Tel:+44(0)121 200 3242 Fax:+44(0)121 212 7442 Email:info@anthonycollins.com |
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Housing LitigationWe have one of the largest dedicated housing litigation teams in the Country. Our friendly and approachable team can help you or your organisation tackle anti-social behaviour, rent arrears, disrepair claims, breach of tenancy, and comply with Regulatory Codes and good practice. We can also help you meet the RESPECT Standard! We can give you comprehensive advice and take action on, click on the links below for more info:
Our People The team is led by Helen Tucker. Training We run a series of seminars and workshops throughout the year. Further details can be found by clicking here We can offer training for you and your staff either at our offices in Birmingham or at your own offices to meet your needs. Briefings We provide free newsletters and briefings to our clients. Click on the links to download the latest issues! Register for this free service by clicking below.
Fees Does the cost of taking legal proceedings put you off? We offer competitive fixed fees to our clients so you know what to expect in our bills. Contact Our Team for more information. Useful Links
Possession A landlord can seek possession of the Property for a variety of reasons such as: -
We can draft the relevant Notice of Seeking Possession, advise on what grounds to use, review evidence, draft witness statements and Court papers and attend Court. We advise on any additional remedies that can also be sought in possession proceedings.
Demotion Social landlords may apply to the County Court to order a tenancy be brought to an end by a Demotion Order for anti-social behaviour. When a Demotion Order is granted, the tenancy is replaced with a less secure form of tenancy. In addition to proving anti-social behaviour the court must be satisfied that it is reasonable to make the order. Although demotion is still not frequently used, we have obtained a considerable number of orders. See our case studies for an example.
ASBIs All social landlords can apply for injunctions to prohibit anti-social behaviour that affects the management of their housing stock or is an unlawful use of property or a breach of tenancy. The injunctions are available against tenants and non-tenants. Injunctions can be applied for with or without notice to the Defendant depending on the seriousness of the circumstances. We obtain injunctions on a daily basis for landlords across the country - its easy to instruct us (download our ASB injunction instruction sheet now) and you know for certain what it will cost (fixed fees on all ASB injunctions). See our case studies for example injunctions we have obtained. ASBOs Far from being a badge of honour ASBOs are the only remedy a social landlord can obtain directly against a child. They order a person not to cause harassment, alarm or distress to one or more persons not of the same household. ASBOs can be used in a variety of circumstances and to tackle a wide range of behaviours. We have obtained
See our case studies for example ASBOs. Introductory Tenancies Local housing authorities can adopt introductory tenancy schemes for all new tenants. Introductory tenants are essentially on probation and the landlord can evict them fairly easily during the probationary period. At the end of the probationary period, the landlord may seek to extend introductory tenancies in cases of anti-social behaviour. Otherwise the introductory tenancy will automatically become a secure tenancy. We can help you draft your internal review policy and deal with challenges to the appeal process/judicial reviews. Starter Tenancies Many RSLS are now considering introducing starter tenancies. Starter tenancies mean you can guarantee you can end the tenancy more quickly and cheaply if anti-social behaviour (or other breaches) occurs during the starter tenancy period. We have drafted numerous starter tenancy agreements and policies, advised on internal appeals procedures and trained board members on running internal appeals. Tolerated Trespassers This is a complex area of law that has seen considerable change in 2006 and 2007. We acted on the leading cases on assured tenancies on this issue in 2007. We can advise you about:
Assured Shorthold Tenants Assured shorthold tenants do not have long-term security of tenure, but cannot be evicted:
Licences RSLs use licences in hostels and supported housing. We understand the need to end licences quickly and with certainty. Some of your licences will be protected - others excluded from any security of tenure. The Housing Corporation has given guidance on good practice in ending licences. We can provide advice as to when a licence (as opposed to a tenancy) is appropriate and what sort of licence, provide licence agreements; draft notices and Court papers and represent you at Court or advise when you do not need to go to court. RESPECT standard The Respect Standard for Housing Management, launched in August 2006 is now incorpated into the Audit Commission Key Lines of Enquiry on tenancy mangements (KloE 6). It outlines the core components essential to delivering an effective response to anti-social behaviour and building stronger communities, such as accountability, leadership, giving greater resident empowerment, and supporting community efforts at tackling anti-social behaviour. We provide:
Leading Cases we have been involved in Court of Appeal
Housing ManagementHousing Management "I have found ACS to be knowledgeable, practical and pro-active... We consider ACS to be a valuable adviser to OCHA in both our housing management and our housing development work."Jonathan Higgs, Chief Executive, OCHA Our Services We can offer you a wide range of housing management services including:
Click on the links above for more details about each of these services Occupancy Agreements We draft, review and amend all forms of occupancy agreements for all types of housing including leases, licences and tenancy agreements. We have a wealth of experience that we use to tailor documentation to your needs. All agreements:-
Click link for further information on: -
Housing Management Agreements We draft and review:
We use up-to-date model agreements, based on published agreements alongside our own precedents. We are experienced at negotiating terms with other parties. All landlord and tenant queries We can answer all your landlord and tenant queries including:
Leasehold queries Our team has specialist leasehold expertise. We advise on:We understand the powers and procedures of the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal (LVT), and have ran a number of matters to LVT. "ACS' knowledge of leasehold services has been outstanding." Policies, handbooks and manuals We can draft and review your housing management policies, handbooks and manuals. We have an up-to-date knowledge of regulatory requirements and good practice and this ensures your policies comply with all necessary legal requirements. Housing benefit We have advised and acted in relation to benefit issues, particularly Housing Benefit. Some examples include:
Supported Housing & CareWe are a leading provider of legal services to the largest specialist housing associations in the country including Anchor Trust and Hanover Housing Association, and to regulators such as CSCI. As well as providing legal advice on arrangements, we have helped clients at a strategic level on how to deliver their objectives in the new frameworks environment. We advise on: - Supported Housing
Supporting People
Care Supported Housing Management Agreements We work hard to make the legal arrangements within supported housing schemes work by:-
When things go wrong we have a wealth of experience that clients can draw on. Specialist for sale and shared ownership developments For sale and shared ownership developments require specialist advice. We have experience of all kinds of supported housing developments and the following is a non-exhaustive list: -
"HomeZone have developed an excellent working relationship with Anthony Collins in the delivery of legal completions for Beacon Park Retirement Village at Lichfield. Supporting People "Anchor Trust use ACS for advice on Supporting People and Care Issues. ACS' advice and training has always been to a high standard. Anchor have particularly appreciated ACS' understanding of the area in which we operate and the commercial issues which affect us" "Steady State" Contracts We have advised many providers of support services on Steady State Contracts; on the terms and on amendments to such Contracts. Challenges to Supporting People Administrative Authorities We have challenged SPAAs (including court proceedings) on a number of decisions including: -
Care "Anchor Trust use ACS for advice on Supporting People and Care Issues. ACS' advice and training has always been to a high standard. Anchor have particularly appreciated ACS' understanding of the area in which we operate and the commercial issues which affect us" Childrens homes
Home OwnershipLow Cost Home Ownership ("LCHO") (Preserved) Right to Buy ("(P)RTB"), Right to Acquire ("RTA") and Homebuy sales require conveyancing skills and experience, and detailed knowledge of legislation and procedural matters. As such, our LCHO Team sits within the Housing Management Department. The team administers (P)RTB / RTA sales for 12 RSLs across the country with over 100,000 properties in management, completing hundreds of (P)RTB / RTA sales annually, and leading the way for RSLs in monitoring and actively managing numbers of sales. The team works closely with our housing litigation team on issues such as tolerated trespassers and demotion orders with focus on (P)RTB / RTA claim denial advice. Our People Our experienced team consists of conveyancing paralegals, Julie Plested and Cassie Whitehouse, supervised by property and housing solicitor Giles Kilvert and overseen by Housing Management partner Jonathan Cox. Our Shared Aims Our (P)RTB / RTA Services We offer 3 levels of service:- 1. (P)RTB / RTA Conveyancing The (P)RTB / RTA Conveyancing Service includes obtaining title information using the online Land Registry Direct Service; drafting transfers / leases using if required our standard documentation reflecting any legislative changes and clients' needs; dealing with solicitors enquiries promptly and accurately, providing an information document at the outset pre-empting commonly raised queries; documentation engrossment, the cost of which is not passed on to our clients; arranging completion, including checking rent arrears etc for collection on completion / assessing statutory obligation to complete and preparing completion statements. 2. Full (P)RTB / RTA Application Processing Service We also offer a Full (P)RTB / RTA Application Processing Service, seeing the transaction through from receipt of the RTB 1 to completion of the sale. The service includes a dedicated telephone advice line for tenants and standard documentation for all stages of the process, and we have an existing procedural framework into which we can adopt the application processing. We have been providing this same level of service for approaching 2 years with success and it is currently used by a number of major clients. 3. Enhanced Support Service for Application Processing As an alternative to the Full Application Processing Service, we offer an Enhanced Support Service for Application Processing. We can offer on call telephone and email support at all stages of an application, including legislative queries, procedural issues, applicant qualification, notice drafting advice and withdrawal / cancellation. Our Clients' Views "Anthony Collins provide an excellent customer service to Somer Community Housing Trust in all aspects of Right to Buy / Right to Acquire and other property matters. Staff are extremely friendly, helpful and take pride in being courteous and professional. They are very committed, confident and reliable." "Since the transfer of the Housing stock from the Council to the Trust we have found ACS to be to be extremely knowledgeable in all aspects of housing queries/legislation. The staff are very friendly and supportive and quick to respond to any queries we may have. ACS also provide great opportunities for training." "We have been very pleased with the service to date and due to our falling levels of RTB sales find it a very efficient way of dealing with them". Our Shared Ownership Sales Services We act for a number of RSLs in connection with shared ownership / Homebuy schemes of various types and sizes across the country including:-
The team draws on its extensive experience of creating precedent shared ownership documentation for all stages of the conveyancing procedure and subsequent staircasing and offers a procedural framework into which new sales programmes can be easily adopted. The team is very familiar with all aspects of shared ownership, including Housing Corporation lease updates and Nomination Procedure, and ARHM guidance. The team understands purchaser expectations, and is particularly sensitive to the needs of elderly homebuyers and minimising the stress caused by the conveyancing process, with systems in place to facilitate this. Equally, the team focuses on efficient and swift sales processing to realise client capital at the earliest opportunity. Clients tell us we are different because we focus on getting the sales through as quickly as possible, appreciating delays have a direct financial impact. Our Equity Loan Scheme Services We act for a number of clients in relation to assisted purchase schemes giving equity loans to persons affected by demolition and regeneration, and in relation to home improvement equity loans for the elderly. We ensure that all documentation accords with FSA and Consumer Credit legislation, and again, focus is on fast and efficient processing and sensitivity to borrower and client needs and expectations. Our Clients' Views "HomeZone have developed an excellent working relationship with Anthony Collins in the delivery of legal completions for Beacon Park Retirement Village at Lichfield. Training The team runs an annual all-day LCHO update seminar, covering developments in LCHO case law and legislation during the preceding 12 months. Training is intended to be informative, vibrant, interactive and enjoyable, and to provide an excellent opportunity to meet with colleagues from across the housing sector. Training on all aspects of LCHO is also available to clients on an ad hoc basis. Attendees' comments on our most recent LCHO seminar "A very interesting and useful seminar." |
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© 2001 - 2005 Anthony Collins Solicitors LLP. Anthony Collins Solicitors LLP is a Limited Liability Partnership. All rights reserved.
All contents of this website are subject to Anthony Collins Solicitors LLP's website disclaimer. |
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