A Closer Look At The Sixth Seal (Revelation 6:12)
A Look at the Tri-State's Active Fault Line
By Bob Hennelly
The Ramapo Fault is the longest fault in the Northeast that occasionally makes local headlines when minor tremors cause rock the Tri-State region. It begins in Pennsylvania, crosses the Delaware River and continues through Hunterdon, Somerset, Morris, Passaic and Bergen counties before crossing the Hudson River near Indian Point nuclear facility.
In the past, it has generated occasional activity that generated a 2.6 magnitude quake in New Jersey's Peakpack/Gladstone area and 3.0 magnitude quake in Mendham.
But the New Jersey-New York region is relatively seismically stable according to Dr. Dave Robinson, Professor of Geography at Rutgers. Although it does have activity.
"There is occasional seismic activity in New Jersey," said Robinson. "There have been a few quakes locally that have been felt and done a little bit of damage over the time since colonial settlement — some chimneys knocked down in Manhattan with a quake back in the 18th century, but nothing of a significant magnitude."
Robinson said the Ramapo has on occasion registered a measurable quake but has not caused damage: "The Ramapo fault is associated with geological activities back 200 million years ago, but it's still a little creaky now and again," he said.
"More recently, in the 1970s and early 1980s, earthquake risk along the Ramapo Fault received attention because of its proximity to Indian Point," according to the New Jersey Geological Survey website.
Historically, critics of the Indian Point Nuclear facility in Westchester County, New York, did cite its proximity to the Ramapo fault line as a significant risk.
In 1884, according to the New Jersey Geological Survey website, the Rampao Fault was blamed for a 5.5 quake that toppled chimneys in New York City and New Jersey that was felt from Maine to Virginia.
"Subsequent investigations have shown the 1884 Earthquake epicenter was actually located in Brooklyn, New York, at least 25 miles from the Ramapo Fault," according to the New Jersey Geological Survey website.
andrewtheprophet	Uncategorized	Leave a comment May 18, 2020 May 18, 2020 1 Minute
Trump's emergency powers SHOULD worry some senators, legal experts (Revelation 18)
Trump's emergency powers worry some senators, legal experts
WASHINGTON (AP) — The day he declared the COVID-19 pandemic a national emergency, President Donald Trump made a cryptic offhand remark.
"I have the right to do a lot of things that people don't even know about," he said at the White House.
Trump wasn't just crowing. Dozens of statutory authorities become available to any president when national emergencies are declared. They are rarely used, but Trump last month stunned legal experts and others when he claimed — mistakenly — that he has "total" authority over governors in easing COVID-19 guidelines.
That prompted 10 senators to look into how sweeping Trump believes his emergency powers are.
They have asked to see this administration's Presidential Emergency Action Documents, or PEADs. The little-known, classified documents are essentially planning papers.
The documents don't give a president authority beyond what's in the Constitution. But they outline what powers a president believes that the Constitution gives him to deal with national emergencies. The senators think the documents would provide them a window into how this White House interprets presidential emergency powers.
"Somebody needs to look at these things," Sen. Angus King, I-Maine, said in a telephone interview. "This is a case where the president can declare an emergency and then say, 'Because there's an emergency, I can do this, this and this.'"
King, seven Democrats and one Republican sent a letter late last month to acting national intelligence director Richard Grenell asking to be briefed on any existing PEADs. Sen. Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., wrote a similar letter to Attorney General William Barr and White House counsel Pat Cipollone.
"The concern is that there could be actions taken that would violate individual rights under the Constitution," such as limiting due process, unreasonable search and seizure and holding individuals without cause, King said.
"I'm merely speculating. It may be that we get these documents and there's nothing untoward in their checks and balances and everything is above board and reasonable."
Joshua Geltzer, visiting professor of law at Georgetown University, said there is a push to take a look at these documents because there is rising distrust for the Trump administration's legal interpretations in a way he hasn't seen in his lifetime.
The most publicized example was Trump's decision last year to declare the security situation along the U.S.-Mexico border a national emergency. That decision allowed him to take up to $3.6 billion from military construction projects to finance wall construction beyond the miles that lawmakers had been willing to fund. Trump's move skirted the authority of Congress, which by law has the power to spend money in the nation's wallet.
"I worry about other things he might call an emergency," Geltzer said. "I think around the election itself in November — that's where there seems to be a lot of potential for mischief with this president."
The lawmakers made their request just days after Trump made his startling claim on April 13 that he had the authority to force states to reopen for business amid the pandemic.
"When somebody's the president of the United States, the authority is total," Trump said, causing a backlash from some governors and legal experts. Trump later tweeted that while some people say it's the governors, not the president's decision, "Let it be fully understood that this is incorrect."
Trump later backtracked on his claim of "total" authority and agreed that states have the upper hand in deciding when to end their lockdowns. But it was just the latest from a president who has been stretching existing statutory authorities "to, if not beyond, their breaking point," said Stephen Vladeck, a law professor at the University of Texas.
Questions about Trump's PEADs went unanswered by the Justice Department, National Security Council and the Office of the Director of National Intelligence.
Elizabeth Goitein, co-director of a national security program at the Brennan Center for Justice at New York University School of Law, said PEADs have not been subject to congressional oversight for decades. She estimates that there are 50 to 60 of these documents, which include draft proclamations, executive orders and proposed legislation that could be swiftly introduced to "assert broad presidential authority" in national emergencies.
She said the Eisenhower administration had PEADs outlining how it might respond to a possible Soviet nuclear attack. According to the Brennan Center, PEADs issued up through the 1970s included detention of U.S. citizens suspected of being subversives, warrantless searches and seizures and the imposition of martial law.
"A Department of Justice memorandum from the Lyndon B. Johnson administration discusses a presidential emergency action document that would impose censorship on news sent abroad," Goitein wrote in an op-ed with lawyer Andrew Boyle published last month in The New York Times.
"The memo notes that while no 'express statutory authority' exists for such a measure, 'it can be argued that these actions would be legal in the aftermath of a devastating nuclear attack based on the president's constitutional powers to preserve the national security."'
Goitein said she especially worries about any orders having to do with military deployment, including martial law.
"You can imagine a situation where he (Trump) engineers a crisis that leads to domestic violence, which then becomes a pretext for martial law," said Goitein, who insists she's simply playing out worst-case scenarios. "What I worry about is the extreme interpretation under which he asserts the authority to declare martial law and take over all the functions of government, including running the elections."
She also wonders if there is a PEAD outlining steps the president could take to respond to a serious cyberattack. Would the president aggressively interpret telecommunications law and flip an internet kill switch, or restrain domestic internet traffic? she asks.
Bobby Chesney, associate dean at the University of Texas School of Law, said some fears might be exaggerated because while Trump makes off-the-cuff assertions of authority far beyond past presidents, he doesn't necessarily follow up with action.
Says Chesney: "His actions don't match the rhetoric always — or even often."
andrewtheprophet	Uncategorized	Leave a comment May 18, 2020 May 17, 2020 4 Minutes
Despite the Plague Iran Nukes Up (Daniel 8:4)
Iran's Nuclear and Military Efforts in the Shadow of Coronavirus and Economic Collapse
Lt. Col. (res.) Dr. Raphael Ofek
Iraj Harirchi (left), Director of Iran's National Center for the Fight Against Coronavirus, showing signs of infection at press conference on Feb. 23, 2020, photo via Wikimedia Commons
BESA Center Perspectives Paper No. 1,568, May 17, 2020
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY: Notwithstanding the difficult challenges of the coronavirus crisis and a deteriorating economy, Iran is pushing ahead with its uranium enrichment and missile and space programs as well as its activities in Syria. It also has yet to concede to the US in their clash over sailing in the Gulf. Tehran fears that any sign of weakness might endanger the Islamist regime, particularly as resentment continues to grow among ordinary Iranians. With that in mind, it is doing all it can to flex its muscles for both domestic and international audiences.
In July 2019, Iran began to explicitly violate the July 2015 nuclear agreement. The recent IAEA report (March 3, 2020) addressed the following breaches by Iran on uranium enrichment:
• Iran pledged to reduce the number of centrifuges in the Natanz enrichment plant to 5,060 IR1 units and to limit its uranium enrichment to a 3.67% rate. However, as of July 8, 2019, it began to enrich up to a 4.5% rate.
• The agreement demands that the Fordow underground uranium enrichment facility, containing 2,710 IR1 centrifuges including 696 active centrifuges, be converted into a "Nuclear Research, Physics and Technology" center with 1,044 centrifuges cut off from the UF6 feed pipeline (UF6, or uranium hexa-fluoride, is a uranium-fluorine compound that is fed in a gaseous state into centrifuges for enrichment). In addition, 348 unused centrifuges for uranium enrichment were to be used to separate stable isotopes for use in medicine, agriculture and industry, while the remaining centrifuges were to be transferred to storage at the Natanz plant. However, on November 9, 2019, uranium enrichment was renewed at Fordow with 1,044 units in operation. They include centrifuges that were intended for stable isotope separation.
• The agreement stipulates that the amount of uranium Iran is permitted to enrich at 3.67% is limited to 300 kg of UF6 (the uranium content of which is 202.8 kg). But as of February 19, 2020, the amount of uranium enriched by the Natanz plant and Fordow facility totaled 1,020.9 kg, or more than five times what is allowed. Its content is 806.3 kg uranium enriched to 4.5% and 214.6 kg enriched to 3.67%.
• On September 7, 2019, Iran began to violate the limit to which it had agreed regarding the operation of advanced highly enriching centrifuges. Contrary to the agreement, Iran is enriching uranium with about 400 centrifuges of advanced models (IR2m, IR4 and IR6). The enrichment capacity of the IR6 centrifuge is over eight times that of the IR1 centrifuge.
The latest IAEA report says the agency continues to liaise with Iranian authorities regarding IAEA inspections of natural (non-enriched) uranium particles of an anthropogenic (i.e., man-made) source from an Iranian site that has not yet been declared to IAEA: the warehouse in Turkuzabad, a suburb of Tehran, which was unveiled by Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu in a speech to the UN General Assembly on September 27, 2018. According to the BBC on March 3, the IAEA dispatched a document to several member states claiming that Iran has rejected a request to allow inspection access to three other unidentified sites as well. According to the document, the inspectors want to find out if natural uranium is being used at any of the sites from which they are being barred. At another site, the IAEA says there have been activities that are "consistent with efforts to sanitize part of the location."
Iran's violations of the nuclear agreement—its raising of the uranium enrichment rate to 4.5% and accumulation of uranium in excess of the 300 kg UF6 limit—does not currently have a military aspect. This is because uranium enriched at a rate of less than 5% is suitable solely as a nuclear fuel for power reactors and cannot be used for nuclear weapons (for which the enrichment degree required is at least 90%). Iranian officials claim these violations are meant to pressure the EU into neutralizing the sanctions imposed on Iran by the US.
However, the main concern about Iran's future ability to manufacture nuclear weapons is the advanced uranium enrichment centrifuges the regime is continuing to develop. Behrouz Kamalvandi, the spokesman for the Iranian Atomic Energy Organization, said at a conference at Fordow on November 9, 2019 that the enrichment rate is being increased "based on our own needs and instructions…[W]e have the possibility to produce 5%, 20%, and 60%, or any other uranium enrichment required."
Furthermore, on March 27, Kamalvandi announced that on Iran's National Nuclear Technology Day on April 8 his organization was going to unveil a new advanced centrifuge. (The event was postponed due to the coronavirus crisis.) He added that "some of Iran's advanced centrifuges have reached a phase where we can industrialize them…[they] can be manufactured at 60 centrifuges per day." He even bragged, "Production [enrichment] above 250,000 SWU (separative work units) is definitely achievable, but our goal is to reach one million SWU." As the required enrichment quantity of natural uranium (containing about 0.7% uranium-235, the fissile uranium isotope) to the amount of about 20 kg of enriched uranium to at least 90% is about 5,000 SWU, Iran is quite close to obtaining enough enriched uranium to use as fissile material for its first nuclear bomb.
As for Iran's missile and space program, on April 22 the Islamic Revolutionary Guards (IRGC) announced the successful launch of the Noor-1, Iran's first military satellite. According to the Guards, the Noor-1, which is an imaging satellite, began within 90 minutes to orbit the Earth in a 425-km orbit. This is after several recent failures by Iran to launch satellites into space.
The satellite was launched using a three-stage missile launcher nicknamed Qased ("messenger"). Its first stage was based on a rocket fueled with liquid fuel, with the two additional stages fueled by solid propellant. Solid fuel propulsion indicates an impressive advance of Iran's missile technology.
While Tehran claims the satellite launch was part of a civilian space research and exploration program, US military experts have expressed concern that the program is intended to develop intercontinental ballistic missiles that can threaten the US with nuclear warheads. Iranian ballistic missiles are also being developed for a 2,000 km range, which could threaten Israel.
On April 29, Iran marked National Persian Gulf Day. There have been recent incidents in the Gulf—to which Tehran has claimed paramountcy since the days of the Shah—between IRGC ships and US Navy ships. Also, following Qassem Soleimani's killing on January 3, Iran launched more than 15 missile and rocket attacks against US bases and targets in Iraq.
Tehran has also continued its military entrenchment in Syria. Despite recent claims by Israeli security officials that due to the IDF's intense activity Tehran has become a liability rather than an asset to Damascus, Iranian-backed Shiite militias, Hezbollah in particular, seem to be continuing their operations on the Golan Heights.
Iran's overall situation is quite distressing. The Iranian people have lost faith in the regime—especially now, in view of the ravages of the coronavirus pandemic. The people (along with the rest of the world) doubt the official casualty figures. At this writing, the regime is claiming about 110,000 cases and about 6,800 deaths, but the true numbers are estimated to be much higher. This distrust became stronger against the backdrop of the authorities' false reporting of the downing of a Ukrainian passenger jet on January 8 after takeoff from Tehran (most of its passengers were either Iranian or of Iranian origin).
The coronavirus outbreak has dealt a new blow to the Iranian economy, which had already collapsed in 2018 as a result of US sanctions. The real (the Iranian currency) plummeted to unprecedented lows, and the Iranian street expressed its anger that the regime had wasted so much money on its operations in Syria. According to the London Arab newspaper al-Sharq al-Awsat on January 1, 2020, Iranian president Rouhani said damage to the Iranian economy resulting from sanctions by the end of 2019 was $200 billion.
In 1965, Pakistan's foreign minister Zulfikar Ali Bhutto responded to the development of Indian nuclear weapons by saying: "If we have to feed on grass and leaves, or even if we have to starve, we shall also produce an atomic bomb." Indeed, in 1972, at the beginning of his tenure as Pakistan's president, he set his country's nuclear weapons project in motion.
It is highly doubtful that the Iranian people are ready to eat grass in order to bring the regime's dreams of an Iranian nuclear bomb to fruition. Though the mullahs' goal of becoming a regional power that controls Shiite Islam across the Middle East remains unfulfilled, the regime continues to do what it can to demonstrate its power. The object is to show the world that Iran is not capitulating to the US in any way—not regarding its nuclear and space programs, and not militarily. It also seeks to project an image of strength to the increasingly resentful Iranian people, as it fears that signs of weakness could bring an end to its rule. However, the regime's investments in security at the expense of the nation's welfare may turn out to boomerang against it.
Lt. Col. (res.) Dr. Raphael Ofek, a BESA Center Research Associate, is an expert in the field of nuclear physics and technology who served as a senior analyst in the Israeli intelligence community.
The Coming Cold Nuclear War with China (Daniel 7)
Do we really want a new Cold War with China? Mainstream media thinks so
Gregory Shupak
Corporate media is laying the ideological groundwork for a new cold war with China, presenting the nation as a hostile power that needs to be kept in check.
The Washington Post (4/23/20) ran an article by Republican Sen. Mitt Romney, the second sentence of which said, "The COVID-19 pandemic has revealed that, to a great degree, our very health is in Chinese hands; from medicines to masks, we are at Beijing's mercy." America, in this conception, is under Chinese domination, a tyranny that's evidently imposed not only by the Chinese government, but by Chinese people generally.
Details like the U.S. having more than 21 times as many nuclear warheads as China, or the fact that it's the U.S. dollar and not the Chinese yuan that underpins the global financial system, do not enter into consideration. Instead, because the U.S. imports a great many goods made in China, Romney urged readers to understand China as Americans' oppressors, who implicitly must be resisted.
Romney warned his audience that China has a "grand strategy for economic, military and geopolitical domination" and thus "The West" must "respon[d]" with "a unified strategy among free nations to counter China's trade predation and its corruption of our mutual security."
He said China is conducting an "alarming military build-up." Sure, the available evidence indicates that the U.S. spends almost three times what China does on its war apparatus, but "Americans should not take comfort in our disproportionately large military budget," Romney cautioned, because, supposedly, "China's annual procurement of military hardware is nearly identical to ours," though few know about this "outside classified settings.":
Then he revealed China's supposed threat to America's "security": "Because our military has missions around the world, this means that in the Pacific, where China concentrates its firepower, it will have military superiority." In other words, China is a danger because it "concentrates its firepower" in the ocean nearest to it, while the U.S. divine right to empire requires that its military saturate the globe.
The senator argued that "action should be applied in national security sectors" such as phone technology and medicine, and that "the free nations must collectively agree that we will buy these products only from other free nations" as part of a plan to "protect … our security."
The idea that China is a threat to Americans' security is baseless: China hasn't threatened to attack America, while the U.S. has a massive military presence in the Asia/Pacific region. The Pentagon, with bipartisan support, wants to engorge that menace with a $20 billion budget increase, and with offensive weaponry such as land-based Tomahawk cruise missiles that had been banned by the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty until the U.S. abrogated the deal. China, meanwhile, has no military installations anywhere close to the United States.
Romney repeatedly called on "free nations," a grouping in which he included the U.S., to take on China. In doing so, he cast the potential conflict as a civilizational battle between freedom and dictatorship — that the U.S. has the highest prison population per capita on Earth does not trouble the senator's framework.
Romney also referred to China or its economic practices as a "predator," "predatory" or "predation" eight times, making the U.S. and its allies the supposed prey. "Today," Romney wrote, "Beijing's weapon of choice is economic: The tip of its spear is global industrial predation." China is "a predator, unbound by the rules followed by its competitors," so "when the immediate health crisis has passed, the United States should convene like-minded nations to develop a common strategy aimed at dissuading China from pursuing its predatory path." Romney is propagating a timeworn worldview in which deceitful, barbaric Orientals take advantage of innocent, rule-abiding Americans whose businesses never break laws or do anything that could be viewed as predatory.
The Russian Horn's Doomsday Nuke (Daniel 7)
This New Russian Submarine Carries the Ultimate Doomsday Weapon
The second Russian Navy submarine to serve as a basic carrier of the Poseidon nuclear-capable underwater drone will be floated out in late June, the state media reported. The Khabarovsk will reportedly be able to carry up to six Poseidon unmanned underwater vehicles (UUVs).
"The Khabarovsk [Project 09852] will be floated out in late June at the earliest. There is no exact date so far," a source from the Russian defense industry told TASS.
Naval News, with data from Covert Shores, has described the new submarine as similar but smaller than the Project 955 "Borei" SSBN. The estimated length of the new submarine is about 120 meters compared to the 160 meters for the BOREI. In addition, it was noted that it is even possible that the submarines may share many components and even hull sections.
Khabarovsk, the lead boat of the Project 09851, is the first of four planned nuclear-powered submarines and it was laid down in 2014 with plans for it to be launched this year. The Khabarovsk-class boats should be capable of carrying weapons such as torpedoes, anti-ship and land attack missiles—and as these will be fitted with a nuclear reactor and pumpjet propulsion system should have unlimited range, while sea endurance will be limited only by food supplies.
The Poseidon is a unique UUV with a nuclear propulsion system and nuclear warhead, and it can operate as an autonomous nuclear torpedo with a nearly unlimited range. The Pentagon reports confirmed the existence of the UUV in 2016. It can reportedly carry a nuclear warhead with a blast yield of two megatons (MT), and it can reach underwater speeds of 108 knots—significantly faster than traditional torpedoes.
The weapon platform is capable of destroying enemy infrastructural facilities, aircraft carrier strike groups (CSG) and other targets. The Poseidon drones, along with other nuclear-power submarines, which act as the carriers for the weapons, make up part of Russia's so-called oceanic multipurpose system. A source in the Russian defense industry told TASS that the Poseidon drone is capable of destroying an enemy naval base or hit at an enemy's important coastal economic facilities—which could be read to include a city such as New York or Boston.
In the March 2018 state-of-the-nation address to both houses of the Russian parliament, President Vladimir Putin mentioned for the first time Russia's efforts to develop a nuclear-powered unmanned underwater vehicle that could carry both conventional and nuclear warheads.
The first basic carrier of the Poseidon was the Project 09852 special-purpose nuclear submarine Belgorod, which was floated in April of last year and which is expected to enter service with the Russian Navy this coming September. In addition to carrying the Poseidon, the Belgorod was developed to carry rescue deep-water drones.
Peter Suciu is a Michigan-based writer who has contributed to more than four dozen magazines, newspapers and websites. He is the author of several books on military headgear including A Gallery of Military Headdress, which is available on Amazon.com.
The South Asian Nuclear Horns (Revelation 8 )
India Beat Pakistan in 1971 in War (Then Came the Nuclear Weapons)
Key point: India helped make Bangladesh independent. It was a huge victory, but Pakistan would make sure that no future war would go the same way.
This is what happens when you chop a nation in half.
Before December 3, 1971, Pakistan was a country suffering from a split personality disorder. When British India became independent in 1947, the country was divided into Hindu India and Muslim Pakistan. The problem was that East Pakistan and West Pakistan were almost a thousand miles apart, and wedged in between them was archenemy India. Imagine if the United States only consisted of the East Coast and West Coast, and Russia controlled all of North America in between.
Thirteen days later, Pakistan had been amputated. Indian troops had conquered East Pakistan, which became the new nation of Bangladesh. More than ninety thousand Pakistani soldiers were taken prisoner, half the Pakistani Navy had been sunk and the Indian Air Force came out on top. It was total humiliation, and not just for Pakistan. The United States and Britain sent aircraft carriers in a futile attempt to intimidate India, and ended up facing off against Soviet warships. Pakistan's defeat also spurred its rulers to begin development of nuclear weapons.
The 1971 India-Pakistan War, the third major conflict between the two nations in twenty-five years, was sparked by unrest in East Pakistan. The Bengalis of East Pakistan, who constituted 54 percent of Pakistan's population at the time, chafed under the rule of West Pakistan. The two Pakistans belonged to different ethnic groups and spoke different languages.
Bengali demands for autonomy were rebuffed. By mid-1971, an East Pakistan guerrilla movement had emerged, supported by India. Pakistan's military-controlled government cracked down hard, killing up to three million Bengalis in what has been described as a genocide. By November, both India and Pakistan were preparing for war.
On December 3, Pakistan launched a preemptive air strike against Indian airfields, ironically trying to emulate how the Israeli Air Force had destroyed Egyptian airpower in 1967. The difference was that the Israelis committed two hundred aircraft and wiped out nearly five hundred Egyptian aircraft in a few hours; Pakistan committed fifty aircraft and inflicted little damage. The air war featured the full panoply of Cold War jets, pitting Pakistani F-104 Starfighters, F-86 Sabres, MiG-19s and B-57 Canberras against Indian MiG-21s, Sukhoi-7s, Hawker Hunters and Folland Gnats, as well as Hawker Sea Hawks flying from the Indian carrier Vikrant.
Both sides claimed victory in the air war. Chuck Yeager, who was in Pakistan advising their air force, claimed the Pakistanis "whipped their asses." The Indians claim Yeager was crazy. However, it does appear that India had the upper hand in the air, controlling the skies over East Pakistan and losing about forty-five aircraft to Pakistan's seventy-five. The maneuverable little Indian Gnat, a British-made lightweight fighter (its predecessor was called the Midge), proved so successful against Pakistani F-86s that the Indians dubbed it the "Sabre Slayer."
At sea, there is no question that India won. The Indian Navy dispatched missile boats, armed with Soviet-made Styx missiles, to strike the western port of Karachi, sinking or badly damaging two Pakistani destroyers and three merchant ships, as well as fuel tanks. Indian ships blockaded East Pakistan from reinforcements and supplies. Notable was India's use of the carrier Vikrant to conduct air strikes on coastal targets, as well as conducting an amphibious landing on Pakistani territory.
Pakistan retaliated by dispatching the submarine Ghazi to mine Indian ports. While stalked by an Indian destroyer, the Ghazi mysteriously blew up. However, the submarine Hangor did sink the Indian frigate Khukri.
As for the ground war, the best that can be said is that if Napoleon himself had faced Pakistan's strategic dilemma, he would have sulked off to St. Helena. Isolated by land and blockaded by sea, no army could have defended East Pakistan against even a moderately competent foe, let alone the nine Indian divisions that quickly captured the East Pakistan capital of Dhaka. East Pakistani forces surrendered on December 16.
To add insult to the defeat of Pakistan and its proudly Muslim rulers, the Indian campaign was planned by Maj. Gen. J. F. R. Jacob—an Indian Jew descended from a family that fled Baghdad in the eighteenth century.
One issue that hampered Pakistan's war effort would soon become familiar in Iraq, Syria, Afghanistan and other ethnically divided nations. In 1971, Bengalis comprised a significant part of the Pakistani military, especially in technical jobs.
Meanwhile, the superpowers were flexing their muscles. Despite its cruelty toward the Bengalis, and the opposition of U.S. diplomats, President Richard Nixon and National Security Adviser Henry Kissinger backed Pakistan against pro-Soviet India (see the Nixon-Kissinger transcripts here). Task Force 74, centered on the aircraft carrier Enterprise, steamed into the Bay of Bengal, as did the British carrier Eagle. Why India would have been intimidated into a cease-fire, even as its tanks were rolling into Dhaka, is a mystery. America's attempt to deter India from defeating Pakistan became a case study of the limitations of relying on the threat of force to compel other nations to change their behavior.
In fact, what the U.S. Navy accomplished was to chill U.S.-Indian relations for years. Even more disturbing were the Soviet cruisers, destroyers and submarines shadowing Task Force 74. A war between two Southwest Asian nations could have triggered a superpower showdown at sea, and perhaps World War III.
In the end, India had demonstrated its military superiority. Pakistan lost half its territory and population. Perhaps more important, Pakistani illusions that an Islamic army could rout the "weak" Hindus had been disproved. Following the 1947 and 1965 wars, the 1971 war was the third major conflict between India and Pakistan. It was also the last. Despite some hostilities in Kargil and other spots on the border, India and Pakistan have not fought a major war in forty-five years.
Unfortunately, Pakistan's humiliation in 1971 spurred it into developing an atomic bomb. With India also armed with atomic weapons, South Asia now lives under the shadow of nuclear war. The next major India-Pakistan clash could be the last.
Michael Peck is a frequent contributor to the National Interest and is a regular writer for many outlets like WarIsBoring. He can be found on Twitter and Facebook. This first appeared in 2016 and is being reposted due to reader interest.
Iran Refuses to Save the Oil (Revelation 6:6)
US-Iran Tensions Escalate As Iran Starts Trading With Venezuela
By EurAsian Times Global Desk
Five Iranian oil tankers are headed towards Venezuela according to media reports. According to tankertrackers.com, a platform which tracks shipments of oil and storage showed the suspected route of the ships which has caused tensions between Iran and the US with both countries reportedly firing warnings at each other.
The U.S. on Thursday announced that it was considering actions it could take in response to Iran's shipment of fuel to crisis-stricken Venezuela. However, an Iranian news agency responded to Washington's threat and said that there would be repercussions if the United States acted "just like pirates".
"If the United States, just like the pirates, intends to create insecurity in international waterways, it would be taking a dangerous risk and that will certainly not go without repercussion," the Nour news agency said early on Saturday.
The news agency also reported that it had received information from its sources that the US Navy has sent four warships and a Boeing P-8 Poseidon from the VP-26 squadron to the Caribbean region. The Iranian ships Clavel, Faxon, Forest, Petunia and Fortune were still travelling through the Mediterranean according to the latest reports and currently remain out of range from the U.S. Navy.
Both Venezuela and Iran are at odds with the US as the latter has imposed heavy sanctions on the sale of oil. Tehran and Caracas are oil-dependent economies and with the US sanctions have seen their revenues plummet.
American-Iranian tensions have escalated ever since Donald Trump pulled out of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) or the Iranian Nuclear Deal. This resulted in skirmishes in the Persian Gulf, attack on Oil tankers and the US almost launching a full-scale attack on Iran.
Venezuela is in the midst of an economic crisis and is desperate to get its hand of supplies such as oil to keep its country running. The Trump administration in a bid to oust socialist President Nicholas Maduro has imposed heavy sanctions which has crippled the Latin American nation.
Even though Caracas has an abundance of oil reserves, it is dependent on Iran for aid. The relationship between the two OPEC members has increased in recent weeks as flights from Tehran brought essential materials to Venezuela in April in order to help it restart the catalytic cracking unit at its 310,000 barrel-per-day Cardon refinery.
The U.S. suspects that Maduro is paying Iran in gold. In April alone, Venezuela sold around nine tons of gold, worth around US$500 million in exchange for Iranian help it received for repairing crumbling refineries.
The Iran-US tensions will reach a flashpoint when the oil tankers get closer to Venezuela. According to experts speaking at EurAsian Times a direct engagement seems unlikely considering the ripple effect it would generate in the Middle East. A diplomatic dialogue should be encouraged but whether Rouhani, Trump and Maduro would talk remains the question.


Uechi Ryu originated in China" It's first name was Pangainoon. Pangainoon means an admixture of strength and softness (half-hard, halfsoft). Pangainoon was taught in Fukin province in China at Southern 'Shaolin Temple'. The Chinese master Shushiwa (1874-1926) used to teach this style. The style was based on the attack and defence methods of Tiger, Dragon and Crane.
Kanbun Uechi, who belongs to Okinawa studied Pangainoon under Shushiwa for 13 years (1897-1910). Master Kanbun uechi has the distinction of being the only foreigner who was permitted to teach Pangainoon in China. Kanbun Uechi was born in 1877 and died in 1948. It was his son Kanei Uechi who changed the name Pangainoon Ryu Karate to Uechi Ryu Karate in respect of his late father. The first students of Kanbun Uechi were his eldest son Kanei Uechi and friend Seiryu Shinjo. Seiryu Shinjo died in 1978 and Kanei Uechi in 1991. When he died Seiryu Shinjo was an 8th Dan Black Belt and Kanei Uechi had 1Oth Dan. Seiryu Shinjo had the highest rank in Uehi Ryu at the time of his death Seiryu Shinjo-sent his eldest son to his friend and Master Kanbun Uechi to study Pangainoon. Seiyu Shinjo studied Pangainoon for 9 years from 1939 to 1948,under Kanbun Uechi. He is recognized as a famous strongman of Uechi Ryu .He opened Kadena Dojo in 1960 and died in 1981.
HANSHI KIYOHIDE SHINJO
The highest ranked living master Kiyohide Shinjo who was born in 1951. Kiyohide Shinjo was awarded the chmpionshipfor 9 consecutive years in Kata and Kumite in all Okinawa Karate Championship and in known by the name "Superman" Kiyohide Shinjo retired from competition after the death of his father because he had to look after the Kadena Dojo. All Okinawa Karate Federation honoured Seiyu Shinjo after his death by awarding him a 9th Dan.Kadena Dojo is now known as Okinawa Uechi Ryu Karate Do Kenyukai. This name was given to the style in memory of Seiyu Shinjo who died in 1981. Ken means fist, Yu is short for Seiyu and Kai means group. Kadena Dojo is famous all over the world as Seiyu Shinjo's Iron fist group.
Kyoshi Narahira Shinjo, the youngest brother of Hanshi Kiyohide Shinjo was born in 1960.He is a famous Uechi Ryu stylist. Hanshi Kiyohide Shinjo,s son Shuichi Shinjo is also famous karate Practitioner.
It was in 1995 that KYOSHI K.V.MANOHARAN BLACK BELT 7TH DAN started associating with Okinawa Uechi Ryu Karate Do Kenyukai Association.Kyoshi Alan Dollar of U.S.A.is the world representative of Uechi Ryu Karate Do Kenyukai Associatin .KYOSHI K.V.MANOHARAN BLACK BELT 7TH DAN was attracted to this style and invited Kyoshi Alan Dollar to visit India. Kyoshi Alan Dollar who arrived on January 22,1997 inaugurated the Indian Head Quarters of Uechi Ryu Karate Do at Koodali in Kannur Dist of Kerala. Many foreigners are visiting this Dojo to study Uechi Ryu Karate Do.Here training is given in Karate and Kobudo,Kyoshi Alan Dollar who went back after training students for 10 days and conducting Black Belt and Kyu grading.wrote many articles on the high standard of Indian students in American Print media.


John O'hurley Net Worth
One of the most well-known and popular television personalities is John O'Hurley. He is an American actor, singer, and author. His career spans over thirty years. From his appearance on the UPN series The Mullets to his hosting of Family Feud, he has made a name for himself in the entertainment industry.
As an actor, he has appeared on various TV shows, including Seinfeld and Loving. He also played Dr. James Grainger on the soap opera The Young and the Restless, and provided the voice for Victor in Wallykazam!. In addition to acting, O'Hurley has also enjoyed a long career on stage. A member of the Actors' Equity Association, he has been involved in many productions, including a play by the name of "Loving," which premiered in New York City in 2009.
In 2004, O'Hurley married actress Lisa Mesloh. They have a son named William Dylan O'Hurley. Since then, the couple has been celebrating their wedding anniversary on the 15th of August every year. Their son is the grandson of actress Eva LaRue and actor John Callahan, whom they married in 1992 and divorced in 1994.
In 1999, O'Hurley joined the board of directors of the original J. Peterman Company. Later, he invested in the company, and became a partner. At the same time, he has been the host of the televised show To Tell the Truth. He has hosted the Purina National Dog Show for several years, and has also been a guest on a number of other TV shows.
He is a supporter of the Epilepsy Foundation, a cause that he has dedicated a good portion of his life to. He received the Ellis Island Medal of Honor in 2011 for his humanitarian work.
The 64-year-old actor is from Kittery, Maine. He graduated from Natick High School and later attended Providence College, where he earned a bachelor's degree in theater. Today, he has a net worth of about $12 million. He has also made a lot of money from his business ventures.
While his most notable appearances have been on television, he has also acted on the stage. He has appeared in Spamalot, a musical comedy based on the story of King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table. In June 2013, he returned to the Broadway stage for a reprise of his role as King Arthur.
Despite his celebrity, he is still very down-to-earth, and he has made a conscious effort to keep his opinions out of the media. He has been a vocal advocate for epilepsy awareness, and has participated in a number of charity events over the years. For example, he has been a volunteer for the Celebrity Fight Night Foundation and the Epilepsy Foundation.
Besides his career as an actor, he has made a lot of money from his business deals and investments. He is a principal partner of Round One Investments in Los Angeles, and is also a shareholder of the Alaskan airline Era Aviation.
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686 Phil. 1089
[ G.R. No. 190610, April 25, 2012 ]
PEOPLE OF THE PHILIPPINES, PLAINTIFF AND APPELLEE, VS. SATURNINO DE LA CRUZ AND JOSE BRILLANTES Y LOPEZ, ACCUSED. JOSE BRILLANTES Y LOPEZ, ACCUSED-APPELLANT.
R E S O L U T I O N
PEREZ, J.:
Before the Court is an Appeal[1] filed by accused-appellant Jose Brillantes y Lopez (Brillantes) assailing the Decision[2] of the Court of Appeals (CA) dated 8 July 2009 in CA-G.R. CR No. 30897.
The decision of the Court of Appeals is an affirmance of the Decision of the Regional Trial Court (RTC) of Laoag City, Branch 13 in Criminal Case Nos. 11556, 11557 and 11558 convicting accused Brillantes and Saturnino de la Cruz (De la Cruz) for violation of Sections 5 and 11, Article II of RA 9165 entitled "An Act Instituting the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act Of 2002."[3]
In the Criminal Case No. 11556, De la Cruz y Valdez was charged as follows:
Criminal Case No. 11556
That on or about the 1st day of December 2004, in the city of Laoag, Philippines and within the jurisdiction of this Honorable Court, the above-named accused, did then and there willfully, unlawfully and feloniously, have in his possession, control and custody one (1) plastic sachet containing shabu weighing more or less 0.1 gram including plastic container without prescription or authority to possess the same in violation of the aforecited law.[4]
On the other hand, Jose Brillantes y Lopez was charged in Criminal Case Nos. 11557 and 11558 with illegal sale of shabu and illegal possession of dangerous drug of shabu. The two separate Informations follow:
That on or about the 1st day of December 2004, in the city of Laoag, Philippines and within the jurisdiction of this Honorable Court, the above-named accused, did then and there wilfully, unlawfully and feloniously, sell and deliver to a Public Officer, who acted as poseur buyer 0.1 gram including plastic container of Methamphetamine Hydrochloride, popularly known as "shabu", a dangerous drug, without any license or authority to do so, in violation of the aforecited law.[5]
That on or about the 1st day of December 2004, in the City of Laoag, Philippines and within the jurisdiction of this Honorable Court, the above-named accused, did then and there wilfully, unlawfully and feloniously, have in his possession, control and custody two (2) big plastic sachet containing shabu weighing more or less 2.6 grams including plastic container without being authorized and permitted by law to possess the same in violation of the aforecited law.[6]
When arraigned, both the accused pleaded not guilty of the crimes charged.
The RTC held that the prosecution successfully discharged the burden of proof in the cases of illegal sale and illegal possession of dangerous drugs, in this case methamphetamine hydrochloride otherwise known as "shabu." The trial court relied on the presumption of regularity in the performance of duty of the police officials who conducted the buy-bust operation. The dispositive portion reads:
WHEREFORE, judgment is hereby rendered finding [the] accused Saturnino De la Cruz GUILTY beyond reasonable doubt as charged in Criminal Case No. 11556 for illegal possession of shabu with a weight of 0.0619 gram and is therefore sentenced to serve the indeterminate penalty of imprisonment ranging from TWELVE (12) YEARS AND ONE (1) DAY as minimum to FIFTEEN (15) YEARS as maximum and to pay a fine of P300,000.00.
Accused Jose Brillantes is also found GUILTY beyond reasonable doubt as charged in Criminal Case No.11557 for illegal sale of shabu and is therefore sentenced to suffer the penalty of life imprisonment and to pay a fine of P2,000,000.00. Said accused is likewise found GUILTY beyond reasonable doubt as charged in Criminal Case No. 11558 for illegal possession of shabu with an aggregate weight of 0.2351 gram and is therefore further sentenced to serve the indeterminate penalty of imprisonment ranging from TWELVE (12) YEARS and ONE (1) DAY as minimum to FIFTEEN (15) YEARS as maximum and to pay a fine of P300,000.00.
The contraband subject of these cases are hereby forfeited, the same to be disposed of as the law prescribes. [7]
The appellate court found no reason to depart from the ruling of the trial court. It upheld that all the elements of the offense of illegal sale of drugs were present and the finding against Brillantes well established by the prosecution. Further, it also found that all the elements constituting illegal possession of prohibited or regulated drugs were established beyond reasonable doubt to convict De la Cruz and Brillantes. On all the three charges, great weight was given to the testimonies of the members of the buy-bust team and arresting officers SPO3 Rovimanuel Balolong and PO2 Celso Pang-ag, who also acted as the poseur-buyer.
On 29 July 2009, a Notice of Appeal[8] was filed by Brillantes through counsel before the Supreme Court. His co-accused De la Cruz, did not appeal his conviction.
While this case is pending appeal, Prisons and Security Division Officer-in-Charge Romeo F. Fajardo[9] informed the Court that accused-appellant Brillantes died while committed at the Bureau of Corrections on 3 January 2012 as evidenced by a copy of death report[10] signed by New Bilibid Prison Hospital's Medical Officer Benevito A. Fontanilla, III.
Hence, we resolve the effect of death pending appeal of his conviction of accused-appellant Brillantes with regard to his criminal and pecuniary liabilities.
The Revised Penal Code is instructive on the matter. It provides in Article 89(1) that:
Criminal liability is totally extinguished:
1. By the death of the convict, as to the personal penalties; and as to pecuniary penalties, liability therefor is extinguished only when the death of the offender occurs before final judgment.
It is plain that both the personal penalty of imprisonment and pecuniary penalty of fine of Brillantes were extinguished upon his death pending appeal of his conviction by the lower courts.
We recite the rules laid down in People v. Bayotas,[11] to wit:
1. Death of the accused pending appeal of his conviction extinguishes his criminal liability as well as the civil liability based solely thereon. As opined by Justice Regalado, in this regard, "the death of the accused prior to final judgment terminates his criminal liability and only the civil liability directly arising from and based solely on the offense committed, i.e., civil liability ex delicto in senso strictiore."
2. Corollarily, the claim for civil liability survives notwithstanding the death of accused, if the same may also be predicated on a source of obligation other than delict. Article 1157 of the Civil Code enumerates these other sources of obligation from which the civil liability may arise as a result of the same act or omission:
a) Law
b) Contracts
c) Quasi-contracts
d) . . .
e) Quasi-delicts
There is no civil liability involved in violations of the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002.[12] No private offended party is involved as there is in fact no reference to civil liability in the decision of the trial court.
The appeal of Brillantes culminating in the extinguishment of his criminal liability does not have any effect on his co- accused De la Cruz who did not file a notice of appeal. The Rules on Criminal Procedure on the matter states:
RULE 122 - Appeal
Section 11. Effect of appeal by any of several accused. —
(a) An appeal taken by one or more of several accused shall not affect those who did not appeal, except insofar as the judgment of the appellate court is favorable and applicable to the latter; (emphasis ours)
The extinguishment of Brillantes' criminal and pecuniary liabilities is predicated on his death and not on his acquittal. Following the provision, the appeal taken by Brillantes and subsequent extinguishment of his liabilities is not applicable to De la Cruz.
WHEREFORE, in view of his death on 3 January 2012, the appeal of accused-appellant Jose Brillantes y Lopez from the Decision of the Court of Appeals dated 8 July 2009 in CA-G.R. CR No. 30897 affirming the Decision of the Regional Trial Court of Laoag City, Branch 13 in Criminal Case Nos. 11557 and 11558 convicting him of violation of Sections 5 and 11, Article II of RA 9165 is hereby declared MOOT and ACADEMIC, his criminal and pecuniary liabilities having been extinguished. No cost.
Carpio, (Chairperson), Brion, Sereno, and Reyes, JJ., concur.
[1] Rollo pp. 40-41.
[2] Id. at 2-39. Penned by Associate Justice Jose L. Sabio, Jr. with Associate Justices Vicente S.E. Veloso and Ricardo R. Rosario, concurring.
[3] Promulgated on June 7, 2002.
[4] Rollo, p. 3.
[5] Id. at 3-4.
[6] Id. at 4.
[7] CA rollo, p. 250.
[8] Rollo, p. 40-41.
[9] Through a Letter dated 3 January 2012 of OIC Romeo F. Fajardo to the Clerk of Court, Second Division of the Supreme Court, id. at 88.
[10] Id. at 89.
[11] G.R. No. 102007, 2 September 1994, 236 SCRA 239, 255-256.
[12] R.A. 9165.
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Hurricane Dorian likely whipped up a 100-foot rogue wave near Newfoundland
A 100-foot wave is taller than an eight-floor office building and there's a chance even larger waves were created
Matthew Cappucci, The Washington Post
While Dorian was pulling away from the United States Saturday night, parts of the Canadian Maritimes were getting battered with 100 mph wind gusts. But Dorian's most terrifying feat in Canada may not have struck on land. Dorian whipped up a hundred-foot rogue wave.
A buoy owned and operated by the Marine Institute at Memorial University of Newfoundland recorded the monster wave Saturday night, while winds gusting above 60 mph struck the area. Three other waves topped 75 feet.
A 100-foot wave is taller than an eight-floor office building.
There could have been even higher waves
Readings like this are virtually unheard of, for obvious reasons. But Bill Carter, director for the Centre of Applied Ocean Technology at the Marine Institute, confirms the buoy was calibrated and operating correctly.
"I make sure the equipment's working, which it was," said Carter. He explained that the hundred-foot figure indeed measures an individual wave crest to trough.
"Only ten minutes of the data from every hour is sent back to shore," said Carter, citing costs for telemetering the data wirelessly to land. "There could have been even higher waves during the other fifty minutes. We'll only know when we get the data off the buoy."
Winds at the time were rough, but not terribly ferocious. They were clocked as high as 66.2 mph, although there's a more than 80 per cent chance they gusted higher, since we only "see" ten minutes' worth of data from every hour.
The rogue wave occurred within the storm's dry slot, meaning it wasn't even raining. But a developing sting jet upwind likely added to the force of the winds to the west, agitating the sea state in the vicinity even more.
The buoy, moored two miles offshore, sits in about 160 feet of water normally. That's not very deep, especially for a shallow-water wave to reach 100 feet. However, theoretical maximum height to depth ratios have been demonstrably proven in the past to range between 0.55 and 0.8, meaning that an 88 to 125 foot wave is possible. The upper bounds were extremely difficult to simulate under laboratory circumstances, but it indicates a hundred-foot wave is certainly not out of the realm of possibilities.
Seems like a peculiar location, with very steep slope of the seafloor. Looking at the timing, this very large Hmax value (as "real" as Hmax measurements get…), is possibly caused by the interaction of 2+ wave fronts, and not an "open ocean + deepwater" wave. pic.twitter.com/y0MqS6mKjH
— Rémi C2W (@remi_wnd) September 9, 2019
Brian Walsh is a meteorologist at PAL Aerospace in St. John's. He's confident the hundred-foot reading is legitimate.
"The fact that there were other reports of 26+ metre (85 foot) maximum wave heights leads me to believe it could be possible," wrote Walsh.
One additional figure we can turn to is the significant wave height. It's the average of the tallest one third of all the waves. The National Weather Service Ocean Prediction Centre did analyze a small area of 50-foot significant wave heights Saturday night. Individual waves may be twice the significant wave height. Albeit an extremely low-probability event, these top-tier hundred footers wouldn't be impossible under that scenario.
A number of other stations nearby also reported significant wave heights of 50 feet or more.
However, there are upper bounds as to how open water waves can grow in different environments. Given how relatively close this measurement was recorded to shore, odds are that this wave may have been helped along by two processes: bathymetry and interference.
Bathymetry describes the slope, topography, and elevation of the sea floor/continental shelf. That can have a role in forcing waves to ride upwards, causing waves to diffract, or otherwise affecting the propagation of waves.
"The Cabot Straits bathymetry is varied, with the Laurentian Channel creating a deep trench through its centre," explained Walsh, "and comparatively shallow coastal waters closer to Newfoundland and Cape Breton Island." While these conditions are impossible to validate, Walsh says that these conditions have been known to foster the development of these rare rogue waves before.
The way things are looking I'm not surprised. It hasn't even fully hit yet and it's already pretty wild here
— Matt Cooper (@mcooper_AtmSci) September 7, 2019
Interference could play a role as well. That means that several ordinary waves may have combined constructively, their amplitudes piggybacking to form one mammoth wave. Research has shown that waves intercepting one another at an angle can have this effect, with the "sweet spot" of a 120 degree intersection achieving the tallest waves.
Rogue waves have been the subject of folklore and fascination for years. It has long been rumoured that a mythical – albeit possible – string of three rogue waves dubbed the "three sisters" abruptly swallowed the SS Edmund Fitzgerald during a storm on Lake Superior on November 10, 1975. All twenty-nine crew aboard perished, the ship vanishing at first without a trace. The cause of the disaster is still not known.
Rogue waves largely remained an old sailors' tale until 1995, when what was before legend suddenly was proven a scientific reality. An oil rig in the North Sea off the coast of Norway was suddenly broadsided by an 84 foot wave on New Year's Day, 1995. It was dubbed the "Draupner Wave," since it slammed the Draupner E drilling platform owned by Statoil.
What happened Saturday night off of Newfoundland? We may never know for sure. But one thing is certain.
We're going to need a bigger boat.
Firings threatened after weather agency corrected Trump for saying Dorian would hit Alabama: sources
Using dogs and spray paint, Bahamas crews continue the grim search for Dorian's dead
Power utilities, troops begin massive post-Dorian cleanup in Maritimes
Former Ontario PC legislator Amanda Simard joins Liberals after leaving over francophone cuts


The City Of London's Property Litigation Experts
Specialised Knowledge Of All Aspects Of property Litigation
Rent Review: When is time of the essence?
Rent Review: Legal effect of a rent review memorandum
Break Notices: tenant refund where break date is between two rental periods
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Forfeiture: Relief from forfeiture after 14 month delay
Professional negligence claims: What pre-actions steps are necessary?
Adverse possession and boundary/neighbour disputes: proving adverse possession
Easements: The importance of signage to prevent prescriptive easements
Ownership of land disputes: Replies to enquiries: consequence of providing false information
To Discuss Your Case With The City Of London's Property Litigation Experts, Call Us Now. 0207 406 1457.
Adverse possession and boundary disputes
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Where a lease specifies a date for compliance with an obligation such as the date for service of a break notice or for triggering a rent review, it is important to understand what happens if the date is missed.
Where a lease expressly states that time is of the essence (or it can be implied) failure to exercise the right in time will mean that the right is lost.
For rent review clauses, there is a general presumption that time is not of the essence, unless there are sufficient contra-indications as a result of:
• any of the express words of the lease;
• the surrounding circumstances;
• the relationship between the rent review clause and the other clauses in the lease.
In practice, this will mean that where a date for triggering a rent review has been missed, it is not necessarily the case that the right to review has been lost. Analysis of the lease will be required to consider whether time was intended to be of the essence or not.
By contrast to rent reviews, time is always of the essence in relation to break notices, meaning that a failure to comply strictly with time limits set out in the break clause can (and often does) prove to be fatal.
Leases often require that, once a rent review has been agreed, the new rent be recorded in a rent review memorandum. What legal effect, if any, the memorandum will have generally depends on how the rent review clause has been drafted.
For example, some leases may specify that the rent review will only be complete once a memorandum has been signed off, meaning that the memorandum is more than simply a record and instead amounts to the formal document by which the review is agreed. Some leases, though, will only require that a memorandum be completed once the rent has been agreed.
In this latter type of case, the existence of the memorandum will not be the defining factor as to whether the review has been agreed or not. While obviously being able to produce the rent review memorandum is helpful, the more pertinent question is whether the parties came to an agreement or not and that is a question which requires a forensic examination of what was said/written between the landlord and tenant or, more commonly, their respective rent review surveyors.
Break Notices: tenant refund where break date is between two rental periods?
Most leases of business premises have security of tenure, meaning that the tenant does not necessarily have to leave at lease expiry, unless one of a number of grounds are made out.
The grounds are set out in section 30(1) of the Landlord and Tennact Act 1954 and, in brief terms, are as follows:
• The premises are in disrepair (Ground (a))
• There are arrears of rent (Ground (b))
• There are other breaches of covenant (Ground (c))
• There is suitable alternative accommodation (Ground (d))
• The tenancy was created by a sub-letting (Ground (e))
• The landlord has an intention to redevelop (Ground (f))
• The landlord has an intention to occupy (Ground (g))
A significant body of case law has evolved since 1954 governing how these grounds of opposition work in practice. Generally, grounds (f) and (g) tend to be the ones most commonly relied upon.
If a landlord wishes to rely on one of the grounds of opposition, it will need to prove its ground(s) of opposition at a court hearing, unless agreement can be reached between landlord and tenant as to the tenant's exit terms.
In Pineport Ltd v Grangeglen Ltd [2016] EWHC 1318 (Ch), the court was prepared to grant relief from forfeiture despite a 14 month delay by the tenant in seeking relief.
The court had to consider whether it could be said that the application was made with "reasonable promptitude" taking a six-month period as a guide.
The company claimed that the delay arose from a combination of factors including a restraint order, lack of money and the absence of specialist advice, and the fact that the director was suffering from depression. That evidence, combined with the effects of the company director's depression were weighty factors to be put in the balance. The court confirmed that the discretion to grant relief was broad, and reasonable promptitude was an elastic concept capable of taking into account human factors. Although 14 months was more than double the guide period, it was held that it would be wrong to bar the company from obtaining relief.
When considering a claim against a professional, perhaps a firm of solicitors or surveyors, potential claimants are required to follow the Professional Negligence Pre-action Protocol before issuing their claim.
In practice, this means that as soon as it is known that there is a reasonable chance of a claim against the professional being pursued, a "preliminary notice" must be served, giving general details of the claim, including the grievance, the parties involved and the financial value. The professional should acknowledge receipt within 21 days but need do nothing else.
If a claimant decides that there are formal grounds for a claim, a Letter of Claim should be sent. This should include:
• The identity of any other parties involved
• A clear chronological summary, including key dates and key documents
• Any reasonable requests which the claimant needs to make for documents
• The allegations against the professional
• An explanation of how the alleged error has caused the loss claimed
• An estimate of the financial loss
• Confirmation of whether or not an expert has been appointed
• A request that a copy of the Letter of Claim be forwarded immediately to the professional's insurers, if any.
The professional should acknowledge receipt within 21 days and send a formal Response to the Letter of Claim (or a Letter of Settlement or both) within three months of the acknowledgment (or, where necessary, seek an extension of time).
As to the Response:
• If the claim is admitted, the professional should say so
• If only part of the claim is admitted the professional should make clear which parts are admitted and which are denied.
• If the claim is denied, the professional should provide his version of events.
• If the professional is unable to admit or deny the claim, the professional should explain why and identify and further information which is required.
• If the financial loss is disputed, it should set out the professional's estimate.
• To the extent not already exchanged, key documents should be enclosed.
If the professional send a Letter of Settlement, it should:
• Set out the professional's views on the claim identifying those issues which the professional believes are likely to remain in dispute and those which are not.
• Make a settlement proposal or identify any further information which is required before the professional can formulate its proposal.
• Where additional documents are replied upon, copies should be provided.
If the Letter of Response denies the claim in its entirety and there is no Letter of Settlement, it is open to the claimant to commence court proceedings. Otherwise, negotiations should commence with the aim of resolving the claim within 6 months of the date of the Letter of Acknowledgment.
There is scope for extending this time limit, but in the absence of agreement, it will then be open to the claimant to commence court proceedings.
Adverse possession relates to the means by which a person, who is not, on paper, the legal owner of land, can nonetheless become the legal owner by virtue of possessing the land for a lengthy period of time.
Two key factors are involved in claiming adverse possession:
• uninterrupted factual possession of the land for the requisite period; and
• an intention to possess the land during that period of possession
The factual possession element means that the claimant must have had physical control of the land for the requisite period and, in general terms, acted as if they were the owner. Equally, there must be an intention to possess by the claimant to the exclusion of all others.
A significant body of case law has developed over the years as to what is meant by factual possession and the intention to possess.
Different rules apply to adverse possession depending on whether the land is registered or unregistered and the period of time over which adverse possession is claimed.
The Land Registration Act 2002 (LRA 2002) came into force on 13 October 2003 and introduced a new regime for dealing with adverse possession in relation to registered estates.
The previous regime, which is based on the Limitation Act 1980 (LA 1980), continues to apply but only in relation to:
• Unregistered land
• Registered land where the possession relied upon is for a period of at least 12 years ending before 13 October 2003
Under the new regime, a claimant will be entitled to apply to be registered as the owner of registered land if they can prove that they have been in adverse possession for ten years ending on the date of the application. However, in addition, a claimant must give notice to the paper owner of their wish to be registered and the paper owner may object based on a number of specific grounds.
An easement can arise by prescription (i.e. long use) if a trespasser shows 20 years' use "as of right": without force, without secrecy and without permission.
The Court of Appeal (following an earlier High Court decision) has considered the application of this in the case of Winterburn v Bennett [2016] EWCA Civ 482. It involved a local fish and chip shop's customers and suppliers using the next door Conserative Club car park for parking, despite the existence of a clearly visible sign saying "Private car park. For the use of Club patrons only. By order of the Committee." Following the obstruction of the parking area by the tenant of a new owner of the premises, the fish and chip shop owner claimed to have acquired a right to parking by prescription.
The question was whether the right was used "without force", despite the presence of the signage: there was no doubt that the parking on the disputed land was open and known and that no permission for parking had been given.
The phrase "without force" means more than simply its literal meaning. The person asserting the right could not merely show that he had not used violence. Instead, they must show that their user was not contentious or allowed only under protest.
Here, where a land owner had made its position on someone else's use of the land obvious through clearly visible signs, the unauthorised use could not be said to be "as of right". The signs were by themselves sufficient to make contentious the parking of cars and other vehicles by the shop and its suppliers and customers. Helpfully, the court recognsied that there was no requirement on the land owner to elevate his protest, by writing letters or issuing court proceedings, recognising the social and financial cost in doing so.
The case of Greenridge Luton One Ltd & Anor v Kempton Investments Ltd [2016] EWHC 91 (Ch) (22 January 2016) gives a stark example of the consequences of providing false information in replies to enquiries.
In relation to a sale of office buildings near Luton Airport, the seller (with the help of his solicitor) had indicated in replies to pre-contract enquiries that no disputes existed and that there were no service charge arrears.
In fact, by the time of sale, the solicitor had for some time been involved in extensive correspondence with one of the tenants, who disputed the level of service charges and had begun to withold payments of the quarterly servce charge demand as a result. The pre-contract enquiries had not been updated to reflect this.
The sale went ahead and the buyer only later found out about the service charge dispute.
The court held that:
• Untrue representations had been made
• The buyer had relied on those representations and that they were induced to enter into the contract as a result of the misrepresentations
• Because the untrue representation that there were no arrears of service charge resulted from fraud or recklessness, the buyer was entitled under the contract to have its deposit returned.
• The buyer was entitled to damages of £395,948 in respect of costs incurred in relation to its prospective purchase of the property, which had been wasted following the rescission of the contract.
We advise and can make court applications in relation to the Access to Neighbouring Land Act 1992.
Access to a neighbour's property can usually be dealt with amicably. However, where neighbours have fallen out, it may be necessary to seek a court order if a party needs access to a neighbour's land.
Plainly, access is not granted "as of right". We advise on whether your proposal to access your neighbour's land comes within the criteria set out by the legislation. Equally, we can act for a party opposing such an application.
Adverse possession and boundary disputes often sit hand in hand.
They arise most commonly in residential, but also sometimes in commercial, contexts.
Our role is to arm clients with a realistic assessment of the issues and likelihood of success as early as possible.
Key to understanding the merits of an adverse possession claim is not only the period of possession, but also whether the person claiming possession has control over the land in question and the subjectively demonstrate possession of the land to the outside world. The Land Registration Act 2002 brought in sweeping changes to the law. We guide clients through this minefield of legislation and case law.
Our work for a typical boundary dispute might involve: detailed interpretation of the conveyances and other relevant deeds and plans; application of pertinent legal presumptions depending on the circumstances; comparison of the written description of the boundary, its marking on any plans and its presumed location on the ground. Site visits are generally essential.
These disputes are rarely straightforward. We provide clients with as much clarity and certainty as possible, often with the assistance of expert surveyors.
We also assist, wherever possible, in resolving boundary disputes without litigation. Mediations are usually worthwhile, so long as both sides have the combined 'will' to resolve their differences.
We are one of the few practices with capability to advise on agricultural law.
Our expertise is commonly sought as to the means by which the landlord and tenant relationship between landowner and farmer is affected by agricultural legislation.
Two statutory regimes are of particular relevance, namely the law relating to agricultural holdings under the Agricultural Holdings Act 1986 and that relating to farm business tenancies under the Agricultural Tenancies Act 1995.
Both landowners and tenant farmers face common issues arising from these statutory regimes, such as the means by which an agricultural holding or farm business tenancy may be terminated and on what grounds (where grounds for termination are required), together with the rights of farmers to compensation in some circumstances.
Consideration of agricultural queries inevitably also brings into play common law principles relevant to landlord and tenant law, to the extent that this has not been changed by the statutory regimes.
We are able to assist clients in relation to disputes involving alterations to their property. Usually, this will be in the context of a landlord and tenant relationship, where consent to alterations may be necessary or where alterations are allowed but only upon certain conditions being fulfilled.
When leases are to be terminated by notice, we are often asked to assist: landlords wish to retain their tenants at all cost and tenants are desperate to leave loss making premises. We guide tenants in exercising break rights successfully and landlords in challenging a tenant's wish to leave.
Tenants are sometimes unaware of the strict legal hurdles to be complied with, both when serving the break notice itself, and in complying with the often stringent conditions for successful exercise of the break at the termination date.
Some conditions (particularly relating to leaving the premises reinstated and in repair) require detailed consideration. Even relatively minor breaches of the lease can cause an attempted break to fail.
We draft break notices and guide tenants through the break clause minefield. The implications of getting it wrong are stark for tenants: they may be saddled with unexpected rental obligations for the remainder of the term.
For landlords, our role is reversed: we advise on whether tenant's efforts to break have been successful. Where there is uncertainty, our role will also extend to negotiating settlements as to the terms on which a lease will end.
For both landlords and tenants, we are also experienced in seeking court declarations as to whether a break has successfully been implemented.
The remedy of distress for arrears of rent was replaced by the Commercial Rent Arrears Recovery ("CRAR") regime in April 2014. It is a self-help remedy for landlords to pursue arrears against tenants based upon the procedure and rules set out in the legislation. We can advise landlords who are contemplating taking such action or tenants who are the subject of a CRAR procedure against them.
We advise a range of clients on all manner of contractual disputes, whether the contract is set out in a written document or (as is often the case) agreed verbally and informally.
When a tenant wishes to extricate itself from its lease obligations, but has no right to terminate altogether, it may consider assigning or subletting to a third party, in order to limit liability so far as possible.
Usually, when a third party is found, a landlord's consent to the proposed arrangement will be required. Landlords are often able to impose conditions on any consent. Landlords need to consider the ability of the proposed party to meet rental and other obligations under the lease.
Often landlords need to act reasonably and swiftly in considering the tenant's application, failing which it may face an accusation that consent has been unreasonably withheld or delayed.
Landlord's duties imposed under the Landlord and Tenant Act 1988 are key. We help clients (both landlords and tenants) in analysing their respective rights and duties arising from the alienation clauses and under statute.
Occasionally, a tenant argues that a landlord has unreasonably refused or failed to respond to applications in time. This may lead to a claim for a declaration and damages. We are able to guide our clients in bringing and defending these actions.
Similar considerations apply to consent by tenants for alterations.
We have capacity to deal with construction disputes on behalf of our clients, whether relating to commercial or residential property.
We are able to advise our clients in relation to damages claims. Claims may arise in many different circumstances but inevitably it will be necessary to assess the methodology by which damages should be calculated and whether, when acting for a claimant, the amount claimed can realistically be recovered or, when acting for a defendant, whether the claimed damages can be reduced or extinguished altogether. In property related cases, we may well engage experts: we regularly work with property valuers, surveyors and other professionals who assist in providing expert evidence on behalf of our clients.
We pursue or defend debt claims for our clients. Part of our remit will usually be to assess the best and most cost effective means of recovering the debt, taking account of speed and likelihood of recovery. This may sometimes involve the service of a statutory demand or winding up petition.
Under section 4 of the Defective Premises Act 1972, a duty is owed where a landlord either has an express obligation to repair or maintain the premises or has no such direct obligation, but has an express or implied right to enter the premises to carry out any description of maintenance or repair.
Where the duty applies, the landlord owes a duty to all persons who might reasonably be expected to be affected by defects in the state of the premises to take reasonable care to ensure that they are safe from personal injury, or damage to their property caused by a 'relevant defect'.
We are able to assist landlords and tenants in resolving disputes relating to this legislation.
The principle of derogation from grant usually relates to a situation where a landlord grants a certain right to a tenant, but then substantially interferes with the ability to exercise that right to be exercised. Often disputes of this nature will overlap with arguments relating to the obligation to give quiet enjoyment. We help both landlords and tenants in disputes of this nature.
Development agreements can quite often become contentious between owner and developer. Generally, such agreements are dependent on obtaining satisfactory planning permission, which can often become contentious. Equally, overage arising from development agreements can sometimes become an issue. We are in a position to advise both owners and developers alike in resolving or litigating disputes of this nature.
We have extensive experience in dealing with dilapidations claims acting for both landlords and tenants alike. We work closely with building surveyors and valuers, who are an essential part of the team in pursuing or defending the dilapidations claim. As a matter of course, an early assessment is made as to whether section 18(1) of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1927 will have any significant impact on the claim. This legislation tends to be relevant where a landlord with a dilapidations claim intends to carry out development or demolition works, which may lead to a reduction in the level of damages that may be recovered.
Easements refer to the rights attached to land which allow the owner either to use another piece of land (or restrict its use) in a particular way.
Common examples include rights of way, the right to light and rights of support.
Disputes involving the nature and extent of particular rights may arise. For example, whether the right of way in a particular deed was intended for use on foot only or extends to vehicular or some other wider use.
Where residential extensions or commercial developments affect the level of light into a neighbouring property, we are equipped to advise either side on their respective rights.
We guide clients on all areas of the law relating to easements. We pursue (or defend) damages claims or injunctions, where necessary.
We are able to assist clients in relation to both collective and individual enfranchisement matters, including lease extensions. The relevant legislation is contained within the Leasehold Reform Act 1967 and Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993.
Proprietary estoppel is a means by which property rights can be affected or created, so as to make the assertion of strict property rights unconscionable. The estoppel gives rise to an equity in favour of the person who is entitled to assert the estoppel. In brief, the claimant must have acted in the belief either that it already owned, or would obtain, a sufficient interest in the defendant's property to justify the detriment which the claimant has incurred. The assurance or promise must be one which the claimant believed the defendant was obliged to honour.
Our practice extends to residential leasehold disputes heard before the First-tier Tribunal (Property Chamber - Residential Property) which has jurisdiction in relation to:
•	service or administration charges
•	the cost of building insurance
•	appointment of a manager
•	Right to Manage
•	breach of a lease
•	varying a lease
•	recognising a tenants' association
•	buying the freehold
•	extending the lease
Applications before the tribunal have different rules compared to mainstream county/high court proceedings, particularly in relation to costs recovery and so specialist advice in this area is paramount.
Forfeiture can be a powerful weapon for landlords to adopt against a defaulting tenant. It involves bringing a lease to an end early, whether for rent arrears or other breaches of the tenant's covenants.
However, any landlord contemplating forfeiture should tread carefully: getting the procedure wrong or seeking to forfeit when the right does not exist, or has been waived, may lead to a damages claim by the tenant.
We advise both sides on procedures and tactics relevant to forfeiture. We draft relevant notices when required as a precursor to forfeiture. We assist (and will attend on the day) if a landlord considers changing the locks.
In appropriate cases, we also give guidance on the the applicability of the Leasehold Property (Repairs) Act 1938 to the forfeiture process.
Finally, tenants may seek relief from forfeiture. We advise landlords and tenants upon the merits of relief from forfeiture applications.
The concept of frustration relates to the inability of a contract to be performed further as a result of some changed circumstance, such as destruction of the property or, perhaps, a change in legislation rendering further performance of the contract illegal. Frustration issues sometimes arise in relation to leases of property, particularly where a property has suffered significant damage or been completely destroyed.
Inherent defect arguments tend to arise in a landlord and tenant context. Depending on the scenario, either a landlord or tenant may argue that a particular item suffers from an inherent defect and so does not, strictly speaking, form part of their repairing obligation.
A covenant to repair does not carry with it an obligation to remedy poor design, faulty installation or any other defect that has not caused damage to the property. Where there is no disrepair, remedying such a defect would be an improvement rather than a repair.
The relevance of an inherent defect argument will therefore depend very much on the wording of the lease.
Interim rent is an issue that may arise in business lease renewal proceedings. In broad terms, it relates to the rent payable between the coming to an end of the old lease and the start of the new lease.
Often, the interim rent will be the same as the rent payable at the commencement of the new tenancy but this is not always the case and is sometimes the subject of dispute between landlord and tenant.
Most leases will contain what is known as a Jervis v Harris clause. It allows a landlord, during the term of a lease, to enter the premises to carry out repairs and recover the cost of doing so from the tenant as a debt, in circumstances where the tenant has failed to comply with a notice to repair served by the landlord.
Pursuing a debt (as opposed to a damages claim) can be a useful weapon for a landlord, as damages claims for disrepair during the term are generally difficult to pursue.
Equally, it can be a risky approach, with potential arguments as to whether the works carried out by the landlord were actually necessary or properly fell within the repairing covenant.
Our practice regularly deals with all manner of landlord and tenant disputes, whether for business or residential clients.
We act for both landlords and tenants on either side of the argument.
Lease renewals of business leases can often be resolved amicably but this is not always the case.
Firstly, where a landlord accepts that the tenant is entitled to a new lease, there may be disagreement as to the lease terms, particularly as to duration and rent.
Secondly, a landlord may dispute a tenant's entitlement to a new lease altogether, based on one of the statutory grounds, such as redevelopment.
We work with both landlords and tenants in relation to unopposed and opposed lease renewal proceedings, litigating where necessary but also assisting in speedy resolution without a trial, if at all possible.
It is not uncommon for informal arrangements to be agreed whereby a party is permitted to occupy premises, whether for their business or home.
Informal arrangements can later become problematic, particularly where the owner wishes to regain possession. One of the first questions to arise in these cases is the legal basis for occupation. Does the occupier have any rights as a tenant or is the position more akin to a licence or tenancy at will?
The answer to such questions can be critically important in deciding whether an occupier must vacate or has some statutory rights, perhaps as a business tenant, to remain in occupation and possession.
Misrepresentation claims tend to arise in relation to sales of property, where allegations are made to the effect that a false statement was given prior to exchange which induced the buyer to entering into the contract.
The courts recognise different types of misrepresentation (fraudulent, negligent and innocent) with different consequences and remedies, depending upon which one applies.
Neighbours can fall out for a variety of reasons, whether it relates to disagreement over who owns disputed land or as to the actions that one party has taken that in some way affect their neighbour. Generally, the courts strongly encourage alternative dispute resolution, rather than litigation, in such circumstances.
We are able to advise on the best way of reaching a quick and speedy resolution with your neighbour, whatever the scenario.
Private nuisance claims can arise in a variety of ways, whether as a result of noise or smells travelling from a neighbour's property or, perhaps, dust and fumes caused by building works. Not all infringements of this nature will form the basis of a nuisance claim. However we can guide you in assessing whether such a claim has merit or in defending a claim brought against you.
Under the Occupiers' Liability Act 1957, occupiers owe a duty of care to take such care as is reasonable in all the circumstances of the case to all their visitors in respect of dangers due to the state of the premises or to things done or omitted to be done on them. Case law has set out that the harm which occurred must be a reasonably foreseeable result of the defendant's conduct; a sufficient relationship of proximity or neighbourhood must exist between the alleged wrongdoer and the person who has suffered damage; and it must be fair, just and reasonable to impose liability.
If you have a potential occupiers' liability issue, we can assist in its resolution.
The Party Wall Act 1996 sets out a process whereby a building owner intending to carry out party wall works is required to serve a notice on any adjoining land owner specifying the works intended to be carried out as well as the proposed start date of such works.
The process then allows for the adjoining land owner either to serve a positive acknowledgement of the notice, a negative acknowledgement (objecting to the proposed works), or to do nothing. In the latter two scenarios, the next stage of the process is for the dispute resolution mechanism to kick in, whereby surveyors are appointed to survey the proposed works, consider any objections, and to make a PWA 1996 award.
There are numerous circumstances in which a landlord may seek possession of premises from a tenant, in both a residential and commercial scenario.
In the residential context, it will always be necessary to assess the basis upon which a tenant is occupying, as tenants' rights can differ substantially, depending on the legislation that is applicable.
We can advise both landlords and tenants in relation to possession claims.
One of the occupational hazards of professional life is that, however unintentional, mistakes are sometimes made which have serious financial repercussions.
This commonly might involve negligent advice from solicitors in a property transaction or surveyors involved in, say, valuations or at rent review. Our role is to review what has gone wrong, assess the extent to which blame can be attributed to the professional and the damages to which a client may be entitled, often with the assistance of expert witnesses.
We are also available, with sensitivity, to assist professionals and their insurers in responding to and, if appropriate, defending them against property-related complaints from their clients.
Claims must first follow the pre-action protocol relating to professional negligence. If settlement discussions fail, we then pursue or defend professional negligence claims on behalf of our clients.
A covenant for quiet enjoyment will either be expressly referred to in a lease or will, in any event, be implied.
Rectification is an equitable remedy involving the amendment of a document to accord with the intention of the parties.
Parties to a contract may have had a common intention or understanding when they drew up their contract as to what it meant but that meaning has not been reflected in the drafting.
There are detailed rules whereby contracts may be rectified based on common or unilateral mistake on which we regularly advise our clients.
We have in depth experience in advising landlords and tenants alike in disputed rent arrears cases, taking cases to trial and/or negotiating settlements.
For landlords, the mandate is usually clear: seek recovery of the outstanding debt as quickly and cost effectively as the facts permit. Depending on the circumstances, a number of options might arise: service of a statutory demand (the precursor to bankruptcy/winding up) or, possibly, a straightforward court claim where the arrears are disputed. Other landlord and tenant specific options may also be available.
For tenants, the priority is to establish whether or not the arrears are properly due and then, where appropriate, the potential successfully to defend a landlord's claim.
Where appropriate, we investigate the possibility of pursing third parties for the debt (such as guarantors or sub-tenants. Equally, we are sometimes asked to advise third parties as to their liability.
Rent review provisions in leases are of fundamental importance: a landlord's ability to increase rent and a tenant's ability to challenge the level of increase go to the heart of the contract.
Our expertise includes advising on the rent review mechanics: particularly how and when to implement a review and the consequences of failing to adhere to the lease's requirements.
Notwithstanding general principles of contract interpretation, specific rules of interpretation often apply to rent review clauses.
If the review is not agreed, we guide clients when seeking a written award by, or hearing before, an arbitrator or independent expert in conjunction with expert witnesses.
Where necessary, we assist clients in seeking to rectify defective rent review terms or in applying to have certain terms implied as part of a claim for declaratory relief.
Our remit also includes professional negligence claim against solicitors or surveyors: where failings in drafting of the rent review clause or in valuation advice leads clients to suffer loss.
The law relating to restrictive covenants, so far as freehold land is concerned, is complex. It relates to restrictions placed on the use of land for the benefit of someone else's land. Examples might include restrictions on the height of a building or on activities which can be carried out there.
Our clients seek guidance as to their ability to challenge restrictive covenants, whether they are a party who is subject to the restriction or who have the benefit of it.
We analyse, amongst other things, whether the covenant really is restrictive: some covenants, such as requirements to carry out repairs, may be positive rather than negative.
Equally, the full meaning of the covenant is always relevant, together with the question of who precisely has the benefit and burden of the covenant.
The question of enforcement of the restrictive covenant, particularly by (or against) successors in title, is regularly encountered.
In appropriate circumstances, it may then be necessary to apply to the Upper Tribunal (Lands Chamber) to seek the variation, modification or discharge of the covenant in question.
Damages claims may also arise as a result of breaches of restrictive covenants or an injunction may be a possibility.
We advise both sellers and buyers in disputes relating to the sale of property. This may involve situations where a seller refuses to sell or a buyer refuses to complete a property transaction, even though a contract has been exchanged compelling them to do so.
Ordinarily, the first step may be the service of a notice to complete, making time of the essence of the contract. Common issues encountered include the possibility of repudiatory breach of contract by the seller or buyer; the possibility of an application for specific performance of the contract; and claims for damages arising from the breach.
Commercial service charge disputes are based primarily on the terms of the lease itself.
Do the particular works carried out by the landlord fall within the defined list of services? If not, does the service charge fall within the "catch all" provision usually set out in the lease?
Has the tenant's contribution to the proportion of the overall costs been calculated correctly?
To what extent does the landlord need to act reasonably when deciding whether to carry out a particular service and in passing on that cost?
Has the landlord fulfilled its own obligations to carry out services? If not, to what extent might the tenant be entitled to a refund or to damages?
Have the mechanics for recovery of service charges been followed strictly? For example, have service charge accounts (where necessary) been prepared and certified, properly, or at all?
We regularly guide landlords and tenants on these questions and other service charge related disputes.
Landlords are now in certain circumstances obliged to lodge deposits in an approved tenancy deposit scheme. This secures the deposit and, in general terms, provides a procedure for resolving disputes relating to how much, if any, of the deposit may be retained by the landlord at the end of the term for non-payment of rent or for failure to comply with the terms of the tenancy. We assist both landlords and tenants in relation to such cases.
We regularly advise landlord clients on the implications of tenant insolvency.
The first step is always to establish the precise form of insolvency, whether the tenant is an Individual or corporate entity: this will determine the steps that can and, importantly, cannot be taken.
Inevitably, our advice will also extend to the ability to pursue other parties in place of the insolvent tenant: a former tenant, guarantor or, perhaps, a sub-tenant and whether or not a rent deposit is in place and may legitimately be drawn down upon.
A tenant's insolvency will often severely inhibit the landlord's potential remedies as the insolvency legislation recognises that other creditors, not simply the landlord, may be entitled to an appropriate share of what remains of the tenant's assets.
We also act for insolvency practitioners, often in reviewing (and responding to) threatened litigation on behalf of landlords.
The Torts (Interference with Goods) Act 1977 provides a procedure for landlords to deal with a former tenant's goods that have been left at the landlord's property without the landlord's permission. We assist landlords in serving notice on the former tenant, effectively to give fair warning that the goods must be removed or are liable to be sold. Following the correct procedure is important to avoid claims from the tenant later on for wrongful interference.
The court has powers in relation to claims under the Trusts of Land and Appointment of Trustees Act 1996 (TOLATA 1996). This legislation is relevant when relationships break down with the court determining co-habitants rights in relation to property.
Squatters are an unwelcome problem for both commercial and residential owners, often having little regard for the property or possessions within.
Speed of action is usually paramount.
We are experienced in expediting court applications against trespassers, minimising, so far as possible, their period of occupation.
Obviously, if police assistance can be used to move on the squatters, without the need for a court application, so much the better.
Leases will usually contain a covenant compelling a tenant to give vacant possession, which will include leaving the premises empty of both people and chattels. Disputes can arise when this has arguably not occurred. One such instance is in the context of break rights, where a tenant's right to end a lease early is conditional upon giving vacant possession. Accordingly, the outcome of such arguments can be crucial.
Generally, the test for yielding up is whether the tenant has manifested a clear intention to terminate the lease, and the landlord could occupy the property without difficulty or objection. Arguments in relation to yielding up often occur together with issues relating to vacant possession.