Housing Law Solicitors

Will advise you as to the funding available to you including:

• Legal aid
• Private
• Conditional Fee Agreement
• Fixed Fee

• Bell, R (On the Application Of) v London Borough of Lambeth [2022] EWHC 2008 (Admin) – An Elkundi-style challenge which obtained a mandatory order against the local authority to find Ms Bell and her disabled children suitable accommodation within 12 weeks of the order. Reported in: [1] Local Government Lawyer; [2] Nearly Legal
• Laidley v Metropolitan Housing Trust Limited (2024) EWHC 2611 (Ch) – Appeal to the High Court on questions of (i) whether the advice of an Equality Act assessor sitting with the judge needs to be given in open court and (ii) whether the court must set out the role of the assessor, which was dismissed. Permission to appeal to the Court of Appeal is sought.  Reported in [1] Nearly Legal
• Hajan v Mayor & Burgesses of the London Borough of Brent (2024) EWCA Civ 1260 – Court of Appeal case on the whether it is possible to vary a possession claim to include a mandatory ground for serious Anti-Social Behaviour after proceedings have been issued. Reported in [1] Nearly Legal, inter alia
• Montano, R (On the Application Of) v London Borough of Lambeth (2024) EWHC 249 (Admin)  – Successful judicial review regarding the council’s powers of discretion in their housing allocation scheme. It was determined that the council did have the powers to backdate the start date of housing waiting list accounts, and therefore they needed to consider this discretion. Reported in: [1] Nearly Legal
• Minott v Cambridge City Council (2022) EWCA Civ 159 – Court of Appeal decision on whether a local authority should accept a second homelessness application where the applicant had resisted eviction from his temporary accommodation for sufficient time to give him ‘local connection’. It was decided this new fact was ‘more than trivial or fanciful’. Reported in: [1] Nearly Legal
• SR v Lambeth London Borough Council, County Court at Central London, 21st October 2021 (unreported) – A successful s.204 Housing Act 1996 appeal against a ‘no priority need’ decision by the local authority, in which the review officer had preferred the evidence of an arms-length expert assessment over other in-person assessments without due justification, as well as failure to comply with s.149 Equality Act 2010. Reported in: [1] Nearly Legal
• Lewisham v Malcolm ( House of Lords ) 2008 – the outcome of this case was directly responsible for the introduction of new legislation  brought about by the Equality Act 2010, in particular s15 EA 2010
• Paragon v Neville (https://cornerstonebarristers.com/news/significant-court-appeal-decision-concerning-equality-act-2010-proportionality-warrant-suspension-applications/) currently seeking leave to appeal in the House of Lords
• Raza v Karim (https://www.peterboroughtoday.co.uk/news/crime/landlady-ordered-to-pay-12-000-to-tenant-1-8511651) in which the landlady was ordered to pay our client £12,000 in damages
• Metropolitan Housing Trust Limited v MA (reported in Legal Action May 2018) in which a suspended possession order was made after the judge ruled that the literal construction of the tenancy agreement should be relied on and that if alternative statutory grounds were to be relied upon, the tenancy agreement should be included to include this expressly.

• Experienced and compassionate lawyers. Firm ranked in legal 500
• Highly ranked housing lawyers in chambers
• Firm with number of nominations for awards for achievement
• Lawyers always pushing the boundaries to achieve the best outcome