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Make provision in respect of party walls, and excavation and construction in proximity to certain buildings or structures; and for connected purposes
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When to appeal a party wall award – and when not to
Good idea to appeal a particular award Each year in England and Wales many thousand party wall awards are made under the Party Wall…
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Surveyors don’t make good Respondents (to party wall appeals)
It is very tempting for building owners and adjoining owners under the Party Wall etc. Act 1996 (“the Act”) to commence appeals against awards…
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Service by e-mail in party wall matters
The Party Wall etc. Act 1996 (Electronic Communications) Order 2016 From 6th April 2016 the above order – SI 2016/335 (“the Order”) amends the…
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Service and the “last known address”
Although much has been written on service recently in the wake of the Court of Appeal’s decision in Knight v Goulandris which dealt with service by…
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Selection and “de-selection” of third surveyors
Third surveyors, the impartial arbiters of the party wall world, rarely feature prominently in party wall litigation. However, there have been two recent County…
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Security for Expenses – What can security cover?
Section 12(1) of the Party Wall etc. Act 1996 (“the Act”) provides that an adjoining owner “may serve a notice requiring the building owner…
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Section 7(2) compensation under the Party Wall etc. Act 1996, the duty to mitigate, and alternative accommodation
Section 7(2) compensation under the Party Wall etc. Act 1996, the duty to mitigate, and alternative accommodation What is the surveyors’ jurisdiction in respect…
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Resolving boundary disputes – Lesson 4: The measured site survey
Resolution of boundary disputes From a lawyer’s or court’s perspective, the most important contribution a surveyor makes to the resolution of boundary disputes is…
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Resolving boundary disputes – Lesson 3: Construing the parcels clause
“But those are just words!” There is a very natural tendency, shared by lawyers and surveyors just as much as by property owners, to…
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Resolving boundary disputes – Lesson 2: Originating conveyances
“Find me the originating conveyance!” Where a boundary is disputed, any litigant, surveyor or lawyer should always start by trying to find the “originating…
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Resolving boundary disputes – Lesson 1: Boundaries and Land Registry plans
Resolving boundary disputes Land Registry plans do not show where the boundary is. I have lost count of the number of times I have…
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Party Wall Surveyors and their “reasonable” fees.
The Party Wall etc. Act 1996 (“the Act”) makes various provisions about costs, but in this article I am concentrating on those which relate…
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Non-delegable duties – the hard road for building owners in party wall cases
Building owners carrying out notifiable party wall works, usually basement extensions, which cause damage to adjoining owner’s buildings, have been known to say “Terribly…
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Injunctions in Party Wall Cases
Injunctions in Party Wall Cases When should you seek an injunction in party wall cases? When should you advise your clients to seek an…
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Gates on Rights of Way
Substantial interference with a right of way I am regularly asked to advise on the subject of gates on rights of way. Usually the…
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Five things we have learnt about party walls
Special foundations are becoming rarer The academic and legal years have come to a close. So what have we learnt about party walls over…
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For those about to party (wall)
Five things owners should know about the Party Wall etc. Act 1996 1. Once you appoint a surveyor under section 10 of the Act,…
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Enforcement of payments in party wall matters
Enforcement of payments in party wall matters Surveyors are often, and understandably, concerned as to how they can ensure that they are paid for…
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Dealing with retrospectivity in party wall matters – going forward whilst going backwards
From time to time party wall surveyors will come across the situation where notifiable party wall works have been commenced by a building owner,…
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Boundary Disputes and Harassment
Manifestation of a deeper dispute between neighbours “For every harassment claim in a boundary dispute, there must be a harassment counterclaim” Boundary disputes, in…
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Resolving boundary disputes – Lesson 6: Mediation
In my final article in this beginner’s series to resolving boundary disputes, I want to talk a little about resolving such disputes outside the…
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Proper Conduct for the party Wall Surveyor
On 12 November 2020 His Honour Edward Bailey gave a webinar for the Faculty of Party Wall Surveyors on the subject of “Proper Conduct…
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What is wrong with a determined boundary
General boundaries rule in section 60 Anyone who has heard me speak about boundaries will know that one of my particular bugbears is the…
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Resolving boundary disputes – Lesson 5: The expert’s report
Resolving boundary disputes – Lesson 5: The expert’s report When boundary disputes reach court, judges quite rightly like to hear expert evidence to assist…
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Warning off prescriptive rights – Winterburn v Bennett
Warning off prescriptive rights – Winterburn v Bennett There is a social cost to confrontation and, unless absolutely necessary, the law of property should…
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Tenants and Easements
I have been asked to write an article dealing with whether tenants can (1) acquire, or (2) enjoy easements. The question I was originally…