Property and property litigation publications
These articles have been written by lawyers at Speechly Bircham. Please get in touch with the authors if you would like more information on a particular topic.
Articles and case studies are in pdf format which can be viewed using Acrobat Reader. If you do not have Acrobat Reader, you can download it here.
Winds of change or cold draught?
Wind energy will be a major contributor if 20% ofthe European Union’s energy target is to come from renewable sources by 2020, George Awty and Matthew Hind examine wind farms as a practical proposition... read more
This article was first published in Speechly Bircham's Inbrief brochure
Inform: Planning & Environmental - December 2008
This month we take a look at the Planning & Energy Act 2008 which gives the Merton Rule statutory force, and which received royal assent earlier this month...read more
The 'greening' of leases and more
George Awty and David Leedham look at the growing trend of commercial property owners who are adding covenants into leases, which require the parties to maintain and improve a building's green credentials ...read more
This article was first published in Speechly Bircham's Inbrief brochure (July 2008)
Inform: Real Estate
A 'Done Deal' (June 2008)...read more
The Town and Country Planning Regulations 2008
Increased fees from 6 April 2008, will impact all planning applications; from change of use, new build, external alterations and variation of conditions... read more
The permitted development regime
Clare Prior and Breellen Warry discuss reducing carbon emissions through microgeneration... read more
New procedures for potentially strategically important planning applications in London
The Mayor of London is given new powers involving planning applications... read more
Inform: Real Estate
A 'Done Deal' (August 2007)... read more
What is the government planning?
With important social, economic and environmental issues demanding its attention, the government is trailing the idea of further improvements to the planning system in a White Paper to be issued before Easter (March 2007) ...read more
Building on climate change
Green issues have risen to the top of the political agenda over the last six months. New rules to address climate change signal opportunities as well as challenges for the construction industry. (February 2007) ...read more
Information overload
The government wants to clarify the information that needs to be submitted with planning applications before local authorities have to accept them. But will the changes help or hinder the planning process? (November 2006) ...read more
Planning reforms begin to bite
Two years after passing into the statute book, the Planning and Compulsory Purchase Act 2004 is largely in force. However, the Government has only recently brought into effect the provisions which will impact most upon landowners and developers (July 2006) ... read more
A new land tax
The Government is pushing forward with plans to introduce a tax on the development of land, a planning gain supplement (PGS), to be introduced in 2008. The tax will be used to deliver new housing and infrastructure (March 2006)... read more
Seeing the complete picture
‘Two for one’ ticket promotions afforded the Saatchi Gallery no artistic licence to breach its covenant. James Empson looks at the court’s holistic approach ... read more
Published in New Law Journal, 6 January 2006
Environmental initiatives gather momentum
On 12 September 2005 the Government published four interim 'approved documents' which comprise the Government's proposed revisions to Part L of the Building Regulations 2000 (November 2005)... read more
The application of renewables
A fundamental long-term shift in the way energy is supplied and used is bringing major implications for the UK property market (July 2005)... read more
A new licensing regime
The Licensing Act 2003 comes into force in November 2005 by which date all licenses need to have been converted to the new regime (March 2005)... read more
What a waste...
Owners, purchasers, developers and tenants of contaminated land should be aware of a possible requirement to hold a waste management licence (March 2005)... read more
Caveat emptor?
The principle of caveat emptor or buyer beware puts the onus on the buyer to find out everything it wants or needs to know about a property before buying or becoming committed to buying (November 2004)... read more
A welcome facelift
It's the 50th anniversary of the Landlord & Tenant Act 1954 ('the Act') and Parliament has decided to give the Act a facelift (July 2004)... read more
A new tax on property?
The Government's much heralded reform of the planning system has finally received Royal Assent in the shape of the Planning and Compulsory Purchase Act 2004... read more
PIFs - are they worth the wait?
The long-awaited property investment vehicle looks set to be listed, closed ended and internally managed... read more
Keeping track of your assets
The Land Registration Act has introduced changes to the way property is registered in England & Wales and has important implications... read more
Tenant-friendly
In this article published in Solicitors Journal February 2004, Jeremy Hudson reports on a recent High Court decision on amending a tenant's notice of claim ... read more
Commonhold and Leasehold Reform Act 2002
The Commonhold and Leasehold Reform Act 2002 deals with a wide range of discrete aspects of landlord and tenant law as well as introducing a new form of tenure called commonhold. This article was produced in February 2004 following a seminar on this topic ... read more
The pitfalls of HQ relocations
Relocating your headquarters, or any major function, holds many attractions. Buildings become dated and inefficient increasingly quickly in the present environment.
This article was first published in Mergers and Acquisitions Magazine 2002 ... read more (PDF 24k)