Tenancy Rights: Quiet Enjoyment

Q: I previously briefly mentioned quiet enjoyment in May 2010, but today I need to elaborate based on this question: Does the law allow for a single tenant to host an event which will disrupt the peace and quiet of other tenants?

A: Yes, as long as there is no continuous, long term disturbance.

Quiet Enjoyment 

Based on case-law, all landlords are under an implied obligation to allow their tenants “quiet enjoyment” of the rental premises. No one, including the landlord, his/her employee or agent shall interfere with a tenant’s right to possession of and to the lawful use and enjoyment of the premises. 

Substantial Interference

It has long been understood that the word “quiet” in quiet enjoyment does not mean the absence of noise, although a number of cases on the subject have been noise related.  “Quiet” in this context means without interference.  Interference with the right of quiet enjoyment must be substantial and what amounts to substantial will always depend on the facts of the case.  

For example: London Borough of Southwark v Mills, Baxter v LB Camden [1999] 3 WLR 939

Mills & Baxter were tenants in government properties owned by the Borough. Their complaints related to the lack of soundproofing in the apartments, which meant they could hear the daily activities of their neighbours, such as walking across the floor, using the toilet, watching television, so they brought actions in nuisance against the Borough.

House of Lords' decision:
There was no nuisance. Nuisance is based on the concept of the reasonable user, and.the use of the apartments was reasonable. The claimants had not sought to argue that the neighbours created excessive noise or act in ways which were unreasonable. The Borough could not therefore be liable for authorising a nuisance that did not exist.

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A temporary interference is also unlikely to give rise to a successful claim.
Essentially, in order to be successful in claiming a breach of the quiet enjoyment covenant a tenant must prove that:

1.       there has been a new activity after the grant of the lease; and

2.       that there has been serious and persistent disturbance to the tenant’s occupation of the premises.

Law of Trusts: Life Estate

The simplest form of property ownership is a fee simple absolute in possession. A “fee simple absolute” means that the owner has a 100% undivided interest in the property. S/He can use it, sell or convey it, and leave it to someone via a Will.

Fee – inheritable interest in land

Simple – property could be inherited by heirs

Absolute – No restrictions

With a life estate, however, the person holding the life estate has only a partial interest in a property; this person is known as the "life tenant." A person who has a life estate is entitled to enjoy full use of the property during his lifetime, but does not have the right to confer the property upon his death. As a full owner, the life tenant can live on the property, build and/or renovate, rent, or sell the property.

When a life estate is created, the documents must stipulate who the property will go to (a remainderman) upon the life tenant's death. This person cannot take possession of the property until the life tenant's death.  

For example, if John dies and leaves his home "to Joe for life, and then to Jane," Jane is a remainderman because she will inherit the home in the future, after Joe dies.

When a life tenant dies, the remainderman's interest in the property immediately becomes active. This is true even if the life tenant attempted to leave the property in a Will to someone else, or has sold the property. A life tenant is unable to grant a greater interest than he himself has in the property, so any attempt by the life tenant to pass the property onto to someone else in a Will is invalid.

The fact that the life tenant's interest ends upon his death means that if he sells the property to someone else, their (the buyer’s) interest ends immediately upon the life tenant's death. 

*Another limitation on a life estate is the legal doctrine of waste, which prohibits life tenants from damaging or devaluing the property.

Hamba Kahle Madiba... my idol, my hero.

Even before reading his biography, "Mandela: A Biography" by Martin Meredith, Nelson Mandela was my idol, my hero, the man I wanted to emulate, the Lawyer I wanted to become.

He wasn't perfect, he wasn't infallible

He wasn't a saint, he was human

After he fought against all odds, only time could bring an end to his struggles for equality.

While I am extremely saddened by his death, I am so thankful for his life. 

A quote that I’ve always remembered by Madiba was when he made an application for recusal (the disqualification of a judge or jury by reason of prejudice or conflict of interest):

• ·        “Why is it that in this courtroom I face a white magistrate, am confronted by a white prosecutor, and escorted into the dock by a white orderly? Can anyone honestly and seriously suggest that in this type of atmosphere the scales of justice are evenly balanced?”

And the one that pushed me in the direction that I took… the quote behind this website, the quote behind my specialisation in Employment law and now pursuing a PhD in Employment Law/Human Rights…

• ·        “During my lifetime I have dedicated myself to this struggle of the African people. I have fought against white domination, and I have fought against black domination. I have cherished the ideal of a democratic and free society in which all persons live together in harmony and with equal opportunities. It is an ideal which I hope to live for and to achieve. But if needs be, it is an ideal for which I am prepared to die.”
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Those who know me well, know that I have always promised to attend Mandela’s funeral, so I am making all arrangements to fulfill that promise to see the man who has greatly impacted my life in many ways. 

·          

Hamba Kahle Tata, the first Black President of South Africa, a father, not only to his family, but to a nation and to many people around the world.

1918 – 2013: 95 years of greatness