Nick Grundy QC successfully represented East End Homes on its appeal against a decision of DJ Sterlini requiring East End Homes’ tenant, Mrs Barful Bibi to assign her tenancy to her daughter Aftajan Bibi to give effect to a proprietary estoppel the District Judge had found to exist between mother and daughter. East End Homes had not been a party to the original claim and had, on Nick’s advice, appealed the District Judge’s order on relief on the grounds that estoppel cannot be used to enlarge the powers of the promisor and as Barful Bibi did not have unfettered right to assign her tenancy, her promise to do so could not give rise to relief requiring her so to do, in breach of her tenancy. HHJ Parfitt agreed with Nick that the relevant clause in Barful Bibi’s tenancy, which provided that the Tenant must not ‘transfer the tenancy … unless this is necessary because of a court order’, should be construed restrictively.
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