In R (Flores) v Southwark LBC (2020) EWHC 1279 (Admin) the Court interprets the Council’s priority housing scheme in the context of overcrowding and the meaning of “ deliberate act”.
Charitable Trust
June 8th, 2020 by James Goudie KC in Land, Goods and ServicesBrent LBC v Johnson (2020) EWHC 933(Ch) holds that an argument that a local authority is not free to sell a property that it owns because it is held on charitable trust for the local community can be advanced only in proceedings to which the Attorney General is party.
PFI Contracts and Services
June 5th, 2020 by James Goudie KC in Decision making and ContractsPFI contracts are starting to expire. Managing their end will be complex and time and resources intensive. Decisions will have to be made on whether services should then be provided in-house or by a contractor. Early preparations are needed.
The National Audit Office has produced a Report, “ Managing PFI assets and services as contracts end”. It examines the risks to assets and services, the preventative steps to be considered, and the preparation and delivery of contract expiry.
Flexible Tenancies
June 4th, 2020 by James Goudie KC in HousingSecure tenancies granted by local housing authorities are either the familiar periodic tenancies or tenancies for a fixed term. Croydon LBC v Kalonga (2020) EWHC 1353(QB) concerns a flexible secure tenancy granted by the Council for a fixed term of 5 years.
Public Path in Public Park
June 3rd, 2020 by James Goudie KC in Environment, Highways and LeisureIn Barlow v Wigan MBC (2020) EWCA Civ 696 the Court of Appeal holds that a public path in a local authority park engaged the statutory duty under Section 41 of the Highways Act 1980 notwithstanding that the path had not been constructed as a highway by the authority in its capacity as highway authority. The path was nonetheless maintainable at public expense within Section 36 of the Act. It had been dedicated as a highway.
Listed Buildings
May 21st, 2020 by James Goudie KC in Planning and EnvironmentalAn item being on a listed building list is not conclusive of it being a “ building”. When considering what free standing items, such as garden objects or structures, qualify as a “ building” protected in the listed building context the relevant criteria are (1) size, (2) permanence, and (3) degree of physical attachment. So held by the Supreme Court in Dill v SoS for MHCLG (2020’ UKSC 20.
Rateable Occupation
May 21st, 2020 by James Goudie KC in Council Tax and RatesATMs installed inside and outside supermarkets and shops are not separate hereditament. They remain in the rateable occupation of the retailers, not of the parties which operate them. So has the Supreme Court held in Cardtronics v Sykes (2020) UKSC 21. It is analogous to the situation of a lodging house. There is a single hereditament in the rateable occupation of the landlord.
State Aid
May 13th, 2020 by James Goudie KC in Capital Finance and CompaniesCase T-8/18, easy jet Airline Co Ltd v EU Commission, General Court Judgment, about airports in Sardinia, addresses a range of features of State Aid law, including state resources, selective advantage, distortion of competition, affecting trade between member states, and compatibility with the internal market, and, from para 169, especially at paras 185, 200-203, 212 and 218, the Market Economy Operator Principle.
Interim Injunctions
May 12th, 2020 by James Goudie KC in Judicial Control, Liability and LitigationA School’s appeal against the refusal of an interim injunction was dismissed in R ( Governing Body of X ) v OFSTED (2020) EWCA Civ 594. The injunction sought was to restrain OFSTED from publishing a Report. The Report graded the School as inadequate. The Court of Appeal addressed the approach to interim injunctions in public law proceedings.