A legal case launched by Founder and Chairman of Platinum Property Partners, Steve Bolton, and fellow landlord, Chris Cooper, to fight Section 24 of the Finance (No. 2) Act 2015 has received a ruling from the court.
The co-claimants have been invited to request an oral hearing in order for the High Court to make a decision on whether permission is granted to progress with a full Judicial Review. Appointed legal firm, Omnia Strategy LLP, has been instructed to take this step on their behalf.
With the court due to retire for summer recess during August and September, a permission hearing is now not expected to take place until October at the earliest.
Lead lawyer for the case, Cherie (nee-Booth) Blair CBE QC, said: "The court will hear further arguments from both sides before making a final decision on whether our clients' challenge to section 24 of the Finance (no. 2) Act 2015 should proceed. This is sensible and we are optimistic that permission will be granted once the further submissions have been made."
Whilst the co-claimants are disappointed that permission was not granted without the need for a permission hearing, they remain confident that the court will recognise the seriousness of their claims and see this as an opportunity to present their case in person.
In a joint statement released today, Steve Bolton and Chris Cooper commented:
"The time and resources available to judges to consider applications "on the papers" (i.e. before any hearing) at this early stage is severely limited by their heavy workload. A permission hearing will be a great litmus test for our case. Our lawyers and the court will properly be able to consider the merits over several days and, if the result is positive, this means a judge has had time to consider the full facts.
"If we do get permission and proceed to a full Judicial Review hearing, that hearing will likely last for 2 to 3 days. The High Court's substantive ruling, therefore, will be based on a much more thorough examination by the court of law and the facts than has been attempted so far.
"We also know from our lawyers that some Judicial Review claims are granted permission straight away but are ultimately lost, and that some are initially refused permission but the claimants go on to win. In fact, our legal team has worked on a case where this same Judge initially refused permission but the case was ultimately won."
The core focus for the co-claimants over the next few months will therefore be on the wider 'Axe the Tenant Tax' campaign, which aims to raise awareness of Section 24 through communications and effective political lobbying.
With fundraising for the legal case on hold, supporters are being urged to contribute to the communications campaign so that the issues Section 24 presents can be kept at the forefront of everyone's minds.
More information, and a highlights video of the recent and hugely successful 'Axe the Tenant Tax' Summit, can be found here: https://www.crowdpac.co.uk/campaigns/36/axe-the-tenant-tax
