Laura Williamson > Chambers of Rachel Sleeman > London, England > Barrister Profile

Laura Williamson

020 7815 3200 laurawilliamson@fivepaper.com

Position

Laura is a property law specialist. She has extensive trial experience and is regularly instructed at every stage from initial advice and drafting through to final hearing. She also has experience of appeal hearings in both the County Court and the High Court, and has been led in the Court of Appeal. Previous clients have praised Laura’s diligence and strategy, and have described her as “absolutely brilliant” and “outstanding as an advocate”.

In March 2018, Laura was appointed to the Attorney General’s C Panel of Junior Counsel to the Crown following an extremely competitive application process.

Laura enjoys a broad property law practice encompassing real property, leasehold, landlord and tenant, and social housing work.

Laura’s clients include private individuals, companies, local authorities and other large organisations. She has previously been instructed to provide advice, draft pleadings and conduct hearings in relation to the following:

• Service charge disputes, including challenges to reasonableness and section 20 consultation requirements
• Forfeiture proceedings
• Leasehold extension under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993
• Disposing of a freehold reversion under the Landlord and Tenant Act 1987
• Obtaining vacant possession of a social housing block occupied by elderly and vulnerable tenants to make way for a major redevelopment scheme
• Business tenancies under the Landlord and Tenant Act 1954
• Ownership and maintenance of boundary walls
• Equitable interests, including injunctions to restrain the disposal of property held on trust
• The interpretation of commercial leases
• Applications for orders for sale
• Possession proceedings against squatters
• Homelessness appeals

Laura has also acted for and advised numerous clients in relation to the following:

• The variation of tenancy agreements
• Anti-social behaviour injunctions and committal proceedings
• Possession proceedings on grounds of rent arrears and other breaches of tenancy agreement
• Possession proceedings based on failed succession claims, non-occupation and subletting
• Possession proceedings against tenants with mental health problems and/or capacity issues
• Applications to stay warrants for eviction
• Applications to re-enter

Career

Called 2011, Grays Inn.

Languages

German (intermediate), French (basic).

Memberships

London Common Law and Commercial Bar Association.

Leisure

Laura enjoys horse riding, skiing, music, reading and travel.