Spring Housing Conference 2025 - Five Paper Chambers

Five Paper’s team of Social Housing barristers presents a one-day conference for housing lawyers working with local authorities, RPs and in private practice.

Topics include:

• A Legal Update
• Succession
• Get in shape to meet unfitness claims
• Absolutely Fabulous (Absolute grounds)
• Anti-social behaviour
• The Renters Rights Bill, the Impact on social landlords
• Homelessness & Allocations
• EPA Prosecutions: Everything you need to know

Date: Friday, 16th May 2025
Time: 09:00 AM – 4:30 PM
Location: Ashworth Centre, The Honourable Society of Lincoln’s Inn, London WC2A 3TL
Fee: £110.00 + VAT
CPD points: 5 CPD Hr(s)

• 9:00 Registration and refreshments
• 9:50 Introduction and Welcome to Conference
  • Presented by David Portch, Nicholas Grundy KC, Stephen Evans & Michael Mullin.
• 10:00 Legal Update
  • Stephen Evans, Michael Mullin & Elizabeth England will look back through the most important social housing cases from the last year.
• 11:10 Refreshments
• 11:25 Workshop 1 - choose between:
  • (1) Succession
    • Sonia Rai, Scarlet Taylor-Waller & Freyja McLoughlin present an overview of the law relating to succession for assured and secure tenants. This seminar will examine the legal framework surrounding succession, including inheritance and Ground 7, the distinction between fixed term and other tenancies with security of tenure, the proper handling of cases pre and post-issue (including Ground 15A), and potential defences.

                     or

• • (2) Get in shape to meet unfitness claims
    
    • Nicholas Grundy KC, Angela Hall, Daniel Crehan & Joseph Mahon will cover the mechanics of unfitness claims to provide you with the best approach to meeting such claims efficiently and cost- effectively.

                     or

• • (3) Absolutely Fabulous
    
    • Sam Phillips, Tristan Salter & Tiernan Fitzgibbon will delve into the court’s approach to Absolute grounds. We will cover the service of notices, and pre-action steps including internal reviews and Equality Act assessments in the deployment of absolute grounds to secure possession of a property. We will cover the recent case of Hajan v LB Brent [2024] EWCA Civ 1260 and the use of absolute grounds in existing proceedings either before trial or via a Sheffield v Hopkins application.

• 12:45 Lunch
• 13:45 Workshop 2 - choose between:
  
  • (4) Anti-social Behaviour
    
    • Join David Mold, Elizabeth England & Thomas Kidney as we discuss recent issues arising in this area of law, including: What constitutes anti-social behaviour? What to do when behaviour arises from a mental health condition and how to deal with a perpetrator who lacks capacity.

                     or

• • (5) The Renters Rights Bill, the Impact on social landlords
    
    • Nicholas Grundy KC, Jennifer Moate & Felix Gibson will cover the most significant effects of the changes under the Renters Rights Bill for social landlords, including the abolition of assured shorthold tenancies, the new (alternative) grounds for possession and rent increases after the Bill comes into effect.

                     or

• • (6) Homelessness & Allocations
    
    • Tina Conan, Michael Mullin & Taylor Blair go through the latest case law and legislative updates regarding homelessness & allocations.
• 15:05 Refreshments
• 15:20 EPA Prosecutions: Everything you need to know
  
  • Simon Strelitz, Michael Mullin and special guest Michelle Glazebrook discuss the key concepts in prosecutions under the Environmental Protection Act 1990 and discuss defence strategy, in particular how to deal with claims brought by claims farmers.
• 16:30 Champagne Conclusion

Please complete the booking form via the button below before 30 April 2025 to book your place. If you have any queries contact jenniferolivier@fivepaper.com.