For certain land transactions involving school land, including granting leases to third parties, you may be required to obtain consent from or notify the Secretary of State (SoS). New freedoms have also been introduced in the September 2024 Academy Trust Handbook relating to finance leases. Andrea Squires, Zahraa Ilmass and Sonia Din look at the key points. Read more
A resident who objected to the London Borough of Enfield selling part of a park to Tottenham Hotspur Football Club has been refused permission to appeal in his challenge to the disposal.
External auditors at the Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead have voiced "significant concerns" over the council's governance arrangements in light of delayed financial statements, alongside concerns about debt associated with a wholly-owned property company.
External auditors have flagged "significant" weaknesses in control processes relating to Dudley Metropolitan Borough Council's disposal of assets, and have suggested that members were not "seriously considering" officer recommendations concerning the council's finances.
Private and social rented homes are set to be required to achieve Energy Performance Certificate C or equivalent by 2030 in a series of Government measures to improve home energy standards.
The London Borough of Newham has a lost a £1.6m case over an attempt to judicially review a decision by HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) on whether a floating hotel is a building for Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) purposes.
London’s leading grant-giving charity has issued judicial review proceedings against the government, arguing that the Leasehold and Freehold Reform Act 2024 (LFRA 24) will “jeopardize the financial stability and operational capacity of a handful of charities that depend on property assets for funding”.
Officers at Fareham Borough Council have "regrettably" recommended councillors to lift a set of tree preservation orders to avoid hefty compensation claims, just months after the council's leader called legislative reforms on the matter
The Deputy Prime Minister, Angela Rayner, and Building Safety Minister, Rushanara Ali, have set out expectations for regulators and partners to “increase the pace” of remediating unsafe buildings, following a fire at a block of flats in Dagenham.
The Supreme Court’s decision in Anglo International Upholland Ltd v Wainwright [2023] 5 WLUK 613 confirmed the court’s power to grant injunctions against so-called ‘newcomers’. In the second of two articles, Helena Davies, Oskar Musial, Laura Tweedy and Gemma de Cordova consider the recent developments in newcomer injunctions and how that was dealt with in Upholland.
A recent landmark decision may allow novel and unusual methods of service in welcome news for landowners who seek to prevent trespassing by persons unknown, write Helena Davies, Oskar Musial, Laura Tweedy and Gemma de Cordova.
Spencer Vella Sultana and Wilton Thomas examine the further changes to building safety legislation likely following the report published this month as part of the second phase of the Grenfell Tower Inquiry.
Steve Gummer and Shyann Sheehy talk through the recent Construction Leadership Council guidance on a ‘Golden Thread’ of information as part of a new regulatory regime for Higher-Risk Buildings.
The Charity Commission has issued a warning to local authorities over the failure to comply with legal duties as charity trustees. Paul Hilsdon looks at the steps councils should take.
The High Court recently declined a commercial tenant's application for relief from forfeiture in a case involving a local authority. Philip Coates explains why.
Zoe McLean-Wells analyses a recent Upper Tribunal (UT) decision which considered a landlord’s ability to charge a service charge for works required to remediate inherent structural defects.
Commissioners have called for a "rigorous" lessons learned process at Birmingham City Council after the financially beleaguered local authority agreed to sell more than 700 properties at an estimated loss of around £320m.
The Charity Commission has seen a significant number of cases where local authorities have failed to comply with their legal duties as charity trustees and the watchdog has had to take action following receipt of complaints from the public, its new chief executive has warned.
The London Borough of Enfield has secured interim injunctions against the occupants of boats and land on the River Lea who it has claimed obstruct progress on a £6bn development of 10,000 homes.
The leader of Fareham Borough Council has called on the Government to fundamentally review how requests to fell trees protected by tree preservation orders and involved in subsidence claims are handled.
The Upper Tribunal (Lands Chamber) has been asked to decide whether a local authority should serve an improvement notice on the owner of a house in multiple occupation if there is doubt about whether a hazard exists.
Tendring District Council has secured a High Court injunction banning Clacton Classic Air Show visitors from camping alongside the seafront overnight in tents, campervans or mobile homes.
Campaigners have failed to unseat the Law Society's chief executive and president after the pair overcame a vote of no confidence at a meeting on Thursday (24 July) which also challenged Chancery Lane's ability to represent members who undertake conveyancing.
The London Borough of Tower Hamlets cannot recover the cost of rectifying structural defects in two blocks of flats from leaseholders’ service charges, the Upper Tribunal (Lands Chamber) has ruled.
A group of property search companies have failed to persuade a High Court judge that CON29DW water and drainage searches provided by nine English water and sewerage companies and separate search operations run by Severn Trent and Wessex Water fall under the Environmental Information Regulations (EIR) regime and should be provided at "reasonable cost" rather than commercial rates.
A BBC London investigation has found the London Borough of Lambeth used well over 100 confidentiality clauses to prevent leaseholders who have successfully challenged maintenance bills from discussing this.
Objectors to Hertfordshire County Council’s sale of land for a rail freight interchange have lost a judicial review application over the validity of the sale.
The Law Society will next month (23 July) hold a special general meeting after the Property Lawyers Action Group (PLAG) requisitioned a debate and vote on a motion of no confidence in Chancery Lane’s ability to represent members who undertake conveyancing.
Residential developer Redrow has lost a Court of Appeal case over the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities’ decision to allocate funds from the Building Safety Fund (BSF) to replace cladding on two blocks of flats.
The High Court has ruled that new police powers introduced by the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Act 2022 are incompatible with the Human Rights Act 1998 as they constitute unjustified race discrimination against travellers and gypsies.
Local authorities will from this summer gain a power to require landlords to rent out persistently vacant shops and other commercial properties as part of attempts to reinvigorate high streets, the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities (DLUHC) has confirmed.
Reading Borough Council has joined nine urban councils in questioning Government proposals on brownfield reform after raising concerns that the changes could override local planning policies.
The First-tier Tribunal (Property Chamber) has issued a remediation order requiring a freeholder to resolve building safety issues with a 16-storey tower block in Stevenage.
Birmingham City Council has been threatened with a judicial review of its decision to approve the demolition of an iconic brutalist building in the city centre, amid claims the local authority misinterpreted local policy concerning the carbon impact of demolishing a building.
Roderick Morton examines a recent s288 challenge against the decision of an inspector to refuse permission on appeal for a material change of use of land in the Green Belt for the stationing of caravans for residential occupation.
A planning inspector misdirected himself in a dispute over the construction of house in Beaconsfield and misunderstood case law, the Court of Appeal has ruled.
The Supreme Court has allowed a Welsh council's appeal in a dispute over the diminution in value of land arising from the encroachment of Japanese knotweed.
The Supreme Court will next week (8 May) hand down its ruling on a Welsh council’s appeal in a dispute over whether residual diminution in value of a property in a Japanese knotweed case is pure economic loss and irrecoverable.
Manchester City Council should have made greater efforts to ensure that an improvement notice and subsequent penalty demand reached a landlord, the Upper Tribunal (Lands Chamber) has said, upholding an appeal against a decision of the First-Tier Tribunal (Property Chamber)
Mathew McDermott and Karolina Zielinska sit down to discuss how the First-tier Tribunal (Property Chamber) is currently approaching the assessment of the amount of rent repayment orders that are made in a tenant’s favour.
Preparing for the annual governance statement is a good time for local authorities to undertake a governance health-check of their companies, suggests Matt Marsh.
Site providers will breathe a huge sigh of relief as the Upper Tribunal found in favour of a council in a dispute over the Electronic Communications Code and a leaking roof on a residential tower block. Daniel Cuthbert and Ella Carroll explain why.
Section 123 of the Building Safety Act and supporting Regulations create a power and a discretion to make remediation orders. Daniel Black analyses an important ruling on its use.
The High Court has rejected a challenge to the lease by a London borough of part of a park to Tottenham Hotspur FC for a women’s and girls’ football academy. Matt Hutchings KC explains why.
The Court of Appeal has dismissed an appeal challenging the deregistration of a town and village green (“TVG”) and its replacement with adjoining land. Hugh Flanagan, Douglas Edwards KC and Michael Rhimes explain why.
The Law Society proposes to introduce a new code in 2024 for signing and exchanging property contracts. Gemma Duncan and Lillee Reid-Hunt examine what it entails.
Local authorities cannot avoid the mandatory biodiversity net gain (“BNG”) regime which applies to the majority of new developments. Whilst there has been much focus on the additional burden this will create for local planning authorities, there are multiple opportunities too. Chrisa Tsompani and Stephanie Hall look at the ways in which authorities can work with the new requirements to deliver…
The Supreme Court this month handed down a landmark judgment in a Japanese knotweed case involving a Welsh council. Matthew White assesses the likely impact of the ruling.
The First Tier Tribunal recently considered the use of Improvement Notices under s.12 of Housing Act 2004 to address concerns regarding the fire safety of residential property containing cladding similar to that present on Grenfell Tower. Archie Maddan analyses its ruling.
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