Council defeats appeal over ruling that it did not breach public sector equality duty in possession case – Local Government Lawyer

‘A High Court judge has dismissed an appeal over a ruling in a housing case that there had been no breach by Slough Borough Council of the public sector equality duty.’

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Local Government Lawyer, 5th January 2021

Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk

PSED, breach and ‘subsequent compliance’ – Nearly Legal

‘An appeal on the issue of whether a Council landlord’s initial failure to have regard to the Public Sector Equality Duty on commencing possession proceedings could be remedied by later performance of that duty.’

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Nearly Legal, 2nd January 2021

Source: nearlylegal.co.uk

Guess who? Does a section 8 notice have to contain the landlord’s own name and address? – Hardwicke Chambers

‘Kort Egan discusses Prempeh v Lakhany [2020] EWCA Civ 1422, in which the Court of Appeal considered whether a section 8 notice that is signed by the landlord’s agent and contains the agent’s details, must also include the landlord’s name and address.’

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Hardwicke Chambers, 13th November 2020

Source: hardwicke.co.uk

Property: Residential evictions: where are we now? – Lamb Chambers

‘Oscar Davies gives an update on where we are currently with residential evictions, the general ban and its exceptions.’

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Lamb Chambers, November 2020

Source: www.lambchambers.co.uk

Ministry of Justice faces judicial review over requirement on bailiffs not to enforce evictions – Local Government Lawyer

‘The Ministry of Justice has been hit with a judicial review challenge over the ongoing refusal to enforce warrants and writs by bailiffs and High Court Enforcement Officers (HCEOs).’

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Local Government Lawyer, 16th November 2020

Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk

I’m not demanding, I’m telling you – section 8 notices – Nearly Legal

Posted November 12th, 2020 in agency, landlord & tenant, news, notification, rent, repossession by tracey

‘Prempeh v Lakhany (2020) EWCA Civ 1422. We saw this case on a first appeal in the County Court. The issue was whether a section 8 notice on rent arrears grounds, in this instance grounds 8, 10 and 11, is a “demand for rent” for the purposes of section 47 Landlord and Tenant Act 1987.’

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Nearly Legal, 9th November 2020

Source: nearlylegal.co.uk

Tens of thousands made homeless despite UK ban on evictions during pandemic – The Guardian

‘Tens of thousands of people have been made homeless since the start of the pandemic despite a ban on evictions, the Guardian has found, with charities warning that younger people are falling through the gaps.’

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The Guardian, 8th November 2020

Source: www.theguardian.com

Administrative Court allows appeal by tenant on extending time for service of notice of appeal in ASB case – Local Government Lawyer

‘A Plymouth woman has successfully appealed over a closure order imposed on her home after complaints of anti-social behaviour.’

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Local Government Lawyer, 5th November 2020

Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk

The importance of acting with “reasonable promptitude” when applying for relief from forfeiture: Keshwala and another v Bhalsod [2020] EWHC 2372 (QB) – Hardwicke Chambers

‘The tenants (Claimants) had a twenty-year lease of 89 Narborough Road, Leicester (Property) which commenced on 12 March 2008. The Property consisted of a lock-up shop on the ground floor with residential accommodation above. The Claimants mistakenly paid only £1,500 of the £2,000 quarterly instalment of rent that fell due in June 2018, leaving arrears of £500.’

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Hardwicke Chambers, 14th October 2020

Source: hardwicke.co.uk

Possession Proceedings: Where are they now? – Tanfield Chambers

‘When the stay on possession proceedings first came into force on 27 March 2020, it appeared to be a straight-forward (albeit blunt) tool to help the Courts manage the effects of the Coronavirus.’

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Tanfield Chambers, 5th October 2020

Source: www.tanfieldchambers.co.uk

Green light for Mortgage Repossessions? – No. 5 Chambers

‘On 31 October 2020, the ban on repossession proceedings comes to an end. Approximately 1.8 million people have taken a deferral on a mortgage, and the second period of deferral is now coming to an end. Lenders may commence or continue with possession proceedings if appropriate.’

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No. 5 Chambers, 13th October 2020

Source: www.no5.com

High Court upholds refusal by judge to admit witness statement from council officer in eviction proceedings brought by housing association – Local Government Lawyer

Posted October 15th, 2020 in admissibility, appeals, evidence, housing, landlord & tenant, news, repossession, witnesses by tracey

‘The High Court has dismissed an application to overturn a judge’s refusal to allow tenants to rely on a witness statement from a council officer in eviction proceedings brought by a housing association.’

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Local Government Lawyer, 15th October 2020

Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk

Eviction and contempt – Nearly Legal

Posted September 25th, 2020 in appeals, debts, landlord & tenant, news, rent, repossession, stay of proceedings, undertakings by sally

‘This is a somewhat unusual appeal in the context of possession proceedings, being an appeal against a 12 month committal of the tenant to prison on two counts of contempt of court.’

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Nearly Legal, 21st September 2020

Source: nearlylegal.co.uk

Master of the Rolls issues statement on resumption of possession cases – Local Government Lawyer

Posted September 23rd, 2020 in coronavirus, debts, housing, judges, landlord & tenant, news, rent, repossession, time limits by sally

‘The Master of the Rolls, Sir Terence Etherton, has published a statement on the resumption of possession cases from 20 September.’

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Local Government Lawyer, 21st September 2020

Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk

Renters: Eviction cases resume after six-month ban – BBC News

Posted September 21st, 2020 in coronavirus, debts, delay, domestic violence, housing, landlord & tenant, news, rent, repossession by sally

‘Eviction hearings will now resume in courts in England and Wales – but the most serious cases will be given priority.’

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BBC News, 21st September 2020

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Possession claims – More new things and yet more to come – Nearly Legal

‘Gov.uk now has a “Reactivation Notice” (one for claimants, one for defendants). Note this is not a statutory or prescribed form. There is no set format for a reactivation notice.
The page says “Please do not use these documents before 20 September 2020. There is no need to rush to reactivate – you have until 4pm on 24 January 2021.” Which is not necessarily the case. Any possession claim with a hearing already listed requires a reactivation notice to be filed and served at least 42 days before the hearing – Practice Direction 55C 2.5.’

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Nearly Legal, 15th September 2020

Source: nearlylegal.co.uk

The Parable of the Property Developer – Nearly Legal

Posted September 7th, 2020 in damages, injunctions, landlord & tenant, news, repossession by sally

‘An unlawful eviction case, but not a residential one. A note because it is an interesting case of a badly behaved property developers, a church an a question over general damages.’

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Nearly Legal, 6th September 2020

Source: nearlylegal.co.uk

Ban on evictions and notice periods extended in Government u-turn – St Ives Chambers

‘The stay imposed on possession proceedings was due to expire on Sunday 23 August 2020. However, in an 11th hour u-turn, Robert Jenrick announced on Friday afternoon that the ban on evictions would be extended for a further 4 weeks (taking the total ban to 6 months) in England and Wales. In a further, unforeseen twist, it was announced that a new 6 month notice period would be in place until at least 31 March 2021 (this applies to England only) in all matters save for “serious cases”, examples of which are anti-social behaviour and domestic abuse.’

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St Ives Chambers, 21st August 2020

Source: www.stiveschambers.co.uk

Croydon LBC v Kalonga [2020] EWHC 1353 (QB) – Tanfield Chambers

Posted August 27th, 2020 in forfeiture, housing, landlord & tenant, leases, news, repossession by sally

‘The “flexible tenancy” was the latest, and mercifully the last, in a long line of new “tenancies” created by Parliament to address perceived deficiencies within social housing. The flexible tenancy is a fixed term secure tenancy that is capable of determination at the end of its term by not becoming a secure periodic tenancy. Its purpose was to enable a greater churn of social housing and to ensure that such housing went to those tenants in greatest housing need. The flexible tenancy did not prove popular—there are said to be only 30,000 flexible tenancies in existence—and Parliament’s proposal to make such tenancies mandatory (under the Housing and Planning Act 2016) has never been brought into force.’

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Tanfield Chambers, 11th August 2020

Source: www.tanfieldchambers.co.uk

Eviction ban extended by four weeks – Local Government Lawyer

‘The ban on tenant evictions, which was set to expire on Monday 23rd August, has been extended for a further four weeks until 20th September.’

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Local Government Lawyer, 21st August 2020

Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk