AC-2024-BHM-000217 - [2025] EWHC 2510 (Admin)

The Property is a self-contained hereditament situated within the larger property known as 5 - 8 Portland Towers. The Claimant is the registered freehold owner of the property. On each of 3 January 2023, 6 February 2023, and 15 January 2024, the Claimant was issued with a summons in respect of non-payment of Council Tax for the Property, relating to financial years 2018/2019 and 2020/2021 to 2023/2024.

On 29 May 2024 the Interested Party’s application for a liability order for the 2020/2021 – 2022/2023 financial years was listed for substantive hearing. The Claimant and Interested Party were represented by counsel: Mr Mohammad Tayyab Khan and Ms Evelyn Barden respectively. The Claimant’s letting agent, Mr Anderson was at court. The justices were assisted by a Court Legal Adviser, Mr Altaf Essat, though even his status is not agreed. As will become apparent, each of these participants is a source of evidence as to what did or did not happen at the hearing. All four provided witness statement and all except Mr Essat were called to give evidence in these proceedings.

The Claimant’s substantive case was that she was not the owner of the Property and/or that it was not a dwelling chargeable to Council Tax. The Interested Party’s position was that the Claimant was the owner; the Property was a dwelling chargeable to Council Tax; and that those matters were not, in any event, issues which could be raised on enforcement proceedings such as a liability order.

The Defendant made the liability order sought, and ordered the Claimant to pay the Interested Party’s costs of the proceedings. In making that Order, the Defendant had before it a costs schedule which had been filed and served by the Interested Party in the sum of £22,491.80. The Defendant ordered costs against the Claimant, in favour of the Interested Party, in the sum of £13,500.