The European Medicines Agency (EMA) has failed in a High Court bid to have its £500m Canary Wharf lease cancelled due to Brexit. The court ruling will be welcomed by landlords who feared that other tenants would try to use…read more
Planning permission quashed in ‘extraordinary’ case. Published July 2019
Planning permission for three marquees has been quashed six years after it was issued in an ‘extraordinary’ court hearing. Normally planning permission needs to be challenged by judicial review within six weeks of it being issued. Wedding venue, Thornton Manor…read more
Risks of selling property at an undervalue to settle a debt. Published June 2019
Selling a property for less than it is worth to settle a mortgage debt could land the parties in court. Two recent cases show the importance of considering how to obtain the best price for a property. In McDonagh v…read more
Social houses may be demolished following restrictive covenant breach. Published June 2019
Thirteen social houses may have to be demolished after a developer deliberately ignored restrictive covenants on the land. The developer’s attempt to have the covenants waived retrospectively was thrown out by the Court of Appeal. Millgate Development built the properties…read more
Lawyers and landlords split on need for a Housing Court. Published May 2019
The government’s plans to set up a new Housing Court have been welcomed by landlords, but the Law Society has come out against the proposal. Meanwhile housing charity Shelter has said it will only support the new Court if it…read more
New Permitted Development Rights relax planning regime. Published May 2019
Upward extensions of buildings will be allowed without full planning permission in controversial new rules revealed by the government. Chancellor Philip Hammond announced the new regulations in the Spring Statement alongside other planning moves which will allow shops to convert…read more
The treatment of Japanese knotweed could be reassessed. Published April 2019
Japanese knotweed’s fearsome reputation among property owners and mortgage lenders could be reassessed following research from Leeds University and engineering firm AECOM. Japanese knotweed is an invasive species, which has been linked to significant structural damage to properties. It has…read more
New construction industry mediation procedure to be introduced. Published April 2019
A new mediation procedure is due to be published by the Construction Industry Council (CIC) following an industry-wide consultation. The draft mediation agreement sets out a procedure for parties to follow to settle construction disputes. It is intended to avoid…read more
Reforms planned to leaseholders’ ‘Right to Manage’. Published March 2019.
Leaseholders in blocks of flats have the ‘right to manage’ (RTM) their homes by setting up a management company to take-over management from the freeholder. However, at present few exercise the right as it is seen as too uncertain and…read more
Balfour Beatty loses ‘practical completion’ dispute. Published March 2019
Construction giant Balfour Beatty has lost a dispute over the definition of ‘practical completion’ with the University of Warwick. The contractor was appointed to build the state-of the-art National Automotive Innovation Centre on the University’s campus. The contract stated that…read more
