In a double appeal heard by the Deputy Chamber President, Martin Roger KC, Sam successfully argued that the First-Tier Tribunal did not have jurisdiction to determine rent in Assured Tenancies that are contractually periodic and where the agreement contains a rent increase mechanism. The Upper Tribunal applied Sam’s previous case of SAHA v Kelleway [2024] UKUT 53 (LC) and accepted that in both appeals, the FTT had been wrong. The UT accepted that even if the landlord had made reference to s.13 of the Housing Act 1988 and the tenants were expressly (mistakenly) told they had the right to appeal to the FTT, the Tribunal could not assume a jurisdiction that was not set out in statute.
The cases further confirm the limits of the Tribunal’s jurisdiction and reaffirm the benefit to landlords of seeking advice before proposing rent increases (until the Renters Rights Act comes fully into force).
Sam was instructed by Matthew Hyam of Knights PLC.
A copy of the Decision can be found here.
Sam is a member of Five Paper’s Property Division and is Deputy Head of Chambers. Sam’s practice focusses on appellate work, real property and contentious probate cases.