The landlord had obtained a possession order against its secure tenant. The tenant had left to go to Egypt, and had been in arrears of rent. The tenancy obliged the tenant to occupy the prperty as his main residence. The landlord re-let the property, but the tenant then had the possession order set aside saying he had not had opportunity to take part in the proceedings. The Association had offered alternative accomodation.
Held: The judge in setting aside the possession order had failed to allow for the fact that the main reason for the tenant’s non-involvement was his own absence from the premises, and had failed to take proper consideration of the tenant’s obligation to occupy the property. The judge had made an error of law and the Association’s appeal succeeded.
Judges:
Peter Gibson LJ, Buckley J
Citations:
[1997] EWCA Civ 853
Jurisdiction:
England and Wales
Citing:
Cited – Dellenty v Pellow 1951
The payment off of arrears of rent will not necessarily prevent an order for possession being made where there is a history of arrears and poor payment. . .
Cited – Cooper v Scott Farnell CA 1969
The defendant argued that since he had had no notice of the proceedings, the judgment against him should be set aside: ‘It appears to me that [the rule] contemplates that although there may be service, it may take place even without knowledge on the . .
Cited – Haringey London Borough Council v Stewart and Stewart 1991
A tenant with a bad payment record may still be subject to an order for possession though he clears the arrears by the time of the hearing. When considering reasonableness, it is the duty of the judge to take into account all relevant circumstances . .
Cited – Lee-Steere v Jennings 1986
. .
Lists of cited by and citing cases may be incomplete.
Housing
Updated: 05 November 2022; Ref: scu.141249
