: www.parksquarebarristers.co.uk

Repairing patented equipment – what is allowed? – Technology Law Update

Posted October 31st, 2018 in news, patents, repairs by sally

‘The owner of an item embodying patented technology is allowed to have the item repaired, but if the repairing goes too far it can stray into “making” the item and infringe the patent. A recent ruling explores the boundary between making and repairing, providing some helpful pointers in relation to complex products.’

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Technology Law Update, 30th October 2018

Source: www.technology-law-blog.co.uk

What is the price of safety? And who pays the price? – Hardwicke Chambers

Posted June 18th, 2018 in fire, health & safety, inquiries, leases, news, repairs by sally

‘On 14 June 2017, 72 people were killed when a huge fire engulfed the Grenfell Tower Block in West London. As we approach the anniversary of that appalling disaster, the inquiry into what happened has only just begun, with harrowing accounts from witnesses and survivors. One thing that does seem clear however, is that the retro-fitted cladding which was applied to the outside of the tower was entirely useless in slowing the blaze. Indeed, it seems that the cladding was itself flammable, feeding the flames, and was fitted in such a way as to aid the spread of the blaze.’

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Hardwicke Chambers, 12th June 2018

Source: www.hardwicke.co.uk

The costs of dangerous cladding – leaseholders position – Nearly Legal

Posted March 27th, 2018 in costs, health & safety, housing, landlord & tenant, news, repairs, service charges by tracey

‘First Tier Tribunal LON/00AH/LSC/2017/0435 – Firstport Property Services Ltd v various leaseholders of Citiscape. We previously saw the Salford decision on the costs of a ‘waking watch’ in a tower with ‘Grenfell’ style cladding, but this was the first, keenly awaited, decision on the liability of leaseholders of an affected building (here in Croydon) to pay for the costs of removal and replacement of such cladding under their leases.’

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Nerarly Legal, 26th March 2018

Source: nearlylegal.co.uk

The ‘MV Renos’ [2018] EWCA Civ 230 – 4 New Square

Posted March 16th, 2018 in insurance, news, repairs, shipping law by sally

‘In the ‘MV Renos’ the Court of Appeal had to determine whether the Respondents (“Owners”) had lost the right to abandon the vessel and claim that it was a constructive total loss (“CTL”).’

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4 New Square, 21st February 2018

Source: www.insurancelaw.london

Ecclesiastical court judgments – February 2018 – Law & Religion UK

‘Review of the ecclesiastical court judgments during February 2018.’

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Law & Religion UK, 3rd March 2018

Source: www.lawandreligionuk.com

Homeowners battle freeholder over £20,000 ‘Grenfell bill’ – Daily Telegraph

Posted March 5th, 2018 in housing, landlord & tenant, London, news, repairs, service charges, tribunals by tracey

‘Residents of a luxury north London apartment block are battling their freeholder over who should pay a multi-million-pound bill to replace dangerous Grenfell-style cladding, and for the wages of fire marshals.’

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Daily Telegraph, 5th March 2018

Source: www.telegraph.co.uk

Deliberate breach of faculty conditions – Law & Religion UK

Posted February 6th, 2018 in Church of England, construction industry, ecclesiastical law, news, repairs by tracey

‘In 2014 we posted “Ignorance of the Faculty Jurisdiction Rules is no excuse…”, and expanding on this theme, “Risks of disregarding the faculty jurisdiction” in June 2016. The recent case Re St Peter & St Paul Pettistree [2017] ECC SEI 6 concerned a “deliberate and avoidable” breach of the terms of the faculty by a professional on the list of DAC-approved architects.’

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Law & Religion UK, 6th February 2018

Source: www.lawandreligionuk.com