Sims (Appellant) v Dacorum Borough Council (Respondent) – Supreme Court
Sims (Appellant) v Dacorum Borough Council (Respondent) [2014] UKSC 63 (YouTube)
Supreme Court, 12th November 2014
Category: housing
R (on the application of ZH and CN) (Appellants) v London Borough of Newham and London Borough of Lewisham (Respondents) – Supreme Court
Supreme Court, 12th November 2014
When a system of inspection simply isn’t enough – Zenith PI Blog
‘The circumstances of the claim are as follows. The Claimant had been visiting her parents who had lived for some years in sheltered housing owned by the Defendant. The Claimant’s parents’ accommodation had a back entrance, which was approached by way of a tarmac path, beside which were an area of patchy grass. There was a difference in level between the path and the earth of approximately two and a half inches. At trial the Judge found that the edge of the path was clear and did not need to be marked. He accepted that the Claimant had stepped half on and half off the path which has caused her ankle to cockle and for her to fall.’
Zenith PI Blog, 17th November 2014
Source: www.zenithpi.wordpress.com
My Achy, Breaky Tenancy: Supreme Court rules it human rights-compatible for one tenant’s unilateral Notice to Quit to end a joint tenancy – Zenith Chambers
‘Something that can take some housing practitioners by surprise is a Notice to Quit served, not by a landlord on a tenant, but by a tenant on a landlord (sometimes referred to by housing officers as a “notice to terminate”).’
Zenith Chambers, 13th November 2014
Source: www.zenithchambers.co.uk
Errors, damn errors, and statistics: Ajilore v Hackney LBC – NearlyLegal
‘With the Supreme Court set to look at priority need this December, Ajilore v Hackney [2014] EWCA Civ 1273 may prove to be a brief footnote in the evolution of the bloated Pereira test. But, at least for the next four weeks, it tells us something about the construction of the “ordinary homeless person” against which, post Johnson v Solihull [2013] EWCA Civ 752, applicants for homeless assistance are assessed.’
NearlyLegal, 16th November 2014
Source: www.nearlylegal.co.uk
Magic beans for that cow? – Zenith Chambers
‘The North East Property Buyers litigation test cases finally reached the Supreme Court and judgment was handed down on 22nd October 2014. Any practitioner in property and housing litigation in the North East, and indeed further afield, will have had some knowledge of, or dealings with, schemes such as were in these cases examined. They concerned sale and lease back agreements, a simple enough notion, involving the purchase of a vendor’s home by a nominee, often at an undervalue, in return granting the vendor a lease of the property, thereby releasing equity to the vendor and allowing them to remain in the property at a reduced rent.’
Full story (PDF)
Zenith Chambers, 24th October 2014
Source: www.zenithchambers.co.uk
Love Thy Neighbour – An update on Neighbourhood plans – No. 5 Chambers
‘Chris Young & James Corbet Burcher recently gave a talk titled ‘Love Thy Neighbour: An update on Neighbourhood plans’ at the No5 Chambers Annual Planning Review in London.’
No. 5 Chambers, 16th October 2014
Source: www.no5.com
Of cricket balls and Velux windows – a victory for Lord Denning and the common law right to hit a good six – Sports Law Bulletin from Blackstone Chambers
‘Flying cricket balls and noisy motorbikes have a long history of testing the legal balance between the public interest in sport and the private interest in the peaceful enjoyment of land or the avoidance of injury.’
Sports Law Bulletin from Blackstone Chambers, 13th November 2014
Source: www.sportslawbulletin.org
R (Jakimaviciute) v Hammersmith and Fulham London Borough Council – WLR Daily
‘The power of a local housing authority under section 160ZA(7) of the Housing Act 1996 to set the qualification criteria for registration on a housing allocation scheme under that Act was subject to the authority’s duty under section 166A(3) of the 1996 Act to secure that reasonable preference was given to specified classes of people, including those who were owed a housing duty under section 193(2) of that Act.’
WLR Daily, 6th November 2014
Source: www.iclr.co.uk
A return of sanity: Allocation and reasonable preference – NearlyLegal
‘Jakimaviciute, R (On the Application Of) v Hammersmith And Fulham London Borough Council [2014] EWCA Civ 1438. Eligibility for allocation list, reasonable preference and homelessness. After a run of Court of Appeal housing decisions that might be mildly described as disappointing, it is good to see one that is definitely right, albeit apparently reluctantly given.’
NearlyLegal, 6th November 2014
Source: www.nearlylegal.co.uk/blog/
Removal of subsidy for spare room not unlawful – UK Human Rights Blog
‘Whether you call it the “spare room subsidy” or the “bedroom tax”, the removal of this type of housing benefit has been nothing short of controversial. There have been several previous legal challenges to the Regulations, as well as to the benefit cap introduced as part of the same package of welfare changes. The outcome of these cases was not promising for these claimants, in particular the decision of the Court of Appeal in R (MA) v Secretary of State for Work & Pensions [2014] EWCA Civ 13. Another important case is R (SG (previously JS)) v Secretary of State for Work & Pensions [2014] EWCA Civ 156.’
UK Human Rights Blog, 29th October 2014
Source: www.ukhumanrightsblog.com
Single mother-of-five made homeless by benefits cap turns to Supreme Court over Westminster Council’s attempts at ‘social cleansing’ – The Independent
‘A single mother-of-five who was made homeless after resisting Westminster Council’s attempt to move the family 50 miles from the capital is applying to the Supreme Court to review her case.’
The Independent, 29th October 2014
Source: www.independent.co.uk
The Long and Winding Road – NearlyLegal
‘The facts in Nzolameso v Westminster CC are pretty unremarkable, but the effects of the Court of Appeal’s judgement are likely to reverberate through every new homelessness application, especially in the London area.’
NearlyLegal, 26th October 2014
Source: www.nearlylegal.co.uk
Outlaw ‘revenge evictions’ by landlords, says housing charity – The Guardian
‘Shelter, the housing charity, is calling for a ban on “revenge evictions”, which it says are being carried out by bad landlords on tenants who dare to complain about inadequate conditions or ask for repairs to be made.’
Full story
The Guardian, 25th October 2014
Source: www.guardian.co.uk
Separated families and bedroom tax – NearlyLegal
‘This was the Liberty backed judicial review of the bedroom tax regulations on the basis that the regulations amounted to an article 8 breach, or an article 14 breach read with article 8, or that the regulations were irrational. At issue was the status of separated families where there was shared care.’
NearlyLegal, 23rd October 2014
Source: www.nearlylegal.co.uk
Nzolameso v Westminster City Council – WLR Daily
Nzolameso v Westminster City Council [2014] EWCA Civ 1383; [2014] WLR (D) 437
‘For the purposes of section 208 of the Housing Act 1996, when deciding whether it was “reasonably practicable” to accommodate a particular homeless person within its own district, bearing in mind that the accommodation might be of no more than a temporary nature, a local housing authority was entitled to have regard to all the factors that had a bearing on its ability to provide accommodation to that person, including the demands made on its resources, whether of a financial or administrative nature.’
WLR Daily, 22nd October 2014
Source: www.iclr.co.uk
A very unlawful eviction – NearlyLegal
‘This High Court judgment is remarkable in many ways, most of them worrying. It was the result of a six day hearing, with Southwark putting Kelvin Rutledge QC up against Mr AA in person and ended with findings against Southwark that were as bad as they could possibly be (and just perhaps even worse than the available evidence would support).’
NearlyLegal, 22nd October 2014
Source: www.nearlylegal.co.uk
Judge blasts Southwark Council for evicting Sudanese tenant and destroying all of his possessions – The Independent
‘Housing officers conspired to unlawfully evict a Sudanese refugee from his council flat and destroy his possessions, including memory sticks holding thousands of hours of work, before then covering up their wrongdoing, a judge has ruled.’
The Independent, 16th October 2014
Source: www.independent.co.uk
Teather’s Tether – Will the Tenancies (Reform) Bill be a sticker? – Zenith Chambers
‘Aided by a campaign from Shelter to put an end to “retaliatory eviction” in the private rented sector, Sarah Teather MP introduced a private members bill on 3rd July 2014. This is to address the situation where a tenant, making a legitimate complaint that rented premises are in a state of disrepair, is immediately met with a s. 21 notice and the accelerated procedure for possession. Rather than face up to their responsibilities, or risk a challenge in rent possession proceedings by way of defence and counterclaim for damages for disrepair, unscrupulous landlords choose simply to evict the tenant using the swift and final “no fault” route to possession.’
Full story (PDF)
Zenith Chambers, 12th September 2014
Source: www.zenithchambers.co.uk
Children being denied justice by legal cuts, says children’s commissioner – The Guardian
‘Vulnerable teenagers are being deprived of justice because cuts to legal aid are preventing them from getting representation, a report by the children’s commissioner said on Wednesday.”
The Guardian, 24th September 2014
Source: www.guardian.co.uk
