Practice Summary

Tom's practice embraces all aspects of property litigation. He was called to the bar in 1995 and joined Landmark Chambers in 2003 from a commercial/chancery Chambers in Lincoln's Inn. The focus of Tom's practice is court work. He has appeared in leading property cases at appellate level and is a highly experienced trial lawyer.  Tom is often retained in cases turning on live evidence which require an effective cross-examination of witnesses.  He has represented clients in various courts and tribunals: including the High Court (Chancery and Queen’s Bench Divisions); the County Court; the Court of Appeal; the Privy Council (with a leader on an appeal from the Court of Appeal of Belize); before HM Land Registry Adjudicators; the Lands Tribunal; and the LVT.  Tom is recommended in The Legal 500 and Chambers & Partners as a leading junior in property litigation. 

AREAS OF PRACTICE

Landlord & Tenant

Commercial landlord and tenant disputes comprise a significant proportion of Tom’s practice.  In particular, Tom is regularly instructed in disputes concerning:

• Business tenancy renewals (opposed or unopposed, and including rent valuation cases for several  national retailers).
• Rent reviews including Lancecrest Ltd v Asiwaju [2005] 1 EGLR 40 (relating to whether time was of the essence in respect of a rent review deadline)
• Consents
• Alleged breaches of covenant, including the landlord’s covenant not to derogate from grant.
• Forfeiture, including Scribes West Ltd v Relsa Anstalt [2005] 1 WLR 1847 (with a leader) (relating to forfeiture during the “registration gap”)
• Terminal dilapidation claims, including for Citibank in Fairgate International Ltd v Citibank International plc [2006] 1 P&CR 2 (with a leader)
• Break clauses
• Telecommunications cases (for both mobile phone companies and landlords).

In the residential field, Tom appeared in Pirabakaren v Patel [2006] 1 WLR 3112 ((a leading case establishing that a landlord cannot forfeit a lease of mixed-use premises by peaceable re-entry); he is regularly instructed on service charge disputes; and he appeared in Falmouth House Ltd v Rahminzadeh [2008] NPC 17 (with a leader) (a leasehold enfranchisement case about an expert determination under a participation agreement).

Conveyancing & Land Registration

Tom has considerable experience of conveyancing litigation. He has acted in cases in which parties have attempt to avoid liability under contracts of sale in reliance upon pre-contract misrepresentations (including a case for a Premiership footballer); non-compliance with conditions precedent; and breaches of other contractual terms (including Chinnock v Hocaoglu [2008] 29 EG 92 which related to whether a purchaser had failed to tender the entirety of the money due on completion).  In Mann & Mann v Cooper Tom acted in a case turning on whether a firm of solicitors had been authorized by the purchasers to enter into a contract of sale.

Land registration issues features prominently in Tom’s practice.  He has appeared before HM Land Registry Adjudicators on several occasions.  Several of Tom’s cases have concerned the circumstances in which land registers can be altered on the ground of “mistake”, including Quinto v Santiago Castillo Ltd (in the Privy Council with a leader) (which related to whether an original owner was entitled to be reinstated as the registered proprietor following a transfer from a fraudster) and Baxter v Mannion [2010] EWHC 573 (Ch) (concerning the adverse possession provisions in the LRA 2002). 

Adverse Possession

Tom has appeared in adverse possession cases before the County Court, the High Court (Chancery and Queen's Bench Divisions) and HM Land Registry Adjudicators. He has represented both paper title owners and squatters.  In the leading case of Baxter v Mannion [2010] EWHC 5734 (Ch) it was held that, under the adverse possession provisions contained in the LRA 2002, if a paper title owner has missed the deadline for serving a counter-notice to object to an application by an alleged squatter to be registered as the freeholder with the result that the alleged squatter is registered as the freeholder, the paper title owner is nevertheless entitled to be reinstated as the registered freeholder if he can establish that the alleged squatter was, in fact, never in possession.  In Wretham v Ross [2006] 1 P&CR 1259, another appeal to the Chancery Division of the High Court, Tom secured a victory for a squatter.

Easements, Profits & Restrictive Covenants

Tom has acted in many cases relating to easements. He has represented developers and neighbouring owners in cases about rights of light (including for Berkeley Homes in relation to a substantial development on the fringes of the City of London). Tom appeared in Jones v Cleanthi [2007] 1 WLR 1604 (with a leader), in which the Court of Appeal gave guidance about the circumstances in which an easement can be extinguished by statutory implication.

Restrictive covenants also feature prominently in Tom’s practice. Tom has been instructed in claims relating to the interpretation of restrictive covenants; cases relating to who, if anyone, has the benefit of restrictive covenants; and on applications to the Lands Tribunal to modify or discharge restrictive covenants under section 84(1) of the LPA 1925 (including, recently, for the Hampstead Garden Suburb Trust). He appeared in the Court of Appeal in Dennis v Davies [2009] EWCA Civ 1081, which related to whether a restrictive covenant prohibiting causing a “nuisance or annoyance” would be breached by an extension to a house which would partially obscure attractive views of a river.

Co-ownership, Constructive Trusts & Proprietary Estoppel

Co-ownership disputes comprise another element of Tom’s practice. He appeared in Young v Lauretani [2007] 2 FLR 1211, in which Lindsay J gave guidance about the taking of an equitable account.  He has acted in several cases in which proprietary estoppel claims have been advanced, including, recently, for the Crown Estate Commissioners in relation to an estate near St Albans.

Mortgages, Charges & Receivers

Tom is instructed by mortgagees, chargees and receivers seeking to obtain possession of, or to sell, land. Several of Tom’s cases have related to whether an occupier has a tenancy or equitable interest which has priority to a mortgage or charge.  For example, in HSBC v Collelldevall [2009] EWHC 2954 (Ch) the issue was whether the interest of occupier of a house under a constructive trust had been overreached by a mortgage.

Nuisance

Tom has considerable experienced in acting in nuisance cases; relating to such things as fires, floods and noise.

Notices

Tom is the author of the leading practitioners' work on notices: The Validity and Service of Property Law Notices (Jordans, 2008). He has delivered lectures about notices to (amongst others) the RICS and the Chancery Bar Association.  Tom has appeared in a number of leading cases on notices, including Lancecrest v Asiwaju [2005] 2 EGLR 48 (which held that evidence about the recipient's subsequent conduct should be disregarded when interpreting a notice) and Tadema Holdings v Ferguson (2000) 32 HLR 866 (which held that a notice can be validly served on someone who is mentally incapable). Recently, he has advised City institutions and major London estates about the validity of (respectively) break notices and leasehold enfranchisement notices.

Injunctions

Frequently, Tom is instructed to obtain injunctions. For example, he has obtained freezing and proprietary injunctions; injunctions to restrain the activities of environmental protesters; and injunctions to prevent the construction of buildings which threaten to infringe rights to light or breach restrictive covenants.

Property Related Professional Negligence

Tom (who is a member of the Professional Negligence Bar Association) undertakes property-related professional negligence work, usually in relation to solicitors and surveyors.  Recently, he represented a major developer on a claim against a right of light surveyor, and he has advised on claims against solicitors arising from allegedly defective notices.

MEDIATION

Tom recognises the value of mediation.  He has represented clients at mediations on many occasions.  As an ADR Accredited Mediator, he is committed to adopting a pro-active and creative approach to settling disputes.

CONTACT DETAILS

Tom's clerks in Chambers are Tom Grove (tgrove@landmarkchambers.co.uk) and David Penson (0207 421 1304, dpenson@landmarkchambers.co.uk). In addition, Tom can be contacted directly on 0207 430 1221 and at tweekes@landmarkchambers.co.uk.