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Unlawful eviction overturned within a week of instruction

10th August 2020 By Arman Khosravi

Last month, Oliver Fisher solicitor Martha Mpangile took an unlawful eviction case from instruction to hearing in less than a week. Mpangile got the best result possible, all whilst working remotely.

Details of the unlawful eviction

When Hackney mum Hale Fedai returned to her home after nursing her mother back to health from Covid-19, she discovered that her landlady had changed the locks and thrown away all her belongings.

Ms Fedai reached out to Oliver Fisher for help. Her solicitor Ms Mpangile quickly secured legal aid for the case and made an application for an interim injunction. Within a week a telephone hearing was held with the landlady in attendance.

District Judge Luigi Sterlini granted the application for an injunction and ruled that Mpangile’s client should be readmitted within 24 hours. There was to be no further interference from the landlady. Furthermore, Fedai was eligible to claim special and general damages worth more than £10,000.

Transition to remote working for Oliver Fisher’s housing solicitors

‘Considering that we were working from home and the hearing was virtual, I think it went extremely well’ said Martha Mpangile. ‘We managed to get the best result despite all the odds.’

‘We were able to get Ms Fedai and her daughter readmitted to their home. This is fantastic because typically in unlawful eviction cases the landlord will have already admitted new tenants. Had that happened, the lockdown restrictions would have made it extremely difficult for my client to find alternative accommodation.’

This housing case is one of many that Oliver Fisher Solicitors has successfully undertaken since the introduction of lockdown restrictions. The firm’s housing team has transitioned seamlessly to remote working and continued to support the local community throughout the pandemic.

Supporting the local community through the pandemic

‘We have helped lots of people with homelessness cases during the lockdown’ continues Ms Mpangile. ‘For people who have received negative homeless decisions from local authorities, we have requested for review and appealed against the local authority decisions on behalf of the clients. We have had excellent results, overturning numerous decisions and helping to keep people in their homes during this difficult time.’

Find out more about how Oliver Fisher Solicitors could support you through an unlawful eviction or housing dispute, click here. You can also read more about the case in this article from the Hackney Gazette.

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