Landmark decision: Ruling on Insurance Rent Commissions Background In May 2025, Mr Justice Richards delivered judgment in the second round of dispute between London Trocadero (2015) LLP, landlord of the Trocadero Centre in London, and Picturehouse Cinemas Ltd, its cinema tenant. The issue in question: Was the landlord entitled to charge the tenant the insurance premium which included the commission [...]
Climate Change and Property Law: how changes impact real estate As climate change increasingly shapes the legal and commercial landscape, solicitors must adapt practices to address the emerging risks. The Law Society’s recent guidance and practice notes provide an insightful framework for understanding and responding to climate-related challenges in property transactions. Key highlights The Law Society outlines three key categories [...]
Update on the Renters Right Bill – It’s nearly time! The Renters’ Rights Bill has progressed quickly and is expected to be passed as law after April 2025. The Bill aims to reform the private rental sector, including abolishing Section 21 evictions, ending fixed term tenancies and introducing a single system of periodic tenancies. Here is a recap of some [...]
Moths and Replies to Enquiries – A Salutary Lesson Iya Patarkatsishvili (1) Yevhen Hunyak v William Woodward – Fisher [2025] EWHC 265 (Ch) The judgment of Mr Justice Fancourt sitting in the High Court of Justice on 10 February 2025 is an interesting one and provides a reminder to take care when answering enquiries as a seller. In this case [...]
Update on EPC asset ratings Discover the key changes the government is considering for raising the minimum EPC asset rating and what this means for landlords. The below summary highlights, on a concise basis rather than an in-depth analysis, the changes. A. EPC rating The government, under its mandate, is looking to increase the minimum EPC asset rating for properties [...]
Relief for leaseholders – the “two-year” rule is no more Provided that certain qualifying conditions are met, long leaseholders of houses and flats are entitled either to purchase the freehold of their building or extend their leases pursuant to the provisions of either the Leasehold Reform Act 1967 or the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993. Those rights [...]
The age of legal reform in the property sector – is the 1954 Act next? On the 19th November 2024, the Law Commission published its Consultation Paper (the “Paper”), which concerns Part 2 of the landlord and tenant Act 1954 (or as it is well known : “the 54 Act”). The Law Commission considers, for a variety of reasons, that [...]
That peaceful pathway that you have used as a shortcut every day on your walk home from work might seem convenient and easy to navigate, but it may just turn into a maze of legalities. In a decision earlier this year in Nicholson and Another v Hale and Another, the Upper Tribunal considered whether a small sign put up by the [...]
Update on the Renters’ Rights Bill: Key Changes and Implications for Landlords and Tenants The Renters’ Rights Bill was published on 11 September 2024, and had its second reading in Parliament on 9 October 2024. This Bill was introduced by the government following the abandonment of previous efforts to reform the residential rental market under the former Renters’ (Reform) Bill [...]
Landlords who want to obtain vacant possession of premises at the end of a tenancy benefitting from the security of tenure protections in the Landlord and Tenant Act 1954 (“the Act”) often use the redevelopment and own occupation grounds in sections 30(1)(f) and (g) of the Act to resist the grant of a new tenancy. On 13 May 2024, however, [...]
