Call: 1994

Annette Cafferkey

  • Tremendous experience at all levels of court and tribunals.

    Legal 500
  • She has appeared in every level of court and tribunal on housing matters, all the way up to the Supreme Court

    Legal 500
  • Brilliant even in the most challenging of cases

    Legal 500
  • A tenacious lawyer, who understands the needs of vulnerable clients

    Legal 500
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Practice Summary

Annette specialises in landlord & tenant (including residential long leasehold matters and business tenancies), housing, homelessness, local government, property, housing regulation and housing standards, and inquest work.  She is instructed by landlords (both private and public), tenants, leaseholders, and other regulatory bodies.

Her career started at the Chancery Bar, but moved on in her early years, to cover a broad range of civil litigation and some crime, before specialising in the areas referred to above. She is recognised as a leading junior both in the Legal 500 and Chambers and Partners, where she has been described as “a tenacious lawyer, who understands the needs of vulnerable clients”, “brilliant even in the most challenging of circumstances”, with “tremendous experience at all levels of court and tribunals”, including the Supreme Court.

Annette joined 4-5 Grays Inn Square in October 2018, after spending 17 years building her practice at Arden Chambers.

Landlord and Tenant          

Annette’s practice covers the full scope of residential long leasehold work in this area including service and administration charges, forfeiture, dispensation from consultation, Right to Manage (RTM), appointment of managers, Building Safety Act issues, and disrepair.

Much of her work is concerned with residential tenancies, including possession, housing standards, rent repayment orders, tenancy deposits, and unlawful eviction. She works for the full spectrum of clients, private landlord and tenants, applicants, local authorities, and housing associations.

Annette’s practice also extends to commercial landlord and tenant work.

 

Housing

Annette has extensive experience in dealing with all residential housing matters, for tenants, private landlords, local authorities and other public bodies. Those matters include anything from straightforward possession claims, to those based on more complicated grounds, ASB, succession disputes, and housing fraud.

 

Housing/Regulatory

Annette’s includes all housing regulatory matters, including housing standards (HHSRS), HMO licensing and conditions, rent repayment orders, and all other housing offences.

 

Housing/public law

Annette has extensive experience in dealing with housing matters in the public law context, such as homelessness, allocations, alternative routes to housing, and discrimination

 

Public & Administrative

Annette’s practice in judicial review incorporates a broad area of public law, including homelessness, housing and allocation, closure of local services, provision of local authority services and support, and public law more generally.

 

Inquests

 

Annette’s practice has, more recently, extended to inquest work, including Article 2, and jury inquests.

REPORTED CASES

R(ota Elkundi) v Birmingham City Council; R(ota Ross) v Birmingham CC [2022] EWCA Civ 601; [2022] QB 604 – performance of housing duties under Part 7, Housing Act 1996, appearing for Birmingham.

Broderick v Coventry City Council [2020] EWHC 2083; [2021] CLY 1509 – appearing for Coventry City Council. The High Court dismissed the appeal, holding that the Valuation Tribunal were entitled to hold that the appellant had been residing in a property as his main home, despite the fact that it was the subject of a letting to another person.

Michael v Lillitos [2019] EWHC 2716; [2019] Costs LR 1615 – appearing for the appellant, in a case concerning rent arrears arising under a commercial lease.  The High Court allowed an appeal against the dismissal of a relief from sanction application. The refusal of relief had been wholly disproportionate to the breach of an unless order. There is an onus on litigation parties to work co-operatively together in the conduct of litigation.

Smith v Khan [2018] EWCA Civ 1137; [2019] 1 P&CR 4 – appearing for the appellant. The Court of Appeal allowed the appeal, holding that the lower court had erred in its approach to the principles of surrender by operation of law.

Nottingham City Council v Parr [2018] UKSC 51; [2018] 1 WLR 4985 – junior counsel for Nottingham.  An appeal concerning room sizes and the number of permitted occupiers that could be specified on an HMO licence.

Poshteh v Royal Borough of Kensington & Chelsea {2017] UKSC 36; [2017] AC 264 – appearing as junior counsel for RBKC (having appeared for it in the Court of Appeal). The Supreme Court dismissed the applicant’s appeal and refused to depart from its previous decision in  Ali v Birmingham City Council [2010] where it held that appeals under  Part 7, Housing Act 1996 did not engage Art 6, ECHR.

London & Quadrant v Patrick [2019] EWHC 1263; [2020] HLR 2 – appearing for L&Q. The High Court dismissed the tenant’s appeal against a possession order made at a summary hearing, in circumstances where breach of the Public Sector Equality Duty.  The High Court considered the principles underlying the PSED and its operation in the housing context.

Wigmore Homes (UK) Ltd v Spembly Works RA [2019] HLR 6; [2019] L& TR 12 – appearing for the Residents’ Association, whose appeal succeeded in reducing the service charge liability by 50%.

 

OTHER NOTABLE RECENT CASES

Church Commissioners for England v 222 Quadrangle Towers Ltd – appearing for the defendant – reduced contractual litigation costs in a long leasehold dispute on the basis they were administration charges – November 2023, County Court.

Inquest into the death of Nashon Esbrand – July 2023, appearing for LB Islington in its capacity as the local housing authority.  Jury conclusions – unlawful death by fatal stabbing, conclusions against the police of failings with a clear and direct causal connection to Nashon’s death.

Islington LB v Shahid Hussain – appearing for Islington in the Magistrates Court and the Crown Court in relation to the prosecution of 17 HMO licensing condition offences, for which the landlord was fined £31,500. His appeal to the Crown Court was dismissed. – June 2023.

Camfield v Uyiekpen – defending a claim for a Rent Repayment Order, which application was dismissed because the tenants did not come up to proof in relation to the “only or principal” home requirement. The tribunal warned against the use of pro-forma evidence. The appeal to the Upper Tribunal was dismissed [2022] UKUT 234

Housing Standards

  • Nottingham CC v Parr [2018] UKSC 51; [2018] All ER 40 - the type of conditions that can be attached to HMO licences, whether a condition can restrict the use of the accommodation to a type of occupier. Junior Counsel for the Authority.

Homelessness

  • Poshteh v RB Kensington & Chelsea, SoS intervening [2017] UKSC 36; [2017] AC 624 - suitability of accommodation; article 6 ECHR. Homelessness appeal dismissed. Junior Counsel for the Authority.

  • Poshteh v RB Kensington & Chelsea [2015] EWCA Civ 711; [2015] HLR 36 - instructed on appeal to the CoA for the Authority. Homelessness appeal dismissed.

  • Makisi v Birmingham CC [2011] EWCA Civ 355; [2011] HLR 25 - Regulation 8(2): did oral hearing on review involve a face-to-face meeting with the review officer? Junior Counsel for the Authority.

  • Nzamy v Brent LBC [2011] EWCA Civ 283; [2011] HLR 20 - unlawful discharge of main housing duty. Applicant’s appeal allowed. Junior counsel for the appellant in the Court of Appeal.

Unlawful eviction

  • Smith v Khan [2018] EWCA Civ 1137; [2018] HLR 18 - succeeded on appeal against lower court’s finding of surrender and daily rate of damages. Counsel for the appellant.

Social housing - possession proceedings

  • Barking & Dagenham LBC v Bakare [2012] EWCA Civ 750; [2012] HLR 34 - appellant’s appeal against a possession order made on nuisance grounds dismissed. Counsel for the Authority.

  • Southwark LBC v Kofi-Adu [2006] EWCA Civ 281; [2006] HLR 38 - appeal against a possession order on grounds of nuisance dismissed. Counsel for the appellant.

  • Hackney LBC v McNamara [2014] Central London CC - succession trial. Possession order made. Counsel for the Authority.

  • Leicester CC v Bulbulia [2014] Leicester CC - claim for possession based on under-occupation. Defended on the grounds of legitimate expectation, non est factum, and equitable assignment. Possession order made. Counsel for the defendant.

Residential long leasehold

  • Wigmore Homes (UK) Ltd v Spembly Works Residents Association Ltd [2018] UKUT 252

  • Cleve Court (Ealing) Management Ltd v Link [2016] EWCA Civ 787, Court of Appeal, successfully representing Ms Link at the claimant’s renewed application for permission to pursue a second appeal, in relation to its claim for service charges.

  • Cleve Court (Ealing) Management Ltd v Link [2015] Central London CC, representing the defendant appellant successfully on her appeal against judgment in respect of service charges.

  • Croydon LBC v Afolayan (2014) LRX/37/2014; LON/00AH/LSC/2013/0339 – service charge dispute brought against Croydon, challenging their various bases of assessment for services in connection with their private leaseholder stock. Appeared (successfully) for Croydon; leaseholder’s application for appeal dismissed.

  • R (Afolayan) v LB Croydon CO/2439/2014, successfully resisting judicial review application brought against Upper Tribunal’s refusal of permission to appeal.

  • M.E. Ball Associates v (1) Abbouzakki Holdings Ltd, (2) Hurford Salvi Carr, (2) Saracen Investments, Central London County Court, (appeal to Circuit Judge) (April 2014) – management audit of service charge accounts and funds, representing the (successful) second and third defendants.

  • Connaught Court RTM Company Ltd v Abouzakki Holdings Ltd LON/00BK/LRM/2005/001: right to manage application (now on appeal to the Lands Tribunal).

  • Rita Taylor & Others v LB Southwark, successfully representing leaseholders dispute service charges LON/00BE/LSC/2006/0152.

  • Norwich CC v Marshall [2008] LRX/114/2007, Lands Tribunal – construction of lease provisions. Counsel for the respondent Authority. Appeal dismissed.

Public law

  • R (TQ) v Wolverhampton CC CO/6006/15, successfully representing TQ in a challenge the the local authority’s Local Offer and provision of autism treatment.

  • R (Enfield LBC) v Barnet Clinical Commissioning Group [2013] EWHC 3496 junior counsel in a judicial review of the Commissioning Group’s decision to close local A&E department.

  • R (ota McDonagh) v Houslow LBC [2004] EWHC 511 (Admin): challenge to an assessment under s. 17 of the Children Act 1989.

Education

  • Howard v (1) President of SENDIST (2) LB of Enfield CO/5754/2005: appeal from SENDIST in respect of their dismissal of the application challenging the authorities named school on the SEN statement.

Author/co-author

  • Leasehold Valuation Tribunals: A Practical Guide (Sweet and Maxwell 2004)

  • Housing Law Update – quarterly article for the New Law Journal

  • Tolerated tresspass – What does this mean for the former Landlord and Tenant [1998] 62 Conv. 39

  • Protecting the sub-tenant on termination of the headlease [1999] 63 Conv. 232

  • Regulating Affordable Housing, Lexis Nexis, co-author – forthcoming.

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