LATEST HEADLINES
May 12, 2021
Councils express concern at potential rise in homeless households as Government confirms ban on bailiff-enforced evictions to end on 31 May
The current ban on bailiff-enforced evictions will end on 31 May, the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) has confirmed.
May 12, 2021
Judicial review proceedings launched against Welsh council in waste recycling plant planning dispute
Judicial review proceedings have been launched against Caerphilly County Borough Council over the local authority's decision to give planning permission to a waste recycling plant without undertaking an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA).
May 12, 2021
High Court issues key ruling on "Traveller Injunctions" and "persons unknown", criticises suspected procedural breaches and abuse of court procedures in applications for interim orders
There are grounds to suspect that, in a significant number of applications by local authorities for interim injunctions against “Persons Unknown” targeting unauthorised encampments on land, there were material and serious breaches of the procedural requirements and the procedures of the Court – and…
May 12, 2021
DVLA appoints law firm to £830k contract advising on exit from property PFI deal
The DVLA has handed law firm Gowling WLG a two-year contract worth more than £830,000 to advise on the expiry of a major PFI agreement.
May 11, 2021
Bevan Brittan promotes one lawyer to partner and eight to senior associate
Bevan Brittan has promoted one partner and 14 other lawyers to senior associate or associate in its latest round.
May 11, 2021
Government planning reforms “a complete disaster in the making”: London Councils
London Councils has strongly criticised the overhaul of planning reforms unveiled in the Queen’s Speech, warning that the measures were "a complete disaster in the making".
May 11, 2021
Government threatened with legal action over care home guidance requiring residents to self-isolate
Law firm Bindmans said it has been instructed to bring a legal challenge to care home guidance that says residents making a visit out of the care home should isolate for 14 days on their return.
May 11, 2021
Planning, procurement and judicial review legislation to the fore in Queen's Speech
Bills covering planning, procurement, subsidy control, judicial review and electoral integrity are among the key pieces of legislation outlined in today’s Queen’s Speech.
May 11, 2021
Housing Ombudsman publishes report on use of complaint handling failure orders
The Housing Ombudsman has published its first report setting out how it has used its new power to issue complaint handling failure orders.
May 11, 2021
Lawyer found guilty of criminal contempt of court, fined £7k for disclosing result of Supreme Court appeal prior to judgment being handed down
The Supreme Court has fined an environmental lawyer £5,000 after finding him in criminal contempt of court for deliberately disclosing the result of an appeal prior to hand down of the judgment.
May 10, 2021
City council to move to committee system in 2022 after governance referendum
Sheffield City Council is set to switch to a committee system after voters backed a change to the way the city council is run.
May 10, 2021
Street traders lose legal challenge over “innovative product” criterion imposed by council
A High Court judge has dismissed a legal challenge brought by street traders over a council's implementation of a regulatory framework that requires stall owners to sell products not readily available on the high street.
May 10, 2021
High Court judge explains £250k cost-capping order in PPE procurement proceedings
A High Court judge has given her reasons for making a costs capping order of £250,000 in respect of both the claimants, the Good Law Project and EveryDoctor, and the defendant, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, in the procurement challenge over the award of contracts for the supply…
May 10, 2021
Treasury to create £26m fund for councils migrating local land charges service to HM Land Registry
The Treasury is to set up a £26m fund for councils as part of its drive to establish a national Local Land Charges Register.
May 07, 2021
Council creates standalone monitoring officer roles as part of new operating model
Slough Borough Council has created a standalone monitoring officer role as it implements a new operating model.
May 07, 2021
Supreme Court to rule next week on whether judicial review challenge over neighbourhood plan was out of time
The Supreme Court will next week (14 May) hand down its ruling on whether section 61N of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 should be interpreted to mean that a landowner’s application for judicial review – over the making of a neighbourhood development plan without a modification proposed by…
May 07, 2021
Mother wins appeal over lack of due process when she applied for leave to oppose adoption order
A mother who wished to contest an adoption order was not afforded due process by the Family Court, the Court of Appeal has found.
May 07, 2021
Judge hands defendant suspended eight month prison sentence for contempt of court amid ten allegations of breaching planning injunctions in caravan parking case
A man found to have committed 10 contempts of court by parking caravans on a site in Cheshire East Borough Council’s area has been handed an eight months prison sentence, suspended for two years.
May 06, 2021
High Court orders urgent trial in claim by Liverpool mayor for indemnity against legal costs
The High Court in Manchester has ordered that an urgent trial take place of the claim by Joe Anderson, the Mayor of Liverpool, that Liverpool City Council are acting unlawfully in refusing to provide him with the same indemnity against legal costs offered to other council members.
May 06, 2021
Council to pay housing association £117k after errors lead to cancelled land sale
Lichfield District Council is to pay a housing association compensation of almost £117,000 after errors in a land sale.
May 06, 2021
Allocation scheme unlawfully discriminated against those with disabilities, High Court judge rules
Birmingham City Council’s choice-based process for allocating homes to people with disabilities was discriminatory and therefore unlawful, the High Court has found.
May 06, 2021
Activists to take Government to court over honouring of Paris Agreement commitments
Climate litigation charity Plan B is to support three activists in their 20s in taking senior ministers to court over what they have said is the Government’s failure to honour its Paris Agreement commitments.
May 06, 2021
Council suspends grants of planning permission in 69km river catchment after phosphates warning
Cornwall Council has suspended grants of planning permission in a river catchment area after concerns from Natural England over phosphate pollution.
May 05, 2021
High Court judge revokes adoption orders after acknowledging "exceptional circumstances"
A judge in the Family Division of the High Court has revoked adoption orders for an 18 year old (A) and a 16 year old (B) after concluding that there were “compelling highly exceptional and particular circumstances” that supported such a step.
May 05, 2021
Supreme Court gives permission to appeal in capacity to consent to sexual relations case
The Supreme Court has agreed to hear a case on whether, to have capacity to decide to have sexual relations with another person, a person needs to understand that the other person must have the capacity to consent to the sexual activity and must in fact consent before and throughout the sexual…
May 05, 2021
Active participants in meetings of local authorities in England under Local Government Act 1972 must attend in person: LLG and ADSO
Those actively participating in a meeting of a local authority in England under the Local Government Act 1972 – whether as objectors, applicants or appellant – must attend in person from 7 May, LLG (Lawyers in Local Government) and ADSO (the Association of Democratic Services Offices) have told…
May 04, 2021
Government facing legal challenge over unregulated accommodation and 16-17 year olds
A children’s rights charity has threatened the Government with legal action over its decision not to ban the use of unregulated accommodation for 16 and 17 year-old children in care.
May 04, 2021
High Court judge refuses permission for Local Plan legal challenge after oral hearing
A second High Court judge has refused a campaign group permission to apply for judicial review against South Oxfordshire District Council’s decision to adopt the South Oxfordshire Local Plan 2035.
May 04, 2021
Requirement for meetings under Local Government Act 1972 to be “open to the public” means members of public must be admitted in person: High Court rules
A requirement that a meeting under the Local Government Act 1972 is to be "open to the public" or "held in public" means that members of public must be admitted in person to the place where the meeting is being held, the High Court has ruled.
May 04, 2021
Bar organisations warn against decisions to employ "markedly inferior" remote hearings more widely once Covid-19 has passed
There are multiple and multi-faceted disadvantages with remote hearings when compared to usual, in-person hearings that have delivered justice “for centuries”, the four Bars for the UK and Ireland have warned.
May 04, 2021
High Court dismisses as ‘academic’ legal challenge over later reopening of indoor hospitality in Government roadmap
The High Court has dismissed a legal challenge over the decision to allow non-essential retail to open at least five weeks before indoor hospitality.
May 03, 2021
Minister calls on councils to respond to call for evidence on remote meetings after High Court setback
The Minister of State for Regional Growth and Local Government has urged principal councils in England to take part in the Government’s call for evidence on the use of remote meetings.
May 03, 2021
Council fails in appeal over direction by judge that parents and child should undergo residential assessment
A Family Court judge has rejected an appeal brought by a local authority against a case management decision by a district judge pursuant to s 38(6) of the Children Act (1989) directing that the parents and the subject child (“L”) should undergo a residential assessment.
May 03, 2021
Trowers advises social landlord on first ever sustainability-linked private placement for housing association
Law firm Trowers & Hamlins has advised believe housing on an £85m sustainability-linked private placement with Legal and General in what is reported to be a sector first for a housing association.
May 03, 2021
Law Society criticises government “over-reach” in judicial review reform
Proposed changes to the ways in which judicial review challenges can be brought “would make life easier for the government at the expense of accountability and access to justice”, the President of the Law Society of England and Wales has warned.
Apr 30, 2021
Councils to be under new legal duty to provide support to victims as Domestic Abuse Bill receives Royal Assent
Councils will from this summer have a legal duty to provide support such as therapy, advocacy and counselling in safe accommodation, including refuges, to victims of domestic abuse and their children, after the Domestic Abuse Bill this week (29 April) received Royal Assent.
Apr 30, 2021
Government consults on residential developer tax aimed at contributing £2bn to cost of cladding remediation
The Government has launched a consultation on the proposed design of a new tax on the largest residential property developers to help contribute to the cost of cladding remediation work.
Apr 30, 2021
Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman to routinely publish its investigations
The Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman (PHSO) has from this week begun to routinely publish its investigations including those cases where serious mistakes have been made and not readily admitted nor addressed.
Apr 30, 2021
Ombudsman recommends school should offer fresh appeal to child denied sixth form place after finding “significant faults” in the process
A Bromley grammar school has been asked to hold a fresh admissions appeal for a teenager wanting to enter its sixth form, and review the way it deals with future appeals, after the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman found a number of faults with the way it handled his case.
Apr 30, 2021
Landlord hit with curfew, £7k compensation and costs bill after unlawful eviction
A landlord has been placed under an overnight curfew in her home and ordered to pay just under £7,000 in compensation and costs after pleading guilty to unlawfully evicting her lodger, in a case brought by Bristol City Council’s Rogue Landlord Unit.
Apr 29, 2021
High Court judge says system of city council for accommodating homeless people is unlawful
Birmingham City Council’s system for allocating accommodation to homeless people has been declared unlawful by the High Court.
Apr 29, 2021
High Court judge hands down ruling on lawful scope of statutory consultation response
Norfolk County Council wrongly took account of the economic benefits of a development proposal when in its capacity as highways authority it decided not to object to its impact on a local main road.
Apr 29, 2021
Council wins High Court challenge over decision by planning inspector not to include conditions restricting commercial uses
A planning inspector’s decision over conversion of a building in Manchester contained a legal error and must be quashed, the High Court has found.
Apr 29, 2021
Court of Appeal rejects challenge to Legoland planning permission over impact on 'veteran' trees
The Court of Appeal has rejected all five grounds argued by an objector to a holiday village project at the Legoland theme park.
Apr 29, 2021
Developer loses legal challenge after drawing error invalidated planning permission
A planning inspector was right to reject an appeal over a building where a drawing error showed it lower than its intended height, the High Court has ruled.
Apr 29, 2021
Campaigner loses High Court challenge over Natural England decision on tree felling in wood affected by HS2
A High Court judge has dismissed as unarguable all the grounds advanced by environmental activist Mark Keir against Natural England’s decision to allow the felling of part of a wood for works on the HS2 rail project.
Apr 28, 2021
Meetings of local authorities in England must be face to face from 7 May, judges rule
Meetings held by local authorities in England under the Local Government Act 1972 must take place in person from 7 May when emergency regulations introduced in the early stages of the first lockdown expire, the Divisional Court has ruled.
Apr 28, 2021
High Court judge criticises “disproportionate” £450k+ costs estimate put forward by Cabinet Office for one-day hearing of procurement legal challenge
The Cabinet Office’s £450,000 estimated likely costs for defending a legal challenge over its award of a contract for the provision of polling services during the pandemic appeared – without further explanation from the defendant– to be “disproportionate for a one day hearing, even in a complicated…
Apr 28, 2021
Supreme Court agrees to hear battle over termination of fixed term secure flexible tenancies
The Supreme Court has granted Croydon Council permission to appeal in a dispute over the termination of fixed term secure flexible tenancies.
Apr 27, 2021
London borough consults on support payment scheme for survivors of abuse at children’s homes
Islington Council has launched a consultation this month on a proposed support payment scheme for survivors of abuse suffered while placed by the local authority in one of its children’s homes from 1966 to 1995.
Apr 27, 2021
Civil servants union given green light for judicial review challenge over decision by Prime Minister that Home Secretary did not break Ministerial Code
The First Division Association has been given permission to bring a judicial review challenge over the Prime Minister’s decision that Home Secretary Priti Patel did not break the Ministerial Code in her treatment of civil servants.
Apr 26, 2021
Court of Appeal overturns order discharging mother as party in Court of Protection proceedings
The Court of Appeal has allowed an appeal from a decision by the Vice-President of the Court of Protection to discharge a mother as a party to proceedings concerning her highly vulnerable 19-year-old daughter (P).
Apr 26, 2021
Combined authority appoints law firm for projects legal advice worth up to £4m
The West Yorkshire Combined Authority (WYCA) has appointed law firm Pinsent Masons to provide projects legal advice under a contract potentially worth up to £4m over three years.
Apr 26, 2021
Supreme Court to hear key case this week on approach to data breach compensation claims
The Supreme Court will this week (28 April) hear a key case on the approach to compensation claims arising out of data breaches.
Apr 26, 2021
Warning of huge cost burden for councils after High Court rules Royal Borough acted unlawfully in refusing right to inspect accounting records on basis of time it would take
A London borough acted unlawfully in refusing a request to inspect its accounting records on the grounds of the time it would take to satisfy the request, a High Court judge has ruled.
Apr 26, 2021
Divisional Court to hear judicial review over grant by TfL of private operator’s licence to business behind FREENOW ride-hailing app
A High Court judge has given the United Trade Action Group (UTAG), a body representing the interests of the hackney carriage trade, permission to judicially review the decision of TfL to grant a Private Hire Operator’s Licence to a business whose private hire drivers work off a smartphone…
Apr 26, 2021
Social landlord appoints seven law firms to £5m legal services framework
A housing association with more than 28,000 homes across the North West, Yorkshire and the Midlands, Your Housing, has appointed seven providers to a legal services framework worth an estimated £5m over four years.
Apr 26, 2021
Anthony Collins Solicitors promotes three to partner including head of housing management
The head of the housing management and Right to Buy teams at Anthony Collins Solicitors (ACS) is among three new partners in its latest round of promotions.
Apr 26, 2021
Real estate solicitor rejoins Devonshires as a partner after eight years away
A solicitor who previously worked at law firm Devonshires has returned to the firm as a partner to strengthen its growing Real Estate and Projects practice.
Apr 23, 2021
Kent teen left to live in tent during Covid-19 crisis, Ombudsman investigation finds
A Kent teenager was left to sofa surf and live in a tent for almost two months by Medway Council during the COVID-19 pandemic after his family was left homeless, the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman has found.
Apr 23, 2021
Council wins Supreme Court appeal over claim of £1.2m from heirs of school benefactor
The Supreme Court has allowed Oxfordshire County Council's appeal in a case in which a family said the sale of school land worth £1.2m, which was gifted to the council by their late family member, was unlawful.
Apr 22, 2021
Coroner calls for legally binding targets for particulate matter based on WHO guidelines, urges range of bodies to take action on air quality
Lewisham Council is amongst 14 government, educational and professional organisations being called upon by a coroner to address air pollution after poor air quality led to the death of a nine-year-old girl.
Apr 22, 2021
Tenant wins appeal over service of notice as she pursues private prosecution of council over mice infestation
A tenant seeking to bring a private prosecution against a council over a mice infestation has won an appeal over her compliance with the notice requirements of the Environmental Protection Act 1990 (EPA).