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29 January 2009 / Jamie Burton
Issue: 7354 / Categories: Features , Public , Landlord&tenant , Housing
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An impartial review?

Jamie Burton outlines the route of appeal for dissatisfied council tenants

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In Ali v Birmingham City Council; Ibrahim v Birmingham City Council; Tomlinson v Birmingham City Council [2008] EWCA Civ 1228 two single mothers had been accepted by the council as being entitled to accommodation pursuant to Pt VII of the Housing Act 1996. However the council was entitled to treat its duty to the claimants as being discharged as they had each refused an offer of accommodation after having been warned in writing of the consequences of refusing a suitable offer of accommodation. Both claimants maintained that they did not receive the letter containing the written warning and that therefore the council remained under a duty to accommodate them.

Applicants under Pt VII are entitled to have decisions reviewed by a more senior officer. Applicants who remain dissatisfied with a decision on review may then appeal to the county court “on a point of law”, in a challenge akin to judicial review. In this case both

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NEWS
A wave of housing and procedural reforms is set to test the limits of tribunal capacity. In his latest Civil Way column for NLJ this week, Stephen Gold charts sweeping change as the Renters’ Rights Act 2025 begins biting
Plans to reduce jury trials risk missing the real problem in the criminal justice system. Writing in NLJ this week, David Wolchover of Ridgeway Chambers argues the crown court backlog is fuelled not by juries but weak cases slipping through a flawed ‘50%’ prosecution test
Emerging technologies may soon transform how courts determine truth in deeply personal disputes. In this week's NLJ, Madhavi Kabra of 1 Hare Court and Harry Lambert of Outer Temple Chambers explore how neurotechnology could reshape family law
A controversial protest case has reignited debate over the limits of free expression. In NLJ this week, Nicholas Dobson examines a Quran-burning incident testing public order law
The courts have drawn a firm line under attempts to extend arbitration appeals. Writing in NLJ this week, Masood Ahmed of the University of Leicester highlights that if the High Court refuses permission under s 68 of the Arbitration Act 1996, that is the end
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