Legal News

The Upper Tribunal (UT) has upheld an appeal by the landlords of a rental property against a decision of the First-tier Tribunal (FTT) to vary an improvement notice, finding that the FTT had failed to explain why the local authority was justified in...

The High Court has ruled that a will made by an elderly woman less than two years before she died was invalid because she lacked testamentary capacity when it was made. The woman had died in October 2014 at the age of 95. In January 2013 she had made a...

The licensing regime for houses in multiple occupation (HMOs) exists to protect the safety and welfare of tenants. Recently, four tenants of an unlicensed HMO obtained rent repayment orders totalling £23,177. The tenants had rented a four-bedroom...

Recent figures from HM Courts and Tribunals Service show that the waiting time for grants of probate has remained steady for several months, following delays in processing probate applications in recent years. The average time from submission of a probate...

The Court of Appeal has rejected a supermarket chain's appeal against the dismissal of its claim for judicial review of a planning permission granted to a competitor. The Court found that the local council had correctly understood and applied the...

The leaseholders of a flat in a separate wing of a country house have succeeded in their appeal against a determination that they were liable to pay service charges in respect of the common parts of the house. The leaseholders had purchased the flat in...

In a decision that will be welcomed by property developers , the Supreme Court has ruled that if a developer voluntarily remedies defects in a development, there is no rule of law preventing it from seeking damages from the party responsible for the...

A woman who stole her daughters' inheritance has been handed a prison sentence and ordered to pay back the money. The woman's mother passed away in 2013. The woman received an inheritance of about £40,000 from her mother's house, while £50,000...

The Upper Tribunal (UT) has rejected a landowner's appeal against the dismissal of his application for the determination of a boundary between a strip of land he owned and the garden of a neighbouring house. He had originally owned a large house with...

A management company has successfully appealed against a service charge determination that resulted in a leaseholder's service charge demand being substantially reduced, on the basis that the First-tier Tribunal (FTT) had not properly explained its...

The Law Commission has published a report, Modernising Wills Law, containing its recommendations to reform the law governing wills. The recommendations are aimed at supporting testamentary freedom, protecting testators, and increasing clarity and certainty...

The Upper Tribunal (UT) has ruled that a restrictive covenant which required the owners of land to obtain approval from the vendor before a house could be built on it was personal to the original vendor and did not benefit his successors in title. The land...

Making a will not only ensures your assets will pass to those you wish to benefit but also simplifies the administration of your estate. However, recent research from the Money and Pensions Service shows that more than half of people in the UK aged 50-64,...

The Upper Tribunal (UT) has declined to set aside a decision of the First-tier Tribunal (FTT) not to make an order for costs in favour of a company which successfully appealed against an improvement notice served on it by the local housing authority under...

Tenants who are unhappy with the service charges they are asked to pay can apply to the First-tier Tribunal (FTT) for a determination of their liability to pay service charges. Recently, a tenant who made such an application succeeded in achieving...