The Right to Manage Federation (RTMF) is delighted to have assisted the leaseholders of Regent Court, a retirement development in Plymouth through their tortuous Right to Manage (RTM) claim, which eventually led to the case being heard by the Upper Tribunal.
The Upper Tribunal dismissed the landlord´s appeal on all points of law, wholly agreeing with the submissions of RTMF´s solicitor Margarita Mossop, and not those of Justin Bates, the barrister representing the landlord, Avon Freeholds Limited.
This is not only a significant victory for leaseholders of Regent Court, it is a landmark case that will benefit thousands of leaseholders seeking Right To Manage in the future. It is hoped that the judgment will restore common sense to the process and deter litigious landlords from seeking to obstruct and delay RTM due to loopholes and ambiguities in the law.
Far too many Right To Manage cases are being opposed on increasingly tenuous and sometimes obscure points. This is seen to be a deliberate ploy by some landlords to frustrate what should be a statutory right and no fault process. It is a credit to the leaseholders of Regent Court, many of whom are elderly, that they remained co-ordinated and determined throughout the lengthy process to acquire RTM.
Regent Court RTM Company Limited, a private company owned by the leaseholders, will now appoint a new management agent of their own choosing.
Right To Manage is the legal right of leaseholders in a block of flats to acquire the management of their properties by either managing it themselves or appointing a professional management company of their own choosing. This provision is made available under The Commonhold and Leasehold Reform Act 2002. RTM intends to put power and control back in the hands of leaseholders, thereby driving up the standards of leasehold management and providing leaseholders with the statutory power to resist exploitation by unscrupulous landlords and managers.
RTMF was set up in 2006 to offer a unique Right To Manage scheme to retirement blocks in response to exorbitant charges and poor services from management companies. Its services expanded over the years to embrace all residential apartment blocks. To date, the RTMF has successfully completed RTM for over 4000 properties, including 1,800 properties in retirement developments.