header-logo header-logo

Home Login E-newsletter About us
10 September 2020 / Cecily Crampin , Tricia Hemans
Issue: 7901 / Categories: Features , Property
printer mail-detail

A new Lease of life

© Copyright LexisNexis 2026. All Rights Reserved.
Cecily Crampin & Tricia Hemans investigate reviving disclaimed property
  • One of the effects of the COVID-19 distancing measures and their impact on the economy is an increase in cases of insolvency.
  • Attempts to disclaim onerous property will no doubt become increasingly common.
  • The law on disclaimer, and, in light of Leon v Attorney General, who has standing to apply for a vesting order to bring disclaimed property back to economic life.

Sadly, one of the likely effects of the COVID-19 precautions, and their impact on the economy, is an increase in insolvency, despite the government’s intended relief under the Corporate Insolvency and Governance Act 2020. A particular issue will be businesses unable to pay rent due under commercial leases. In the eyes of insolvency practitioners, leases will be onerous property ripe for disclaimer. Similarly, companies on the brink of dissolution may choose to leave property to go bona vacantia, with the risk of eventual Crown disclaimer. This article reviews the law on disclaimer, and, with reference

If you are not a subscriber, subscribe now to read this content
If you are already a subscriber sign in
...or Register for two weeks' free access to subscriber content

MOVERS & SHAKERS

Read All
Sponsored by
London Solicitors Litigation Association—John McElroy

London Solicitors Litigation Association—John McElroy

Fieldfisher partner appointed president as LSLA marks milestone year

Kingsley Napley—Kirsty Churm & Olivia Stiles

Kingsley Napley—Kirsty Churm & Olivia Stiles

Firm promotes two lawyers to partnership across employment and family

Foot Anstey—five promotions

Foot Anstey—five promotions

Firm promotes five lawyers to partnership across key growth areas

NEWS
Read All
NLJ this week: Divorce ‘nuclear weapon’ freezes assets but entangles outsiders
Freezing orders in divorce proceedings can unexpectedly ensnare third parties and disrupt businesses. In NLJ this week, Lucy James of Trowers & Hamlins explains how these orders—dubbed a ‘nuclear weapon’—preserve assets but can extend far beyond spouses to companies and business partners 
NLJ this week: What counts as ‘rent’? Court says labour alone won’t do
A Court of Appeal ruling has clarified that ‘rent’ must be monetary—excluding tenants paid in labour from statutory protection. In this week's NLJ, James Naylor explains Garraway v Phillips, where a tenant worked two days a week instead of paying rent
Your magistrates’ court needs you!
Thousands more magistrates are to be recruited, under a major shake-up to speed up and expand the hiring process
NLJ this week: Freed but failed—justice system leaves the innocent empty-handed
Three men wrongly imprisoned for a combined 77 years have been released—yet received ‘not a penny’ in compensation, exposing deep flaws in the justice system. Writing in NLJ this week, Dr Jon Robins reports on Justin Plummer, Oliver Campbell and Peter Sullivan, whose convictions collapsed amid discredited forensics, ‘oppressive’ police interviews and unreliable ‘cell confessions’
NLJ this week: Clarity on whistleblowing, settlements and tribunal limits
A quiet month for employment cases still delivers key legal clarifications. In his latest Employment Law Brief for NLJ, Ian Smith reports that whistleblowing protection remains intact even where disclosures are partly self-serving, provided the worker reasonably believes they serve the ‘public interest’ 
Copyright © 2026 LexisNexis
back-to-top-scroll