Webinar: Bringing Claims For Negligent Conveyancing

Recently the press has been awash with details of cases where purchasers of new leasehold houses (as opposed to flats) have found themselves with properties which have become burdens not assets.
Some of the issues  that are causing concern  include:-

• Having to deal with a freeholder who owns the land.
• Payment of Ground rent charges which increase over the term of the lease.
• Paying a share of maintenance contributions for common parts of land
• Seeking permission and the payment of administration fees to be paid for undertaking alterations to a property.
• How new owners can purchase their freehold.  

While the issues raised above are not necessarily new to owners of leasehold flats  they are new in the context of building and selling  leasehold houses.

It would appear that the contents of the leases purchasers have signed have caught both the conveyancing and mortgage  industries unaware.  Some lenders are now not willing to provide mortgages on properties which have onerous conditions in leases.

So how did thousands of purchasers end up owning properties with onerous leases?

In some cases it is believed that the terms of the lease and what purchasers were buying were not adequately explained to purchasers by their conveyancers, if at all..

This FREE webinar will seek to explain how conveyancing should be undertaken, analyse some of the issues which owners of leasehold houses may now be facing  with and how they might seek redress.

Webinar Content

Amongst other things, we will consider;

• Anatomy of a conveyancing transaction.
  • Pre contract conversations with estate agents and developers
  • Preliminary enquiries
  • Searches
  • Contracts
  • Report on title
• Buying a Leasehold Property
  • Freeholder’s powers, rights and obligations.
  • Lessee’s rights and obligations
  • The term (and lease extensions)
  • Ground rent
  • Onerous ground rents & other terms
  • Leasehold houses (and purchasing the freehold)
• Conveyancers duty of care to purchasers and  to lenders
  • How the duty of care can be breached
  • Case law developments 
  • Damages that can be claimed losses incurred by breach of duty
• Getting help
  • Evidence gathering
  • Preserving documentation
  • Drafting witness statements
• Purchasing the freehold

• Litigation
  • Bringing a claim in the courts
  • Time limits
  • Evidence required to Prove a claim
  • Litigation funding options

Speakers

Fiona Hewitt	Tom Ansell	Roger Hardwick	Ben Stimmler
Solicitor	Solicitor	Partner	Barrister
Head of Dispute Resolution Department	Head of Residential Conveyancing Department	Residential Leasehold Department	42 Bedford Row Chambers.

Book Now

To book a place on this webinar, please complete the booking form.

We very much hope you can join us for what will be an informative and interactive discussion. The broadcast will be recorded so if, for whatever reason, you cannot make the live version, still register and we will provide a link so that you can listen to the recording.