High Street revival

The Government has confirmed that councils will have the power to hold high street rental auctions from 2 December. Lucy McDonnell and Megan Forbes look at how the regime will work, including from a planning perspective. Read more

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  FEATURES AND ANALYSIS

November 13, 2024

Roof gardens and higher-risk buildings

Is a roof garden a "storey" for the purposes of higher-risk buildings? Alex Martin Diaz and Corinna Whittle analyse a recent tribunal case and the government’s response to the ruling.
November 13, 2024

"Is an excuse a use"

A recent High Court case has provided a reminder that care must be taken to distinguish between “commencement” cases and “continuous use” cases based on immunity, writes Roderick Morton.
November 06, 2024

Improvement or remediation, or both?

Robert Bowker considers how the First-tier Tribunal (FTT) has dealt with fire safety cases where an improvement notice under the Housing Act 2004 has been served and an application for a remediation order under s. 123 of the Building Safety Act 2022 has been made.
October 17, 2024

CPO compensation - recent cases

Jen Ashwell considers some of the key recent CPO and compensation decisions and highlights key takeaways that will be of interest to acquiring authorities, claimants (and their advisors) and local planning authorities.

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Sep 26, 2024

External auditors raise governance concerns over council property sale

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.
Jul 03, 2024

Water and drainage searches do not fall under EIR regime, judge rules

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.

  FEATURES AND ANALYSIS

October 04, 2024

Dealing with management companies

How do registered providers manage risk in relation to Management Companies providing services to their Estates? Rose Klemperer, Wendy Wilks and Alice Watkins explain.
September 18, 2024

Disposal of school land and Secretary of State consent

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.
September 12, 2024

Granting injunctions against ‘newcomers’ — practical guidance from property litigators

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.
August 28, 2024

Councils and charity trustees

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.
August 13, 2024

ACV appeals – a new approach

Christopher Cant examines a ruling where a judge took a different approach to the scope of appeals in relation to assets of community value (ACVs).
August 13, 2024

Leases and relief from forfeiture

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.
July 05, 2024

DIY CPOs

Oliver Bradbear looks at the circumstances in which landowners can use a purchase notice to initiate a Compulsory Purchase Order on their own land.
June 28, 2024

Conditional contracts

Can a council as landowner enter into a s106 agreement with itself, in its capacity as LPA? Isham Souffi looks at the issues involved.
June 27, 2024

Rent Repayment Orders: Assessing the Amount

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.
June 12, 2024

Retrofit v rebuild

What do organisations need to know when considering whether they should retrofit or rebuild an existing asset? Chris Kerr looks at the issues.
June 12, 2024

The “Last Chance Saloon” goes out of business

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.