Manchester City Council v Cochrane and Another

JurisdictionEngland & Wales
JudgeSIR JOHN KNOX:,LORD JUSTICE JUDGE:,LORD JUSTICE AULD
Judgment Date21 December 1999
Judgment citation (vLex)[1998] EWCA Civ J1221-26
CourtCourt of Appeal (Civil Division)
Docket NumberCCRTI 98/1228/2
Date21 December 1999

[1998] EWCA Civ J1221-26

IN THE SUPREME COURT OF JUDICATURE

IN THE COURT OF APPEAL (CIVIL DIVISION)

ON APPEAL FROM MANCHESTER COUNTY COURT

(HIS HONOUR JUDGE HOWARTH)

Royal Courts of Justice

The Strand

London WC2

Before:

Lord Justice Auld

Lord Justice Judge

Sir John Knox

CCRTI 98/1228/2

Manchester City Council
Appellant
and
(1) Joseph Cochrane
(2) Annette Cochrane
Respondents

MR A ARDEN QC and MR J MANNING ( MR I COLVILLE 21.12.98) (Instructed by The City Solicitor, Town Hall, Manchester M60 2LA) appeared on behalf of the Appellant

MR P BUCKLEY (Instructed by Messrs Clifford Chapman & Co., Manchester M14 7DA) appeared on behalf of the Respondent

SIR JOHN KNOX:
1

This appeal from a decision of His Honour Judge Howarth in the Manchester County Court, on 18th June 1998, raises the question of the extent of the County Court's jurisdiction in dealing with possession actions in relation to introductory tenancies under Part V of the Housing Act 1996 ("the Act"). This part contained novel provisions for housing authorities to be entitled to elect to operate an introductory tenancy scheme whereby new tenants would have a probationary one year period before becoming secure tenants. The appellants, Manchester City Council ("the Council") made such an election.

2

On 15 April 1997, the Council granted to the respondents, Mr and Mrs Cochrane, a joint weekly tenancy of 3 Ashburn Avenue, Burnage, Manchester ("the property"). The tenancy was expressed on the face of the agreement to be an introductory tenancy until 14th April 1998, when the respondents were to become secure tenants. Clause 1.9 of the tenancy agreement included the following:

"The council can take possession of your home for one of two reasons:

Because of your own action or the action of someone living with you or visiting you:

You, or they, must have broken a rule in this tenancy agreement or given false information in your housing application. In these cases we will not offer you another home."

3

The agreement then went on to mention other irrelevant circumstances when the Council could take possession of the tenant's home. Clause 4.2 under the heading "Tenant's Responsibilities" read as follows:

"You (or any one living with you, or visiting your home) must not cause a nuisance, annoyance or disturbance to any other person. Examples of nuisance, annoyance or disturbance include:

Loud music; arguing and door slamming; dog barking and fouling; offensive drunkenness; selling drugs or drug abuse; rubbish dumping; playing ball games close to someone else's home."

4

Clause 4.9 read:

"You (or anyone living with you, or visiting your home) must not inflict domestic violence or threaten violence against any other person (living with you or living elsewhere). You (or anyone living with you, or visiting your home) must not harass or use mental, emotional or sexual abuse to make anyone who lives with you leave the home."

5

The other provisions of the tenancy agreement are not material for present purposes.

6

The relevant provisions of the Act are as follows: Section 125(1). "A tenancy remains an introductory tenancy until the end of the trial period, unless one of the events mentioned in sub-section (5) occurs before the end of that period.

7

(2)The "trial period" is the period of one year beginning with -

(a) In the case of a tenancy which was entered into by a local housing authority:-

(i) The date on which the tenancy was entered into or

(ii) " …This is not relevant.

8

Sub-section (5) contains various events none of which is relevant for present purposes.

"(7) This section has effect subject to s.130 (effect of beginning proceedings for possession)."

Section 127(1) "The landlord may only bring an introductory tenancy to an end by obtaining an order of the court for possession of the dwelling house..

(2) The court shall make such an order unless the provisions of s.128 apply.

(3)Where the court makes such an order, the tenancy comes to an end on the date on which the tenant is to give up possession in pursuance of the order.

9

Section 128 Notice of Proceedings for Possession.

(1)The court shall not entertain proceedings for the possession of a dwelling house let under an introductory tenancy unless the landlord has served on the tenant a notice of proceedings complying with this section.

(2)The notice shall state that the court will be asked to make an order for the possession of the dwelling house.

(3)The notice shall set out the reasons for the landlord's decision to apply for such an order.

(4)The notice shall specify a date after which proceedings for the possession of the dwelling house may be begun.

The date so specified must not be earlier than the date on which the tenancy could, apart from this Chapter, be brought to an end by notice to quit given by the landlord on the same date as the notice of proceedings.

(5)The court shall not entertain any proceedings for possession of the dwelling house unless they are begun after the date specified in the notice of proceedings.

(6)The notice shall inform the tenant of his right to request a review of the landlord's decision to seek an order for possession and of the time within which such a request must be made.

(7)The notice shall also inform the tenant that if he needs help or advice about the notice, or what to do about it, he should take it immediately to a Citizens' Advice Bureau, a housing aid centre, a law centre or a solicitor."

10

The Council served a notice dated 9 March 1998 to terminate the introductory tenancy addressed to the respondents which so far as material read as follows:

"The COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF MANCHESTER intends to ask the Court to make an Order requiring you to give up possession of "

11

The property was described

"thereby ending your introductory tenancy which began on 14th April 1997

(3) Possession will be sought pursuant to the provisions of Part V of the Housing Act 1996.

The reasons why the Council are applying for a possession order to terminate your introductory tenancy is/are:

3.1 You have broken clauses 1.9, 4.1, 4.2 and 4.9 of your tenancy agreement."

12

The notice then quoted those clauses and stated various alleged breaches by way of nuisance, annoyance or disturbance, or incidents of domestic violence. The notice further contained the following allegation, "It has been discovered that information given in your housing application is untrue and that you in fact still hold an alternative tenancy."

"(4)The Court proceedings will not be begun until after 6th April 1998.

(5)You have the right to request the Council to hold a review of the decision to seek an order for possession. Your written request for a review and any representations in writing must be received by 23 March 1998."

13

In the event the Council did not proceed further with the allegations of breaches by way of nuisance, annoyance or disturbance, or domestic violence incidents. The allegation regarding untruthful information in the housing application was subsequently admitted by one of the respondents but denied by the other.

14

All the requirements in the various sub-sections (1) to (7) of s.128 set out above, were in fact complied with and the validity of the notice of the 9th March 1998 as a notice was not challenged by or on behalf of the respondents. Reverting to the provisions of the Act, s.129 reads as follows so far as relevant.

"(1)A request for review of the landlord's decision to seek an order for possession of a dwelling house let under an introductory tenancy must be made before the end of the period of 14 days beginning with the day on which the notice of proceedings is served.

(2)On a request being duly made to it, the landlord shall review its decision.

(3)The Secretary of State may make provision by regulations as to the procedure to be followed in connection with a review under this section. "

Regulations have been made. They are called the Introductory Tenants (Review) Regulations 1997 ("the Regulations"). The regulations contain requirements regarding the manner of the conduct of such reviews. No argument was addressed to us on their terms, which need not be quoted.

15

Continuing with Section 129

"(5)The landlord shall notify the person concerned of the decision on the review.

If the decision is to confirm the original decision, the landlord shall also notify him of the reasons for the decision.

(6)The review shall be carried out and the tenant notified before the date specified in the notice of proceedings as the date after which proceedings for the possession of the dwelling house may be begun."

16

On 23rd March 1998, in due time under the Act, the respondents exercised their right to request a review of the decision to terminate their tenancy. On 1st April 1998, an oral review was held. The respondents claim that it was not conducted in accordance with the Regulations in various regards, such as a denial of a request for representation or for an adjournment, intimidatory conduct by the senior officer who conducted the inquiry and other similar complaints. There has been no investigation of the truth of these allegations.

17

After the oral review on 1st April 1998, the Council confirmed their decision to terminate the respondents' tenancy and issued proceedings for possession of the property in the Manchester County Court on 9th April 1998, which was after the 6th April, the date identified in the notice to terminate the tenancy as the date before which possession proceedings would not be started.

18

Reverting to the provisions of the Act, s.130, so far as relevant, reads as follows:

"(1)This section applies where the landlord has begun proceedings for the possession of a dwelling house let under an introductory tenancy and (a) the trial period ends … "

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11 cases
  • Manchester City Council v Pinnock (Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government intervening)
    • United Kingdom
    • Supreme Court
    • November 3, 2010
    ...Lambeth [2006] 2 AC 465, para 30. 82 This second reason involves disapproving part of the reasoning of the Court of Appeal in Manchester City Council v Cochrane [1999] 1 WLR 809, by which, understandably, the Court of Appeal in this case appears to have regarded itself as bound. In Manche......
  • R (McLellan) v Bracknell Forest Borough Council; Reigate and Banstead Borough Council v Benfield and another
    • United Kingdom
    • Court of Appeal (Civil Division)
    • October 16, 2001
    ...given up by that date; and shall not in any event be postponed to a date later than six weeks after the making of the order." Manchester City Council v Cochrane and Another [1999] 1 WLR 809 23 Prior to the coming in to force of the HRA, the Court of Appeal considered the nature of the abov......
  • Salford City Council & others v Mullen & others
    • United Kingdom
    • Court of Appeal (Civil Division)
    • March 30, 2010
    ...(demoted), but sought to distinguish “demoted” from “introductory” and thus to suggest that this court was no longer bound by Manchester City Council v Cochrane [1999] 1 W.L.R.809(“Cochrane”) and R (McLellan) v Bracknell Forest Borough Council [2002] QB 1129(McLellan) which were concerned w......
  • North British Housing Association Ltd v Matthews and other appeals; London and Quadrant Housing Trust v Morgan
    • United Kingdom
    • Court of Appeal (Civil Division)
    • December 21, 2004
    ...claim possession, the court may grant an adjournment of the possession proceedings to allow the tenant to take that course: see Manchester City Council v Cochrane (1999) 31 HLR 810. A yet further example is where, before or at the hearing date, the landlord accepts a cheque from the tenant ......
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