St Ives Chambers‘ specialist housing team has a breadth of talent that spans cases concerning anti-social behaviour, homelessness, disrepair claims and unfair evictions, continuing to lead across the Midland Circuit. The practice is headed by housing law expert Michael Singleton, whose broad practice covers the representation of housing groups and associations in matters relating to the Equality Act 2010, eviction claims and appeals, as well as breach of duty allegations. Tom Lawal has recent experience representing landlords in possession claims and is regularly instructed to lead in multi-day trials, and Ben Chapman leads for both housing associations and individual appellants, with a major recent precedent-setting case concerning landlord’s obligations under section 4 of the Defective Premises Act 1972.
Legal 500 Editorial commentary
Testimonials
Collated independently by Legal 500 research team.
- 'Catherine Merry and Jessica Perry are excellent. They are quick to respond and will go out of their way to accommodate us.'
- 'Excellent clerking. Very professional and efficient, especially Catherine Merry.'
- 'Communication from the clerks is clear and quick.'
- 'Always attentive and pleasant to speak to. Catherine Merry is extremely approachable and friendly, always willing to go the extra mile and make someone available at short notice, extremely well organised.'
- 'Absolutely fabulous. Catherine Merry is the go to person whenever you need Counsel, extremely polite and hard working and will never let you down.'
- 'Catherine Merry is wonderful and approachable.'
Lawyers
Leading Juniors
Leading juniors are those with significant experience of key cases, strong market recognition from both peers and clients, and are seen as future candidates for silk.
Richard Dewsbery
Tom Lawal
'Excellent with clients and helps to put witnesses at ease.'
Michael Singleton
‘Michael's knowledge is vast and there is nothing he does not about social housing. He is well respected by the judiciary.'
Jane Talbot
‘She has a greater understanding of the ways in which Social Housing clients work and operate and can tailor her advice accordingly, offering pragmatic and practical solutions.’
Aadhithya Anbahan
Tom Russell
Shabinah Ladha
'Approachable in regards to instructions and able to discuss the matters in question in a methodical and pragmatic manner.'