Housing litigation

As one of the leading law firms for social housing and tenant law in the UK, we’re perfectly positioned to advise you on any housing issues. We’re the only top 100 law firm which carries out legal aid housing work and we’re highly recommended in the Chambers and The Legal 500 directories, which rank the most outstanding law firms in the UK. 

Possession Claims

If you’ve been threatened with eviction by your landlord, received a notice of seeking possession, a notice to quit or a court summons which could lead to your eviction, then we can help you. We can defend against your possession claim and try to stop you being evicted from your home. Where possible, we can advise and make counterclaims on your behalf for a range of issues, including disrepair, discrimination and harassment. If a possession order has been made or an eviction warrant has been applied for, we have the experience to challenge this.  

Landlords can start possession proceedings against you for a number of different reasons including:

• when you have got into rent arrears
• allegations that you, or someone in your household, have caused a nuisance or been involved in anti-social behaviour
• allegations that you have illegally sub-let the property
• your spouse, civil partner or the main tenant has died and the landlord says you cannot remain living there
• you have been absent or living away from the property
• you have complained about the property being in a poor state of repair

Homelessness 

Homelessness can be devastating for you and your family. Local authorities have a duty to assist and accommodate people in certain circumstances. However homelessness law is complicated and local authorities may turn applicants away early, without providing them with advice and assistance, or unlawfully turn someone down and say they are not owed a homelessness duty when they are.

If the local authority has failed to provide you with accommodation following an application for homelessness, we have an excellent track record of successfully challenging such decisions. We have successfully taken and won homelessness reviews and appeals from the County Court all the way to the Court of Appeal.

We can help you with:

• seeking temporary accommodation while a local authority is making a decision on your case
• challenging the decision of the local authority that you are not eligible for homelessness assistance
• challenging the suitability of the accommodation offered to you by a local authority
• challenging an offer of accommodation that is out of borough or a long way away from your previous home or support network
• appealing the case to the County Court on a point of law

Housing conditions 

All tenants deserve to live in a home that is safe, free from hazards and in a good state of repair and by law, your landlord is usually responsible for most repairs in your home. This applies to private, council and housing association landlords.

Your landlord's responsibilities include keeping in repair:

• sinks, baths, toilets, pipes and drains
• heating and hot water
• gas appliances
• electrical wiring
• walls, stairs, roof, external doors and windows

If you have reported an issue to your landlord and they have not fixed the problem we can help you by:

• writing to your landlord, setting out the repairs needed for your home to be habitable
• if your landlord refuses to carry out the works, or the repairs are not good enough, we may be able to take the matter to court. 

You may also be entitled to compensation for stress and inconvenience and any losses that you have suffered as a result of the disrepair. However please note that legal aid is no longer available to pursue compensation claims but we may be able to explore alternative funding options with you. 

Our social housing team has over 30 years of experience. Our solicitors are passionate about helping and defending those with housing issues. We carry out work covering a wide range of issues advising tenants, tenant organisations and landlords. 

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Our fees are based on our competitive hourly rates plus administrative charges and any disbursements. We’ll provide you an initial estimate of the likely legal costs and update you as your case develops.  

We can offer assistance under legal aid funding for cases where it is available if you are eligible. However please note that eligibility needs to be assessed at the outset of the case and therefore you will be asked for detailed information about your income and savings as part of that assessment process.