Jason Evans-Tovey successfully recovered compensation against a local authority
Burge v South Gloucestershire Council [2016] UKUT 300 (LC)
Jason Evans-Tovey, instructed by DAC Beachcroft, successfully recovered compensation against a local authority which refused permission to fell a tree which was causing damage to a building. The local authority sought to resist the claim on grounds that the homeowners had failed to take reasonable steps to avert the damage because the conservatory they had contracted for had inadequate foundations. The defence failed. The Tribunal held: it was not sufficient for the local authority to show that the foundations were inadequate; the local authority had to show that at the time of construction of the conservatory loss and damage was reasonably foreseeable to the homeowners themselves.
