Before a landlord who has granted an assured shorthold tenancy (AST) wishes to seek possession of it under the special ground relating to such tenancies set out in section 21 of the Housing Act 1988 (HA 1988) they must first give no less than two months’ notice in writing stating that they require possession (a section 21 notice). The Assured Shorthold Tenancy Notices and Prescribed Requirements (England) Regulations 2015, SI 2015/1646 commenced on 1 October 2015 and only apply

Paragraph 8.2 of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) code considers the definition of ‘beyond economic repair’ and states that: 'Plant and equipment reaches the end of its economic life when it is more economic to

If your dispute arises out of a contract which includes a provision for interest then it is usual for you to seek to recover: • interest at the contractual rate as set out in the contract, and • in the alternative, interest as the court may in its discretion order under section 35A of the Senior Courts Act 1981, section 69 of the County Courts Act 1984 or under certain other statutory provisions eg the Late Payment of Commercial Debts (Interest) Act 1998). Where a claim to contractual interest is valid, the court will not be able to apply a different rate

Section 27 of the Localism Act 2011 (LA 2011) requires relevant local authorities to maintain high standards of conduct by their members, including by the adoption of a Code of Conduct: ‘…(1) A relevant authority must promote and maintain high standards of conduct by members and co-opted members of the authority. (2) In discharging its duty under subsection (1), a relevant authority must, in particular, adopt a code dealing with the conduct that is expected of members and co-opted members of the authority when they are acting in that capacity.’ Each council adopts its

In respect of gang injunctions pursuant to section 34 of the Policing and Crime Act 2009 (PCA 2009), the duty to hold a review hearing within a specified period for injunctions that are to survive for longer than a year is a mandatory duty on the court. There is no discretion in PCA 2009 to hold this mandatory review hearing at a later time, nor do the court’s general powers under the Civil Procedure Rules allow it to postpone this hearing. A court which fails to list such a hearing acts illegally and its failure to act could be challenged by appeal or (as a last resort) by judicial review. However, the failure to list a review hearing does not mean that the underlying injunction falls away, is automatically discharged,

A restrictive covenant over freehold land may continue in existence for an indefinite period of time, unless it is expressly limited (which is rarely the case). Unless a covenant can be proven to have ceased to be enforceable, or in the absence of an express release, an application will need to be made to the Upper Tribunal (Lands Chamber) (UT) pursuant to section 84(1) of the Law of Property Act 1925 (LPA 1925) to discharge or modify the covenant, often to allow development to take place. An application under LPA 1925, s 84(1) may be made

It is assumed that: • the interest being transferred is a leasehold interest in a single dwelling in the building that has been converted by the developer • the works to convert the building to residential use were completed before 1 October 2023 • the property is in England Higher-risk buildings Parts 3 and 4 of the Building Safety Act 2022 (BSA 2022) introduced the framework for a new regulatory system applicable to a higher-risk building (HRB). BSA 2022, Pt 5 contains provisions relating to remediation costs for ‘relevant

Party Wall Act procedure The Party Wall etc Act 1996 (PWA 1996) contains a procedure, including notification provisions, which the owner of a property must follow if they wish to carry out certain works to a Party Wall works—notices, disputes and awards. The PWA 1996 also details what the owner of the adjoining property is able to do in response. For a summary of key provisions we refer you to our Practice Note: Quick guide to party walls. Building owner’s failure to use PWA procedure The PWA 1996, s 3 sets out the requirements for notice (known as a ‘party structure notice’). In practice, if a building owner is about to start works on a party wall and has not served a notice as required under the legislation,

The duty to identify and manage the risk of asbestos containing materials (ACMs) applies to all non-domestic premises and the common parts of domestic premises (see Control of Asbestos Regulation 2012, SI 2012/632, reg 4). The Health and Safety Executive Approved Code of Practice gives some further guidance. It states: ‘The duty to manage covers all non-domestic premises. This includes all industrial and commercial buildings, such as factories, warehouses, offices and shops. The duty also covers public buildings such as hospitals,

As mentioned in Practice Note: What does stamp duty apply to?, subject to exemptions and reliefs, UK stamp duty applies (among other things) to instruments of transfer relating to stock or marketable securities at the rate of 0.5% of the value or amount of the consideration for the transfer, subject to the duty being rounded up to the nearest multiple of £5. As noted in Practice Note: Stamp duty on transfers—scope, administration and enforcement, UK stamp duty applies to instruments of transfer which have a connection with the UK because they: • are executed in the UK, or • relate to any property situate, or to any matter or thing done or to be done, in the UK even though the instruments of transfer are executed outside the UK A transfer of non-UK shares may

Where a landlord serves notice under section 5 of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1987 (LTA 1987), an acceptance notice may be served by ‘the requisite majority of qualifying tenants of the constituent flats’ (LTA 1987, s 6(3)). That

Section 123 of the Local Government Act 1972 (LGA 1972) governs the disposal of land by principal councils. This provides that subject to the provisions of that section, a principal council may dispose of land held by them in any manner they wish (LGA 1972, s 123(1)), though save in respect of a short tenancy, this must not be for a consideration less than the best that can reasonably be obtained (LGA 1972, section 123(2)). The remainder of the section contains other prohibitions, save that LGA 1972, s 123(7) defines a disposal by way of a short tenancy as being the grant of a term not exceeding seven years, or the assignment of a term which has not more than seven years to run.