New video on the second ever “leapfrog” appeal from the Upper Tribunal (Lands Chamber) heard by the Supreme Court

Justin Bates and Harley Ronan review the key factors in A1 Properties (Sunderland) Ltd v Tudor Studios RTM Company Ltd UKSC 2023/0047 in this seven-minute video linked here. The Landmark barristers acted for the Appellant, A1 Properties (Sunderland) Ltd.

The appeal concerns a long-standing issue in statutory interpretation: where a statute lays down a procedural framework for exercising a statutory right, but is silent as to the consequences of a failure to comply with that framework, how should the court ascertain what Parliament intended should follow from non-compliance?

In this appeal, the Supreme Court will consider the correct approach to that issue in the context of a statutory scheme which re-allocates private property rights – the “the right to manage” under the Commonhold and Leasehold Reform Act 2002 – and whether the Court of Appeal was correct in Elim Court RTM Co Ltd v Avon Freeholders Ltd [2018] QB 571 to decide that a failure to serve a claim notice on an intermediate landlord with no management responsibilities under s.79(6)(a) of the 2002 Act is not fatal to a claim to acquire the right to manage.

A news item with further details on this case may be accessed here.