£35m London tower could face ‘demolition’ as neighbours say it blocks reading light in bed – The Independent

Posted March 20th, 2025 in damages, housing, injunctions, news, planning, right to light by tracey

‘A retired couple who say a 19-storey office tower is blocking the light in their £1m apartment next to the Thames are suing in a case which could see the £35m building demolished.’

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The Independent, 19th March 2025

Source: www.independent.co.uk

Migrants unlawfully housed at government’s flagship asylum site Wethersfield – The Independent

Posted March 17th, 2025 in asylum, housing, ministers' powers and duties, news by tracey

‘Home secretary Yvette Cooper acted unlawfully in housing three asylum seekers at a “prison-like” former RAF base, the High Court has found.’

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The Independent, 14th March 2025

Source: www.independent.co.uk

How does an assured shorthold tenancy become a secure tenancy? By accident! – Doughty Street Chambers

Posted March 14th, 2025 in assignment, housing, landlord & tenant, local government, news, repossession by Lily

‘In the London Borough of Redbridge v G (Romford County Court, 5 February 2025), a series of unusual events lead to an assured shorthold tenant becoming a secure tenant.’

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Doughty Street Chambers, 10th March 2025

Source: insights.doughtystreet.co.uk

Compulsory mediation in housing conditions claims – Local Government Lawyer

‘New rules on compulsory mediation could have a major impact on social landlords, writes Ibrar Hussain.’

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Local Government Lawyer, 14th March 2025

Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk

Didn’t bother trying to find her. She’s not there – Nearly Legal

‘A county court appeal in a tenancy deposit penalty claim, which is both a catalogue of ‘you don’t want to do it like that’, and has a significant point on the operation of section 48 Landlord and Tenant Act 1987.’

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Nearly Legal, 12th March 2025

Source: nearlylegal.co.uk

English and Welsh councils to have greater powers to seize land for affordable housing – The Guardian

Posted March 10th, 2025 in compulsory purchase, housing, local government, news by tracey

‘Councils and mayors will be granted greater powers to seize land to build affordable housing under the Labour government’s shake-up of planning rules this week. Local authorities in England and Wales will no longer need permission from central government to make compulsory purchase orders (CPOs), in a change that ministers hope will unlock vacant and derelict land.’

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The Guardian, 10th March 2025

Source: www.theguardian.com

Commonhold reform: ‘a step forward but caution required in wave of property law reforms’ – OUT-LAW.com

‘The UK government has outlined plans to ban the sale of new leasehold flats in England and Wales in a move designed to embed a new commonhold model into the property market.’

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OUT-LAW.com, 6th March 2025

Source: www.pinsentmasons.com

London ebike fire: landlords of ‘grossly overcrowded’ flat fined almost £100,000 – The Guardian

‘The landlords of a “grossly overcrowded” east London flat where a man died after an ebike battery started a fire have been fined almost £100,000 after pleading guilty to nine housing law breaches.’

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The Guardian, 6th March 2025

Source: www.theguardian.com

Stamp duty: What is it, how much is it and how is it changing? – BBC News

Posted March 6th, 2025 in housing, mortgages, news, stamp duty, taxation by sally

‘Home buyers in England and Northern Ireland will pay more stamp duty after 1 April, when two key thresholds are reduced.’

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BBC News, 6th March 2025

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

High Court judge gives permission to bring legal challenge against Welsh council over Article 4 direction on holiday homes – Local Government Lawyer

Posted March 6th, 2025 in housing, judicial review, local government, news, planning, Wales by sally

‘A local objector to Gwynedd Council’s policy on planning for holiday homes has won the right to take the authority to judicial review after a judge said he was “just persuaded” this was the right course.’

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Local Government Lawyer, 5th March 2025

Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk

The interaction between housing and social care duties – Local Government lawyer

Posted March 5th, 2025 in housing, local government, news, social services by tracey

‘Members of the Cornerstone Barristers Housing Team set out key takeaways from three important decisions from the Court of Appeal clarifying the interaction between local authorities’ obligations under the Housing Act 1996 and social care legislation.’

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Local Government lawyer, 4th March 2025

Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk

Government publishes commonhold White Paper – Law Commission

Posted March 4th, 2025 in government departments, housing, Law Commission, leases, news by tracey

‘The Government has today taken forward recommendations by the Law Commission in its Commonhold White Paper.’

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Law Commission, 3rd March 2025

Source: lawcom.gov.uk

Centuries-old leasehold system to be abolished in England and Wales – The Guardian

Posted March 3rd, 2025 in bills, government departments, housing, leases, news, service charges by sally

‘The housing minister has promised to abolish the centuries-old leasehold system in England and Wales before the end of this parliament, as the government takes the next steps towards an outright ban on new leasehold developments.’

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The Guardian, 3rd March 2025

Source: www.theguardian.com

Case notes in passing – adverse possession rules, sale and rent-back, and the evidential burden in service charge disputes – Nearly Legal

‘The Supreme Court considered para 5(4) to Schedule 6 Land Registration Act 2002 on the requirements for an application for registered title through adverse possession of land adjoining the applicant’s land.’

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Nearly Legal, 2nd March 2025

Source: nearlylegal.co.uk

What is the right approach to Care Act assessments? – Local Government Lawyer

Posted February 28th, 2025 in care homes, disabled persons, duty of care, housing, local government, news by Lily

‘In a judgment giving guidance on the approach to be taken to Care Act 2014 assessments, the High Court has distinguished between “provision of care and support for which a home is needed” and “provision which a home would need so as to be equipped for the relevant person”, holding that the former can trigger a duty to accommodate under the Care Act 2014 whereas the latter cannot.’

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Local Government Lawyer, 28th February 2025

Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk

The right to manage and equitable interests – Tanfield Chambers

Posted February 27th, 2025 in chambers articles, housing, land registration, landlord & tenant, leases, news by sally

‘Tenants of flats were given the right to have a manager appointed, to take over the landlord’s management of the building in which the flats were situated, in the Landlord and Tenant Act 1987 but only if they could prove fault on the part of the landlord or managing agents. In order to make it easier for the tenants to wrest control of the management of the building from their landlord, the Commonhold and Leasehold Reform Act 2002 (CLRA 2002) gave the tenants of flats the right to have the management of the building transferred to a company controlled by them as of right, without having to prove any default on the part of the landlord.’

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Tanfield Chambers, 24th January 2025

Source: tanfieldchambers.co.uk

Access Injunctions – a discussion of some recent issues – St Ives Chambers

Posted February 26th, 2025 in chambers articles, housing, injunctions, judges, jurisdiction, landlord & tenant, news by sally

‘As housing practitioners, an application we see regularly is for an injunction for access for gas safety checks. Over the last 3 months, 4 issues have been raised with me so I thought it was a good time to write an article on the subject.’

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St Ives Chambers, 21st January 2025

Source: d23mtoo6rceerw.cloudfront.net

The Deregulation Act 2015: A decade on – St John’s Chambers

Posted February 26th, 2025 in appeals, chambers articles, housing, landlord & tenant, news, repossession by sally

‘In this article Brittany Pearce considers some of the difficulties still posed by the Deregulation Act 2015 for defaulting landlords and outlines the issues still outstanding following the Court of Appeal’s decision in Trecarrell House Ltd v Rouncefield [2020] EWCA Civ 760.’

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St John's Chambers, 21st January 2025

Source: www.stjohnschambers.co.uk

Ombudsman sets out common failings of landlords when it comes to inspections following damp and mould complaints – Local Government Lawyer

Posted February 26th, 2025 in complaints, health, housing, landlord & tenant, local government, news, ombudsmen by sally

‘The Housing Ombudsman has analysed four common failings of social landlords in a report on inspections and knowledge management within damp and mould complaints.’

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Local Government Lawyer, 25th February 2025

Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk

Disabled people in immigration bail: the duties of the Home Office and local authorities – Local Government Lawyer

‘The High Court has ruled that the Home Office has been systemically failing to provide safe and suitable accommodation to disabled applicants, and has given guidance on the interaction between Schedule 10 accommodation and the Care Act 2014. Stephanie Harrison KC, Nadia O’Mara and Isaac Ricca-Richardson analyse its findings.’

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Local Government Lawyer, 19th February 2025

Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk