Lease Extension & Enfranchisement
Our specialist and experienced lease extension and enfranchisement team advise both landlords and tenants in this highly technical area of law. This encompasses:
- claims to acquire freeholds of houses under the Leasehold Reform Act 1967;
- lease extensions and collective enfranchisement claims under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993; and
- negotiated freehold and lease extension claims outside the statutory procedures.
The team also advises in relation to right to manage claims.
Much of our practice relates to high value properties in central London where leases are often short resulting in substantial differences between landlords and tenants as to the sums payable for the extended lease or freehold and as to the terms of the lease or transfer. These require expert negotiation by solicitors and valuers.
We regularly advise landlord and tenant companies, personal representatives, high net worth individuals and trusts and have acted for many tenants in claims concerning properties on the landed estates in central London.
We also have extensive experience of contested claims in the Courts and Tribunals.
We work closely with the Residential Real Estate team and (where necessary) the Corporate team to provide a comprehensive service to help guide you through the lease extension & enfranchisement process.
Representative Lease Extension & Enfranchisement Work
Examples of our lease extension & enfranchisement work include:
- Advised a leaseholder on a successful claim under the Leasehold Reform Act 1967 for the freehold of a substantial house on the Grosvenor Estate with a value exceeding £20 million where the sum agreed for the freehold was £1.7 million.
- Advised a leaseholder on a successful lease extension claim under the Leasehold Reform Act 1993 for a flat on the Wellcome Trust Estate in Knightsbridge where the lease had one year remaining.
- Advised a group of leaseholders on a collective enfranchisement claim under the Leasehold Reform Act 1993 in respect of which the landlord’s challenge to the claim to acquire two adjoining blocks with a single notice was successfully resisted at three court hearings (the last to the Court of Appeal).
- Advised many leaseholders on successful lease extension claims under the Leasehold Reform Act 1993 in respect of flats on the Grosvenor, Cadogan and Howard de Walden Estates.
- Advised several leaseholders on successful lease extension claims in respect of flats and houses on the Crown Estate where the Crown’s voluntary scheme applies in place of the Leasehold Reform Acts.
Key contacts:
Biography
Jim has over 15 years of experience advising on a wide range of property and Landlord and Tenant issues, acting for both landlords and tenants in this technical area of the law.
Jim has particular expertise in leasehold enfranchisement (purchase /sale of freeholds and extension of leases of flats and houses), having specialised in this field since qualification in 1992 and in particular since the significant expansion of leaseholders` rights in relation to flats introduced by the Leasehold Reform Act 1993. He acted for the successful leaseholders in the Court of Appeal in 41-60 Albert Palace Mansions (Freehold) Ltd v Craftrule Ltd [2010], which gave tenants of adjoining blocks of flats greater flexibility and opportunities in collectively purchasing the freeholds of their blocks. He also acted for Boss Holdings Limited (Appellants) v Grosvenor West End Properties and others (Respondents) [2008] in its successful appeal to the House of Lords concerning the definition of a house under the Leasehold Reform Act 1967.
Jim also has specialist knowledge of Housing and Rent Act legislation.
He is a member of the Property Litigation Association.
Year qualified
Solicitor, 1992
Career History
Partner, Teacher Stern, 2013 merger with Butcher Burns
Partner, Butcher Burns, 2003
Partner Comptons
Solicitor, Comptons
