In our Ask the Expert section, Ian Quayle, Managing Editor of Property Law UK, interviews seasoned legal professionals. He poses a series of questions regarding the current landscape of residential conveyancing or commercial property transactions, encouraging them to impart their knowledge and expertise to the readers of Property Law UK magazine. 

In this month’s edition, Ian is joined by Georgina Muskett, Senior Associate at Charles Russell Speechlys LLP. 

Ian Quayle (IQ) Thank you, Georgina, for taking the time to answer questions for Property Law UK. Your contribution is greatly appreciated. 

My first question is what made you pursue a career in law and what brought you into real estate disputes work specifically? 

Georgina Muskett (GM) When I was very young, I had dreams of being a musical actress and working on the West End. I was never very patient though and as I had not been discovered by the time I was 15 I decided that I probably needed to think about a more stable career. I enjoyed watching legal dramas, A Few Good Men is one of my favourite films and I have always been quite academic and relatively argumentative so a degree in law appealed to me. To be honest, I was not very interested in the academic study of real estate during my university career. My interests lay in public and international law originally and so I trained at a firm that focused on administrative law and did a lot of work for public bodies. When I came to qualify the firm won a contract for a local authority and about 85% of that work was housing related. I had a very busy first 18 months of post qualification experience, in and out of Wandsworth County Court working on possession and injunction proceedings, as well as dealing with homelessness appeals and judicial reviews. I then moved to a Silver Circle firm to build up my practice in commercial real estate disputes. A couple of years later I moved to, what is now, Charles Russell Speechlys LLP and can honestly say that I very much enjoy my work. There is a nice mix of “real” litigation in this area alongside more advisory and strategic work on the projects and development side. I have been lucky to work for some wonderful clients here and been exposed to some very interesting cases, with a few matters going all the way to trial. 

(IQ) Do you have any particular areas of specialism within real estate disputes? 

(GM) My main specialisms are in telecoms, restrictive covenants, and business tenancy renewals (1954 Act work). There has been a real sea change in the world of telecoms with the introduction of the new Electronic Communications Code in 2017. It is a prime example of legislate in haste and repent at leisure. The purpose of the legislation was to try to increase connectivity and buoy the market, but its effect was stagnation. While matters have settled down a bit now, that has been after a great deal of case law. In addition to these areas, I also advise a lot on residential service charge issues and have a particular niche in respect of Estate Management Schemes. 

(IQ) What is one of the most interesting cases that you have dealt with in your career? 

(GM) There have been quite a few worth mentioning but probably the most recent matter that went all the way to trial was the reported case of Edgware Road (2015) Limited v. Church Commissioners for England [2020] UKUT 0104 (LC). We helped the Commissioners to successfully defend an application under section 84 of the Law of Property Act 1925 by a long leasehold tenant who sought to vary its lease user restrictions. The decision preserved the Commissioners’ ability to control the management of their Hyde Park Estate in London. 

(IQ) Do many of your matters go all the way to trial? 

(GM) I would say that not many matters go all the way to trial. Sometimes it cannot be avoided if the parties are so entrenched in their positions or if there is a point of principle which needs to be determined. However, it is often better to try to reach an agreement with your opponent if at all possible. This is especially the case in the property world where disputes are often between parties who will have an ongoing relationship in the future whether as landlord and tenant or as neighbours.   

(IQ) If there was one thing you could suggest to make the court process smoother and more efficient, what would it be? 

(GM) It is being able to get hold of an actual person at the end of the telephone or at the counter, like you used to be able to. I understand that the Courts are under immense pressure because of funding issues but not having a case officer at the County Court who will take responsibility for moving matters forward delays things massively.   

(IQ) If you were taking on a new trainee what would be your three most important pieces of advice when acting for a client in respect of a property dispute? 

(GM) Listen intently, take detailed notes, and smile often! The main difference in respect of real estate disputes as opposed to some other types of litigation is that quite often people are reluctant litigators in the sense that they have tried other solutions, and legal action is a last resort. Therefore, sometimes you are trying to guide people through a process that is unfamiliar to them to try to help them achieve their end goal. Also, as I have previously said, there is usually an ongoing relationship to think about.  Therefore, managing expectations and really listening to what the client wants to achieve is key.  

(IQ) What emerging changes and developments do you think will significantly shape the world of real estate disputes in the next few years? 

(GM) This year has seen huge changes in the residential property sphere with more on the Government’s agenda for next year. The Leasehold and Freehold Reform Act 2024 received Royal Assent in May 2024 and will make substantial changes to lease extensions and collective enfranchisements changing valuations, ultimately leading to reduced premiums. In addition, the Act will increase the number of buildings falling within the scope of collective enfranchisement and right to manage by increasing the threshold of commercial/non-residential parts. Finally, the Act will regulate estate management charges and bring further governance around the demand and receipt of service charges from leaseholders of residential flats.   

Next year, the Renters’ Rights Bill is likely to become law fundamentally changing the grant of tenancies in the private rented sector by abolishing Section 21 Notices and Assured Shorthold Tenancies, widening the grounds of possession and introducing a private rented sector database.   

In the world of commercial property, the Law Commission is also looking at security of tenure under the Landlord and Tenant Act 1954 which could ultimately lead to changes to business lease renewals.  So, there is quite a lot of significant change on the immediate horizon and interesting times ahead.