The Law Commission Consultation Paper No 170 LAND, VALUATION AND HOUSING TRIBUNALS A Consultation Paper London: TSO The Law Commission was set up by section 1 of the Law Commissions Act 1965 for the purpose of promoting the reform of the law. The Law Commissioners are: The Honourable Mr Justice Toulson, Chairman Professor Hugh Beale, QC Mr Stuart Bridge Professor Martin Partington, CBE Judge Alan Wilkie, QC The Secretary of the Law Commission is Mr Michael Sayers and its offices are at Conquest House, 37-38 John Street, Theobalds Road, London WC1N 2BQ. This consultation paper, completed on 12 December 2002, is circulated for comment and criticism only. It does not represent the final views of the Law Commission. The Law Commission would be grateful for comments on this consultation paper before 14 March 2003. Comments may be sent – By post to: Charlotte Crilly Law Commission Conquest House 37-38 John Street Theobalds Road London WC1N 2BQ Tel: 020-7453-1228 Fax: 020-7453-1297 By e-mail to: [email protected] It would be helpful if, where possible, comments sent by post could also be sent on disk, or by e-mail to the above address, in any commonly used format. All responses to this Consultation Paper will be treated as public documents, and may be made available to third parties, unless the respondent specifically requests that a response be treated as confidential, in whole or in part. The text of this consultation paper is available on the Internet at: http://www.lawcom.gov.uk 234-37-01 THE LAW COMMISSION LAND, VALUATION AND HOUSING TRIBUNALS CONTENTS Paragraph Page PART I: INTRODUCTION 1 Background to the Consultation Paper 1.1 1 Terms of reference 1.3 1 Scope of the Consultation Paper 1.7 3 Content of the Consultation Paper 1.9 3 Advisory Group 1.15 3 PART II: BACKGROUND TO THE LAND, VALUATION AND HOUSING TRIBUNALS 4 Overview of the Existing Structure 2.1 4 The Individual Tribunals 2.3 4 Adjudicator to HM Land Registry 2.4 4 The Agricultural Land Tribunal 2.5 5 The Commons Commissioners 2.6 5 The Lands Tribunal 2.7 5 The Residential Property Tribunal Service 2.8 6 The Leasehold Valuation Tribunal 2.11 7 The Rent Assessment Committee 2.12 7 The Rent Tribunal 2.13 7 The Valuation Tribunal 2.14 7 PART III: THE LEGGATT REVIEW AND THE NEED FOR REFORM 9 Introduction 3.1 9 The Leggatt Review Principles 3.4 9 Coherence 3.6 10 Independence 3.8 10 Jurisdictional Issues 3.11 11 Our Approach 3.13 11 PART IV: OPTIONS FOR STRUCTURAL REFORM 13 Introduction 4.1 13 Retaining the Current System? 4.7 14 iii Paragraph Page Party and Party v Citizen and State Disputes 4.9 14 Party and Party Tribunals 4.11 14 Citizen and State Tribunals 4.11 15 Hybrid Tribunal 4.11 15 Alternative Dispute Resolution 4.13 16 Options for Reform 4.18 17 Option 1: Rationalise the Current Structure 4.19 17 A Common Appeal Route for all LVH Tribunals 4.20 17 Rationalisation of the Lands Tribunal 4.28 19 Unification of the RPTS Tribunals 4.34 21 Option 2: An Amalgamated Tribunal 4.39 22 Summary of the Amalgamated Tribunal Option 4.51 25 Option 3: A Unified Tribunal 4.53 26 Summary of the Unified Tribunal Option 4.58 27 Our Provisional Conclusions 4.60 27 Consultation Questions 4.61 28 General Points 4.62 28 Option 1: Rationalise the Current Structure 4.67 28 A Common Appeal Route for all LVH Tribunals 4.68 28 Rationalisation of the Structure of the Lands Tribunal 4.71 28 Unification of the RPTS Tribunals 4.74 29 Option 2: An Amalgamated Tribunal 4.77 29 Option 3: A Unified Tribunal 4.80 29 PART V: JURISDICTIONAL RELATIONSHIPS 30 Introduction 5.1 30 The Individual Tribunals 5.6 31 Adjudicator to HM Land Registry 5.6 31 The Agricultural Land Tribunal 5.7 32 The Commons Commissioners 5.8 32 The Lands Tribunal 5.9 32 The Leasehold Valuation Tribunal 5.11 33 The Rent Assessment Committee 5.12 34 The Rent Tribunal 5.13 35 The Valuation Tribunal 5.14 35 Sharing of Jurisdiction Between Tribunals 5.16 35 The Need for Reform 5.17 36 Consultation Questions 5.20 37 PART VI: THE WAY FORWARD 38 iv Page APPENDIX A: ADVISORY GROUP MEMBERS 39 APPENDIX B: ADJUDICATOR TO HM LAND REGISTRY 40 APPENDIX C: THE AGRICULTURAL LAND TRIBUNAL 43 APPENDIX D: COMMONS COMMISSIONERS 56 APPENDIX E: THE LANDS TRIBUNAL 61 APPENDIX F: THE LEASEHOLD VALUATION TRIBUNAL 116 APPENDIX G: THE RENT ASSESSMENT COMMITTEE 140 APPENDIX H: THE RENT TRIBUNAL 148 APPENDIX I: THE VALUATION TRIBUNAL 155 v PART I INTRODUCTION BACKGROUND TO THE CONSULTATION PAPER 1.1 On 18 May 2000 the Lord Chancellor appointed Sir Andrew Leggatt to undertake a review of tribunals. The report of the review was published on 16 August 2001.1 The key recommendation of the report was that there should be a single tribunals service under the administrative control of the Lord Chancellor’s Department. A consultation paper about the Leggatt Review report was also issued by the Lord Chancellor’s Department in August 2001. 1.2 The Leggatt Review noted that, in the context of land, property and housing tribunals “[t]here are confusing overlaps of jurisdiction between courts and tribunals, as well as between tribunals” and that “an expert decision-making forum, without overlapping jurisdictions, is a precondition of effective procedural reform”.2 The Review therefore recommended that the Law Commission should be instructed to work out “a comprehensive solution”, with a view to removing these overlaps and the current scope for forum shopping. The matter was formally referred to us on 8 November 2002. THE TERMS OF REFERENCE 1.3 Our terms of reference are as follows. “In the context provided for the future of tribunals by the report of the Leggatt Review of Tribunals3 and the Modernising Tribunals programme, to review the law relating to the tribunals listed below, including their procedures and composition, and in particular the relationship between the jurisdictions of those tribunals and of the courts or other tribunals, with the aim of making recommendations to ensure that the objectives of the Leggatt Review, as identified in its terms of reference4, are met in relation to the work of those tribunals. 1 Report of the Review of Tribunals by Sir Andrew Leggatt: Tribunals for Users – One System, One Service (August 2001), (“the Leggatt Review”). 2 Leggatt Review, para 3.30. 3 Tribunals for Users: One System, One Service (2001). (footnote in original). 4 The terms of reference were “To review the delivery of justice through tribunals other than ordinary courts of law, constituted under an Act of Parliament by a Minister of the Crown or for the purposes of a Minister’s functions; in resolving disputes, whether between citizens and the state, or between other parties, to ensure that: There are fair, timely, proportionate and effective arrangements for handling those disputes, within an effective framework for decision-making which encourages the systematic development of the area of law concerned, and which forms a coherent structure, together with the superior courts, for the delivery of administrative justice; The administrative and practical arrangements for supporting those decision- making procedures meet the requirements of the European Convention on Human Rights for independence and impartiality; 1 The tribunals are as follows: (1) the Agricultural Lands Tribunal,5 (2) the Commons Commissioners, (3) the Lands Tribunal, (4) the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal,5 (5) the Rent Assessment Committees,5 (6) the Rent Tribunal,5 (7) the Valuation Tribunal,5 and (8) such other related tribunals as the Law Commission and the Lord Chancellor’s Department may agree.” 1.4 The Law Commission and the Lord Chancellor’s Department have agreed that the adjudicator to HM Land Registry, which was established under the Land Registration Act 2002, will also be included within the terms of this review. 1.5 It will be noted that the terms of reference refer only to tribunals in England. Consideration of tribunals in Wales is therefore outside of our terms of reference. The administration of five of the seven land, valuation and housing tribunals has been transferred to the National Assembly for Wales.6 1.6 Our terms of reference have not lead us to consider the procedures of the land, valuation and housing tribunals in detail. Primary legislation should contain a There are adequate arrangements for improving people’s knowledge and understanding of their rights and responsibilities in relation to such disputes, and that tribunals and other bodies function in a way which makes those rights and responsibilities a reality; The arrangements for the funding and management of tribunals and other bodies by Government departments are efficient, effective and economical; and pay due regard both to judicial independence, and to ministerial responsibility for the administration of public funds; Performance standards for tribunals are coherent, consistent, and public; and effective measures for monitoring and enforcing those standards are established; and Tribunals overall constitute a coherent structure for the delivery of administrative justice. The review may examine, insofar as it considers it necessary, administrative and regulatory bodies which also make judicial decisions as part of their functions.” (footnote in original). 5 The review will not cover these tribunals in so far as they operate in Wales. (footnote in original). 6 The devolved tribunals are the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal, the Rent Assessment Committee, the Rent Tribunal, the Agricultural Land Tribunal and the Valuation Tribunal.