header-logo header-logo

Money back guarantee? (Pt 1)

14 October 2016 / Joseph Ollech , Philip Sissons
Issue: 7718 / Categories: Features , Property
printer mail-detail
nlj_7718_sissons

In a special two-part series, Philip Sissons & Joseph Ollech study costs recovery in long residential lease disputes

  • The scope of the FTT’s jurisdiction to award costs under the 2013 rules which govern its procedure.
  • An important recent decision of the Upper Tribunal clarifying the scope of that jursidiction.
  • Alternative, contractual, routes to cost recovery where recent case-law has clarified the extent to which a landlord might be able to recoup legal costs either directly from the tenant involved in the dispute or via the service charge.

Long residential leases are a fertile source of litigation. Aside from enfranchisement, disputes frequently arise regarding service charges and other breaches of lease covenants and a very large proportion of these disputes are litigated wholly in the First-Tier Tribunal (Property Chamber) (FTT).

These cases often involve relatively small sums of money or relatively trivial breaches of covenant. However (not least because of the complexity of the statutory regulation of service charges) the legal costs incurred in the proceedings are frequently significant and often disproportionate

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

Birketts—trainee cohort

Birketts—trainee cohort

Firm welcomes new cohort of 29 trainee solicitors for 2025

Keoghs—four appointments

Keoghs—four appointments

Four partner hires expand legal expertise in Scotland and Northern Ireland

Brabners—Ben Lamb

Brabners—Ben Lamb

Real estate team in Yorkshire welcomes new partner

NEWS
Robert Taylor of 360 Law Services warns in this week's NLJ that adoption of artificial intelligence (AI) risks entrenching disadvantage for SME law firms, unless tools are tailored to their needs
The Court of Protection has ruled in Macpherson v Sunderland City Council that capacity must be presumed unless clearly rebutted. In this week's NLJ, Sam Karim KC and Sophie Hurst of Kings Chambers dissect the judgment and set out practical guidance for advisers faced with issues relating to retrospective capacity and/or assessments without an examination
Delays and dysfunction continue to mount in the county court, as revealed in a scathing Justice Committee report and under discussion this week by NLJ columnist Professor Dominic Regan of City Law School. Bulk claims—especially from private parking firms—are overwhelming the system, with 8,000 cases filed weekly
Charles Pigott of Mills & Reeve charts the turbulent progress of the Employment Rights Bill through the House of Lords, in this week's NLJ
From oligarchs to cosmetic clinics, strategic lawsuits against public participation (SLAPPs) target journalists, activists and ordinary citizens with intimidating legal tactics. Writing in NLJ this week, Sadie Whittam of Lancaster University explores the weaponisation of litigation to silence critics
back-to-top-scroll