The Law Commission

The Law Commission

(LAW COM No 281)

LAND, VALUATION AND HOUSING TRIBUNALS: THE FUTURE

Report on a reference under section 3(1)(e) of the Law

Commissions Act 1965

Presented to the Parliament of the United Kingdom by the Lord High Chancellor

by Command of Her Majesty

September 2003

Cm 5948

The Law Commission was set up by the Law Commissions Act 1965 for the purpose of promoting the reform of the law.

The Law Commissioners are:

The Honourable Mr Justice Toulson, Chairman
Professor Hugh Beale QC
Mr Stuart Bridge
Professor Martin Partington CBE
Judge Alan Wilkie QC



The Chief Executive of the Law Commission is Mr Michael Sayers and its offices

are at Conquest House, 37-38 John Street, Theobalds Road, London WC1N 2BQ.

The terms of this report were agreed on 30 July 2003.

The text of this report is available on the Internet at:

http://www.lawcom.gov.uk

CONTENTS

	Paragraph
SUMMARY	SUMMARY
PART I: INTRODUCTION
Background to the report	1.1
The unified Tribunals Service	1.5
Content of the report	1.8
Abbreviations used in the report	1.14
PART II: OUR RECOMMENDATIONS
Purpose of this part	2.1
Recommendations for structural reform	2.3
A reformed structure for land, valuation and housing tribunals	2.4
Operation of the reformed tribunals	2.15
Further recommendations	2.28
PART III: THE CASE FOR REFORM: THE LEGGATT
REPORT
Introduction	3.1
The project tribunals	3.2
Adjudicator to HM Land Registry	3.6
Agricultural Land Tribunal	3.8
Commons Commissioners	3.9
Lands Tribunal	3.10
Tribunals within the Residential Property Tribunal Service	3.11
Valuation Tribunal	3.15
The Leggatt principles	3.16
Independence	3.21
Coherence	3.24
User-friendliness	3.27
The way forward	3.28
PART IV: A REFORMED STRUCTURE FOR LAND, VALUATIOND HOUSING TRIBUNALS
Introduction	4.1
The way forward: a unified tribunal structure
Changes to the consultation paper options	4.6
The overall structure	4.13
Advantages of the proposed structure	4.19
The Property and Valuation Tribunal Jurisdictions of the PVT	4.26
Operation of the Valuation Tribunals	4.32
Appeals from the PVT	4.37
Reformed Lands Tribunal Jurisdictions of the reformed Lands Tribunal	4.38
Appeals from the reformed Lands Tribunal	4.57
Appeals from the PVT to the reformed Lands Tribunal	4.62
The permission requirement	4.63
Basis of appeals	4.66
Powers of the reformed Lands Tribunal on appeal	4.75
Judicial review	4.77
Referrals to the courts	4.81
The statutory provisions	4.82
Reasons for referral	4.86
Ministerial responsibility	4.92
Implications of the new structure for Wales	4.95
PART V: OPERATION OF THE REFORMED TRIBUNALS
Introduction	5.1
Regional structure	5.2
Members and staff	5.5
Presidents and Regional Chairs	5.9
Members	5.15
The registrar and deputy registrars	5.30
Administrative staff	5.34
Tribunal rules	5.37
A common procedural code	5.39
Case allocation	5.47
Case transfer	5.55
Alternative Dispute Resolution	5.61
Fees and costs	5.65
Enforcement powers	5.69
PART VI: JURISDICTIONAL ISSUES
Introduction	6.1
Individual areas of jurisdictional overlap	6.4
Leasehold Valuation Tribunal	6.5
Rent Assessment Committee	6.30
Rent Tribunal	6.33
Lands Tribunal	6.34
Adjudicator to HM Land Registry	6.44
Agricultural Land Tribunal	6.51
Valuation Tribunal	6.55
Action on jurisdictional overlaps General conclusions	6.57
Case management powers	6.59
The role of a unified tribunals system	6.66
Housing disputes in the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal and in
the courts	6.67
PART VII: A LEGISLATIVE MODEL
Introduction	7.1
Council on Tribunals guidelines	7.5
Primary legislation	7.8
Secondary legislation	7.10
The project tribunals	7.11
Lands Tribunal	7.12
Commons Commissioners	7.13
Adjudicator to HM Land Registry	7.14
RPTS Tribunals	7.15
Agricultural Land Tribunal	7.16
Valuation Tribunal	7.17
The Appeals Service legislation	7.19
Primary legislation	7.21
Secondary legislation	7.31
The Appeals Service legislation as a model	7.38
Legislation for our proposed scheme	7.41
Primary legislation	7.42
Secondary legislation	7.43
Non-statutory rules	7.44
APPENDIX A: CURRENT STRUCTURE OF THE LAND, HOUSING AND VALUATION TRIBUNALS	APPENDIX A
APPENDIX B: PROPOSED STRUCTURE	APPENDIX B
APPENDIX C: LIST OF PEOPLE AND ORGANISATIONS WHO COMMENTED ON CONSULTATION PAPER NO 170	APPENDIX C
APPENDIX D: ADVISORY GROUP MEMBERS	APPENDIX D