Spring Newsletter 2026

March 31, 2026

Welcome to the spring 2026 edition of Tanfield Chambers’ newsletter. We hope it finds you well.

Recent Events

We are delighted to announce that in February 2026 Jon Ward joined Chambers. He brings with him significant experience in real property matters as counsel and commercial insight gained as a former partner in a respected law firm.

In February 2026, Tanfield hosted its Junior Conference, entitled All’s Fair in Love and Land Law at a packed Ashworth Centre in Lincoln’s Inn.

The programme explored the many ways in which property relationships can flourish and falter, from the realities of proving a common intention constructive trust to anticipated reforms in landlord and tenant law, alongside mortgage regulation, adverse possession, and the impacts of death on property rights.

We are grateful to all who attended for their engagement and thoughtful contributions, which made the day a success.

As referred to in the previous quarter’s newsletter, Philip Rainey KC, Marc Glover, Andrew Martin and Sami Allan appeared in the recent Supreme Court decision on equitable compensation and vendor’s liens, namely Mitchell Al Jaber [2025] UKSC 43 last year. The appeal has been named in The Lawyer’s Top 10 appeals of 2025. Please find the relevant link to the article on the appeal here.

Recent Cases

Some of the interesting cases in which we have been involved include:

Hugh Rowan appeared pro bono for the successful respondent on behalf of Advocate in Manchester City Council v Naila Tabbasam [2026] EWCA Civ 361. The case concerned the scope of the “reasonable excuse” defence. The Court of Appeal endorsed the Perrin/Archer framework but distinguished between breaches of licensing requirements and improvement notices, a holding that non-receipt of a notice may amount to a reasonable excuse. A link to the judgment and a related article can be found here.

Andrew Butler KC leading Richard Alford appeared in Fisher v Dinwoodie [2026] EWHC 370 (Ch) a significant decision on the taking of accounts, the meaning of “profits’, the application of Recovery Partners v Rukhadze [2025] 2 WLR 529 and equitable allowances. A link to the short article on the case can be found here and a link to the judgment can be found here.

Philip Rainey KC appeared for the successful appellant in Spender v Fit Nominee Limited [2025] EWCA Civ 1578 in an important decision concerning Section 19 reasonableness and qualifying long-term agreements and the burden of proof under section 27A of the 1985 Act. Judgment was handed down on 5 December 2025. A link to the judgment can be found here.

Articles and Books

We are pleased to announce that the third edition of The Law and Practice of Party Walls by Nicholas Isaac KC is now out. This new edition offers a clear, authoritative and comprehensive account of the law relating to the party walls and its application in practice. The book examines the statutory framework, the developing case law in this field, and provides detailed guidance on procedure and practical implementation. It is available for purchase here.

Andrew Mace continues his contribution to Tolley’s Insolvency Law and has provided the updated chapter on construction and engineering insolvency to the new edition of the work. It is available for purchase here.

Philip Rainey KC and Rhys Duncan have written an article on the Court of Appeal’s decision in Spender v Fit Nominee Ltd [2025] EWCA Civ 1758, referred to above.

Sami Allan has written an article entitled, By-passing the effects of s.346(1) of the Insolvency Act 1986 following the bankruptcy of a judgment debtor, which examines the decision in Stacks Living Limited & ors v The Official Receiver (as Trustee in Bankruptcy of Balvinder Shergill) & ors [2025] EWHC 2478 (Ch). You can read the full article here.

In an article entitled, Good Faith; Bad Law?, Andrew Butler KC considers the implied obligations of good faith in commercial contracts.

Nora wannagat explores the Court of Appeal’s decision in National Iranian Oil Company v Crescent Gas Corporation Limited [2025] EWCA Civ 1211, in particular the judgment’s core finding that an agent’s signature is not sufficient to satisfy section 53(1)(b) of the Law of Property Act 1925, meaning only the beneficial owner can personally sign an enforceable declaration. The article can be found here.

Marc Glover, Thomas Dawson and Sami Allan have written an article concerning the recent High Court decision in Plantation Wharf Management Limited & ors v Brady & ors [2025] EWHC 2938 (Ch), in which they appeared for the First to Fourth Defendants. The article explores the central dispute over the meaning of the “unit of accommodation” and its effect on a freeholder’s ability to retain special privileges, including the power to nominate directors.

Andrew Butler KC has embarked upon a trilogy of articles discussing the renewed significance of the Defective Premises Act 1972 following the coming into force of the Building Safety Act 2022. A link to the first article is here, a link to the second article is here, and the concluding article can be found here.

The Tanfield Talks Podcast

Three new episodes of the Tanfield talks Podcast are now available:

Nicholas Isaac KC is joined by Sami Allan to discuss Sami’s experience as a pupil at Tanfield and his journey from pupillage to tenancy. The link to the podcast can be found here.
Christopher Heather KC and Elizabeth Fisher’s episode discussing the law of forfeiture of leases. The link to the podcast can be found here.
Nicholas Isaac KC and Robyn Cunningham’s episode which firstly discusses White v Alder [2025] EWCA Civ 392, concerning informal boundary agreements and then goes on to discuss determined boundaries. The link to the podcast can be found here.

Upcoming Events

On June 4, we will be bringing together colleagues and clients for our next conference, focused on the challenges and opportunities arising from a period of significant legal and commercial change. Drawing on insights from across property, insolvency, and private client law. Further details will be shared as the programme develops, so watch this space!

We are excited to announce that Chambers’ pupils, namely Rhys Duncan and Dara Foody have now commenced practice as working pupils.