Is the grant of the new lease a ‘relevant disposal’ for the purposes of section 95(1) of the Localism Act 2011? Section 95(1) of the Localism Act 2011 provides that a person who is an owner of land included in a local authority's list of assets of community value (ACV) must not enter into a relevant disposal of the land unless conditions A–C, set out in LA 2011, s 95 are met. See Commentary: Moratorium on disposing of land included in list of assets of community value: Halsbury’s Laws of England [436]. Who is the ‘owner’? LA

Serving the notice Administration of Estates Act 1925, s 1(3) provides that when a person is deceased: The personal representatives shall be the representative of the deceased in regard to his real estate to which he was entitled for an interest not ceasing on his death as well as in regard to his personal estate. It is, therefore, appropriate to address a notice referring to that property to the personal representative of the deceased, regardless of who the personal representative may be or whether a grant of representation has yet been issued as the testator’s property vests

This Q&A has assumed that: • the tenant is occupying under a statutory periodic assured shorthold tenancy (AST) under the Housing Act 1988 (HA 1988) following expiration of the fixed term AST • no energy performance certificate (EPC) has been given to the tenant at any stage • there is no available exemption from the requirement for an EPC For some tenancies, it is a pre-condition to service of a valid notice under HA 1988, s 21 that the landlord has complied with their obligations under the Energy Performance of Buildings (England and Wales) Regulations 2012 (EPC Regs 2012), SI 2012/3118, reg 6(5). That obligation is to 'ensure that a valid energy performance certificate

On forfeiture of a lease by peaceable re-entry, the lease comes to an end. The fact that the tenant may intend to apply for relief from forfeiture, but has not yet done so, would not appear to affect the status of the lease. This may be contrasted with the effect of forfeiture by service of proceedings, where no order for possession has yet been made. See Commentary: The

Section 23 of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1954 (LTA 1954) describes those tenancies to which the renewal provisions apply: 'any tenancy where the property comprised in the tenancy is or includes premises which are occupied by the tenant and are so occupied for the purposes of a business carried on by him or for those and other purposes'. It is clear that that the provision of accommodation (whether residential or commercial premises) may be a 'business' within the meaning of the Act. Where the tenant’s business is that of subletting, however, whether of the whole or parts of the premises and whether for business or residential purposes, the tenant cannot be in occupation of the whole or the parts in question for the purposes

Section 27(1) of the Leasehold Reform Act 1967 (LRA 1967) provides that: ‘Where a tenant of a house having a right under this Part of this Act to acquire the freehold is prevented from giving notice of his desire to have the freehold because the person to be served with the notice cannot be found, or his identity cannot be ascertained, then on an application made by the tenant [the court] may, subject to and in accordance with the provisions of this section, make such order as [the court] thinks fit with a view to the house and premises being vested

The reference to a statement of intent to be included in a schedule of dilapidations is probably a reference to the endorsement required by paragraph 3.6 of the Pre-Action Protocol for Claims for Damages in Relation to the Physical State of Commercial Property at Termination of a Tenancy (the Protocol). The endorsement required is that

For the purposes of this response, we have assumed that, the issue of the option aside, T’s estate would be able to claim the residence nil rate band (RNRB) in respect of the property. General information about the RNRB can be found in Practice Note: IHT—residence nil rate band. In IHTM46033, HMRC set out their views on the meaning of ‘closely inherited’. They specifically state: ‘The actual residence does not have to end up in the hands of the deceased’s direct descendants. An estate could still be eligible

We have assumed that W has an immediate post-death interest in the property. Broadly, it should be possible for the trustees to engage in the transaction, but it depends on all the circumstances, in particular, the terms of the trust. However, the trustees should also consider the following issues: • unless expressly permitted by the terms of the trust, trustees may not profit from their position as trustees. See Practice Notes: Trustees—self-dealing, unauthorised profits and conflicts of interest and Trustees—duties • the trustees cannot contract with themselves: this is known as the ‘two-party rule’. A

This question addresses the situation whereby a life interest trust is created by a will, but which is silent as to the appointment of trustees. The answer below considers the legal position and the mechanism for regularising that position. It is assumed for the purpose of this answer that the home-made will complies with the necessary formalities prescribed by the Wills Act 1837, and that the deceased died on or after 1 January 1997. For guidance

The residence nil rate band (RNRB) is only available where a 'qualifying residential interest' (QRI) is ‘closely inherited’ on the deceased’s death. See Section 8J of the Inheritance Tax Act 1984 (IHTA 1984). ‘Inherited’ is defined as meaning that the property passes from a person who has died and the property formed part of their estate immediately before they died. The disposition of the property

How should the trustees report the amount of the debt for the purposes of IHT ten-year charge? Should they include any index-linked element of the debt? We are not aware of any authority on this specific point. The principal or ten-year charge is levied on the value of relevant property owned by the trustees immediately before the ten-year anniversary (TYA). See Practice Note: Relevant property trusts—the principal (ten-year) charge. Where trustees hold a property subject to a charge which has an index-linked element, it is necessary to ascertain the correct valuation of the