Tis aw a muddle – costs edition – Nearly Legal
‘Morales v Enver (2016) QBD (Irwin J) 28/04/2016. Mr M had brought injunction for re-entry proceedings against a landlord and agents.’
Nearly Legal, 4th May 2016
Source: www.nearlylegal.co.uk/blog/
Category: repossession
Practical advice on forfeiture – Hardwicke Chambers
‘The tail-end of 2015 threw up one of those London bus-type quirks where in less than a fortnight I acted for a landlord, a lessee and a mortgagee in three cases concerning, at least in part, the issues of (a) service of forfeiture proceedings, and (b) the defendant’s non-attendance at the first hearing at which a possession order was made.’
Hardwicke Chambers, 19th April 2016
Source: www.hardwicke.co.uk
Deposits, leaflets and company landlords – Nearly Legal
‘This was an appeal of a possession order made against Mr Bali at Lambeth County Court. Mr B was the assured shorthold tenant of Manaquel Company Limited. A deposit was taken and protected. Manaquel subsequently purportedly served a section 21 notice and brought possession proceedings. At first instance, the issue was whether Manaquel had complied with the requirements on serving the Prescribed Information.’
Nearly Legal, 18th April 2016
Source: www.nearlylegal.co.uk
High Court enforcement continued – Nearly Legal
‘In what has turned into a continuing series, there are further updates on enforcement of possession orders via the High Court, obtaining writs and the scandalous conduct of many High Court Enforcement Officers.’
Nearly Legal, 13th February 2016
Source: www.nearlylegal.co.uk
How to resist or enforce possession orders after 6 years – 36 Bedford Row
‘It is common theme in social housing that landlords who have obtained a possession order (whether outright or suspended) may exercise restraint and not seek to immediately enforce the order by a warrant for execution. Another common scenario is where a landlord has tried, perhaps repeatedly, to enforce possession but cannot do so because the tenant successfully applies to the Court for the warrant to be stayed.’
36 Bedford Row, 28th January 2016
Source: www.36property.co.uk
Woman in 30-year feud with daughter over dog called Fluffy wins legal fight to force her out of £1m flat – Daily Telegraph
‘Judge condemns Caroline Hermsen as liar after she wrongly accused mother of getting her arrested over dog as he rules she can kick her out of home.’
Daily Telegraph, 11th January 2016
Source: www.telegraph.co.uk
A scandal unfolds: High Court enforcement again – Nearly Legal
‘In our last post, we dealt with the issue of an application for a High Court writ being made in tenant possession cases by way of form N293A. To recap, this is the form which expressly states “This judgment or order has been sent to the High Court for enforcement by (Writ of Possession against trespassers) only”.’
Nearly Legal, 6th January 2016
Source: www.nearlylegal.co.uk
Mortgage possession and disability discrimination – Nearly Legal
‘This is county court case, but a very interesting one on the issue of disability discrimination in mortgage possession proceedings.’
Nearly Legal, 3rd January 2016
Source: www.nearlylegal.co.uk
Austerity and Public Law: Alexander Latham: Defending Rights in the Face of Austerity: Is the Supreme Court Calling Time on Social Housing Managerialism? – UK Constitutional Law Association
‘In cases involving social housing, English courts have traditionally taken what we might call a “managerial” approach: their starting-point for analysis has not been the tenant or applicant for housing as a rights-holder, but the need of local authorities to distribute their scarce resources effectively. In Burrows v Brent LBC [1996] 1 WLR 1448, for example, where a tenant who was permitted to remain after a possession order was held not to have been impliedly granted a new tenancy, Lord Browne-Wilkinson said that “housing authorities try to conduct their housing functions as humane and reasonable landlords” (at 1455). The tenant might be forgiven for wondering why this should count against him, but clearly the implication is that as ‘humane and reasonable landlords’ local authorities should be left to manage their housing stock with as little interference from the courts as possible. More recently this attitude led to the courts’ extreme reluctance to enable a public sector tenant to rely on article 8 ECHR in possession proceedings. When the Supreme Court finally acceded to pressure from Strasbourg, it nevertheless drew the teeth from the human rights defence by agreeing with the Secretary of State’s submission that “a local authority’s aim in wanting possession should be a ‘given’ ” (Manchester CC v Pinnock [2011] UKSC 6, per Lord Neuberger at [53]), so that “there will be no need, in the overwhelming majority of cases, for the local authority to explain and justify its reasons for seeking a possession order” (Hounslow LBC v Powell [2011] UKSC 8, per Lord Hope at [37]). The local authority is simply assumed to be acting in a way which benefits the general welfare; this assumption is then taken to justify the effect of its actions on individuals in all but the most extreme of cases.’
UK Constitutional Law Association, 9th December 2015
Source: www.ukconstitutionallaw.org
Possession claims by trustee in bankruptcy – Nearly Legal
‘This was an appeal arising from a claim for possession against three properties by the trustee in bankruptcy of a bankrupt landlord. The Lawtel note rather confusingly refers to it as “accelerated possession proceedings for an order for sale”, which it can’t possibly have been.’
Nearly Legal, 22nd November 2015
Source: www.nearlylegal.co.uk
Eviction and High Court Enforcement – Nearly Legal
‘A couple of recent cases have highlighted the issues involved in transferring County Court possession orders to the High Court for enforcement by High Court Enforcement Officers.’
Nearly Legal, 13th November 2015
Source: www.nearlylegal.co.uk
Closure, possession and legal representation – Nearly Legal
‘Courtesy of Jim Shepherd of Doughty Street Chambers comes this account of a county court appeal of a Ground 7A possession claim, following a closure order. The appeal of the possession order was partly on the basis that the Defendant could not get legal aid in time.’
Nearly Legal, 31st October 2015
Source: www.nearlylegal.co.uk
Eviction of vulnerable family led to baby’s death, says serious case review – The Independent
‘A ten-week-old baby boy died on the night his family were evicted from their Warwickshire home, after being failed by the agencies who should have been supporting them, according to a serious case review. The circumstances around the death of the child, named ‘John’, emerged on 14 October. The baby boy was born six weeks prematurely. He and his sister Amber, who was under two, had been regarded as ‘children in in need’ by social services because of concerns over neglect.’
The Independent, 14th October 2015
Source: www.independent.co.uk
New fast-track eviction powers could breach human rights, warns watchdog – The Guardian
‘Government proposals to legally require landlords to check the immigration status of their tenants risk a serious breach of human rights, an official watchdog has warned.’
The Guardian, 12th October 2015
Source: www.guardian.co.uk
Wandsworth London Borough Council v Tompkins and another – WLR Daily
Wandsworth London Borough Council v Tompkins and another [2015] EWCA Civ 846; [2015] WLR (D) 357
‘Where a local housing authority provided accommodation under a tenancy pursuant to its duty under Part VII (Homelessness) of the Housing Act 1996, the requirement in paragraph 4 of Schedule 1 to the Housing Act 1985 which had to be satisfied in order for the tenancy to qualify as a secure tenancy (that the housing authority had to give notification that the tenancy “is to be regarded” as a secure tenancy), meant that the notification had to state that the tenancy was regarded as a secure tenancy at the date of grant and not at some unspecified date in the future.’
WLR Daily, 31st August 2015
Source: www.iclr.co.uk
Enhanced fees for divorce, possession claims and general applications in civil proceedings and consultation on further fees proposal – Ministry of Justice
‘This sets out the government response to the consultation on enhanced fees for possession claims and general applications in civil proceedings, and we are also seeking responses to further proposals for consultation.’
Ministry of Justice, 22nd July 2015
Source: www.consult.justice.gov.uk
Mayfair squatters granted extension in court battle against landlord – The Guardian
‘About 40 homeless people squatting in an empty building in one of London’s most upmarket areas have won the first round of a legal fight with a landlord.’
The Guardian, 26th May 2015
Source: www.guardian.co.uk
Aster Communities Ltd (formerly Flourish Homes Ltd) v Akerman-Livingstone (Equality and Human Rights Commission intervening) – WLR Daily
‘The approach to be taken to a defence to a claim for possession of residential premises which alleged unlawful discrimination against a disabled person, contrary to the Equality Act 2010, was different from that which applied to a defence which alleged a breach of an individual’s rights under article 8 of the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms. In particular, summary judgment would not normally be an appropriate procedure for dealing with a possession claim where a disability discrimination defence was raised.’
WLR Daily, 11th March 2015
Source: www.iclr.co.uk
Supreme Court considers tests for justification under s15 Equality Act 2010 and Article 8 ECHR in a housing eviction case against a disabled tenant – Cloisters
‘The Supreme Court handed down its decision yesterday in Akerman-Livingstone v. Aster Communities Ltd (formerly Flourish Homes Ltd) [2015] UKSC 15 in which it considered the test of justification for discrimination under section 15 of the Equality Act 2010 (the EqA) as compared with justification for Article 8 of the Convention.’
Cloisters, 12th March 2015
Source: www.cloisters.com
Supreme Court sets out approach to disability discrimination defences in evictions – Local Government Lawyer
‘A judge hearing an eviction case misdirected himself in adopting the same approach to the defence of disability discrimination as to an alleged breach of Article 8 of the European Court of Human Rights, the Supreme Court has ruled.’
Local Government Lawyer, 11th March 2015
Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk
