Westwater Advocates’ David Anderson has successfully represented a landlord in a Sheriff Appeal Court judgment published by Scottish Courts today.
The case concerned the “streamlined” eviction procedure provided under the Housing (Scotland) Act 2001, as amended by the Housing (Scotland) Act 2014. Before following the “streamlined” procedure, landlords are under an obligation to have regard to statutory guidance in respect of that procedure. The appellant argued that the sheriff at first instance was not entitled to find that the landlord had done this. That argument was rejected by the Sheriff Appeal Court. In obiter remarks the Sheriff Appeal Court observed that the landlord’s requirement to have regard to the guidance can be presumed until the contrary is shown. The Sheriff Appeal Court did not directly offer a view as to whether or not a failure to have regard to the guidance renders the proceedings incompetent.
Click here to read the judgement.
Click here for the Housing Law webpage.