Welcome

Welcome to the latest edition of our HMPL Brief, which has a fresh new look!

It’s hard to believe that it has almost been a year since Lee and I became joint heads of the HMPL team and what a year it has been for those of us operating in the worlds of housing management and property litigation. 2025 saw an unparalleled flurry of legal and regulatory changes resulting in the most significant shake-up of the sector in decades, and which will have an impact for years to come. We are also delighted to welcome two new partners to our ever-expanding team, Aoife Murphy and Mandeep Sahota. They bring with them a raft of skills to further broaden our expertise and management team.

Awaab’s Law is now in force, introducing strict timeframes for social landlords to investigate and remedy damp, mould, and other serious hazards marking a pivotal shift in tenant safety obligations and enforcement risk. The Renters’ Rights Act also received Royal Assent and promises to fundamentally re-shape the private rented sector when the first stage of its implementation takes place in May 2026. With the abolition of Section 21 ‘no fault’ evictions, the move to periodic tenancies, changes to rent increases and enhanced tenant protections, landlords must prepare for a new compliance landscape.

Data protection also remains a critical issue and our sector-focused Data Protection and Information Law team are at hand to help navigate the complexities of the Data (Use and Access) Act and Social Tenant Access to Information Requirements (STAIRS).

It is clear that 2026 promises to provide yet more big changes. We are waiting on the results of consultations on provisions of the Leasehold and Freehold Reform Act which are likely to fundamentally re-alter the long-established approach to service charges. In addition, on 27 January the Government released a significant package of leasehold reform measures, including the publication of the long-awaited Draft Commonhold and Leasehold Reform Bill and the open consultation on plans to ban leasehold for new flats. We will be front and centre to follow these changes and guide you through them.

As ever, we are here to help you and your organisations navigate these ever-increasingly complex areas and we bring you this Brief which showcases some of our recent publications on these key issues. It also includes the ever-popular insights into what our expanding team has been up to both in and outside of work and, in particular, we hope you also enjoy our ‘Spotlight On’ section which focuses on Nina in our Birmingham team and her special skills!

Happy reading!

Mark Foxcroft