Leslie Blohm QC Joint Deputy Head of Chambers
Call 1982 (Lincoln’s Inn) (QC 2006)
Qualifications MA (Oxon), Hardwicke and Jenkins Scholar of Lincolns Inn (1982)
Professional Memberships Member of Chancery Bar Association, PEBA, PBA
Judicial Office Recorder 2003, Deputy High Court Judge (Chancery) 2008
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Areas of Practice
Leslie Blohm QC is a barrister practicing in the area of commercial and chancery litigation with a strong emphasis on property and landlord and tenant law.
Real Property
Leslie has extensive expertise in a wide variety of property issues, acting for a range of clients from private individuals to substantial corporations. He regularly acts in relation to property disputes involving overlaps into other specialist areas of law, such as partnership, insolvency and company law.
Specific areas of expertise
- sale of land
- restrictive covenants
- mortgages
- license
- easements
- commons & village greens
- torts relating to land
Leslie is an expert in town and village greens and appears before Inquiries and sits as an informal inspector advising registration authorities on applications to register land as a village green.
Reported Cases
- Drake v. Fripp [2011] EWCA Civ. 1279 (Effect of the general boundaries rule on registered title to land, and its effect on the ability to rectify a registered title; construction of conveyance by reference to physical features).
- Odey v Barber [2008] Ch 165 (Easement by prescription – effect of unsolicited permission)
- Bakewell Management v Brandwood & Ors. [2004] AC 519 (HL) (Illegality and Rights of Way)
- Cardwell v Walker [2004] 2 P&CR 9 (Transmission of Burden of Positive Obligations)
- Bettison v Penter [2000] Ch 54(CA); [2002] 1 AC 27 (HL)(Assignability of Rights of Common)
- Freund v Charles Scott Development Ltd [2002] 2 P&CR 31 (CA) (Exercise of Options)
- Jones v Welsh Water [1997] 37 RVR 46 (Calculation of Hope Value on Acquisition)
- Jalnarne v Ridewood [1989] 61 P+CR 143 (Excessive use of Easement)
Recent inquiries include:
- Bristol City Council (acting as landowner) in the Castle Park inquiry (2009) relating to the proposed registration of land intended for development in central Bristol and the Filwood Park inquiry (2011) relating to development land in South Bristol
- BANES (as inspector) in three inquiries (Newbridge, Kaynton Mead and Rudmore Park) in 2011
- Croydon Borough Council (as inspector) in Grove Gardens inquiry in 2011.
- Cardiff City Council (as Inspector) in the Rumney Recreation Fields Inquiry (2010)
- Gloucester County Council (acting as Inspector) in the Lake 104 Inquiry, Fairford (2009)
- Mudstone LLP as landowner/developer in the continuing Wishings Field Inquiry, Torquay
- York City Council as landowner and the Joseph Rowntree Foundation as developer in the Derwenthorpe village green inquiry (2008), land proposed for the largest social housing development at the time in the United Kingdom
Landlord and Tenant
- Rent Reviews
- Dilapidations Claims
- Commercial Lease Construction
Reported Cases
- Gloucester City Council v Brown [1998] 1EGLR 95 (Rent Review) (CA)
- Dame Margaret Hungerford v Beazeley [1993] 2EGLR 143 (Dilapidations) (CA)
- Wessex Reserve Forces & Cadet Association v White [2006] 1 EGLR 55 (CA); [2005] 3 EGLR 127 (landlord’s right to obtain possession where he wishes to demolish tenant’s fixtures on holding)
- Mason v. Boscawen [2009] 1 All ER 1006 (VAT payable on rent is ‘rent’ under Agricultural Holdings Act 1986)
Equity Trusts, Wills and Probate
- Including administration of estates and trusts, construction issues and claims under the Inheritance Act and Trusts of Land Act.
Mobile Homes
Reported Cases
- Brumwell v. Powys County Council [2011] EWCA Civ. 1613 (Construction of operator’s agreement relating to mobile home park; whether agency agreement or lease; whether part of sham agreement)
- Warfield Park Homes Ltd v Warfield Park Residents Association [2006] EWCA Civ. 283 (CA)
- Tapsell v Cemery [1995] 27 HLR 114 (Owners Motive to Terminate Agreement) (CA)
- I v Group Leisure [1993] CLY 4135 (Gift of Mobile Home by Will to Charity)
- Ford v Morrison [1997] CLY 4245 (Whether Employee Falls within Mobile Homes Act 1983)
Professional Negligence
- Solicitors – Property & Conveyancing (including mortgage lending
Commercial Litigation
Leslie advises and appears in cases concerning all aspects of commercial and contractual disputes including sale of goods and franchising and distribution agreements, including applications for interlocutory relief in Freezing and Anton Piller form.
Reported Cases
- D.L.Barrett & Sons v. Bristol City Council [2011] EWCA Civ. 734 (Alleged misfeasance in public office; whether inclusion of building contractor on Council’s statutory list of approved contractors gave rise to an implied contractual relationship between council and contractor, and therefore imposed an obligation not to remove from the list without good cause; whether Council obliged to pay damages by reason of an act unlawful in public law).
- Roberts v. Gill [2010] 2 WLR1227 (Entitlement of party to amend capacity in which he sues so as to make a claim in a derivative capacity after the expiry of the Limitation Period) (UK Supreme Court)
- Trustees of Stokes Pension Fund v Western Power Distribution [2005] 1 WLR 3595 (Costs: Effect of offer to settle) (CA)
Breach of Party Wall Procedure
Reported Cases
Hough v Annear [2008] 119 Con LR 57 County Court. Failure to comply with s.3 of the Party Wall Act during the construction of an extension did not constitute a separate cause of action for breach of statutory duty.
Taxation
Leslie has appeared in landmark decisions in the High Court and the Court of Appeal concerning the effect and imposition of Value Added Tax.
Reported Cases
- Mason v. Boscawen [2009] STC 624 (VAT as rent)
- Warfield Park (Owners) v. Warfield Park (Residents) [2006] EWCA Civ. 283 (Imposition of VAT on pitch fees)
Recommendations
Chambers UK 2012
- Agriculture & Rural Affairs: Leslie Blohm QC of St John’s Chambers remains a hugely admired figure on the Western circuit. His traditional agricultural practice includes tenancy disputes, landed estates issues and village greens work. He is “meticulously prepared and extremely persistent in his advocacy,” according to sources.
- Chancery: Leslie Blohm QC’s forte is property litigation in matters such as commercial dilapidation claims and rights of way. Much of his work has a private client emphasis, involving Inheritance Act claims, wills and estate disputes. He is as well regarded by clients as he is by opposing counsel, who find him a “formidable opponent.”
- Commercial Dispute Resolution: The “always excellent” Leslie Blohm QC is hailed as an “outstanding advocate who makes clients feel comfortable.” He has an outstanding commercial and chancery practice with a particular emphasis on property law.
Chambers UK 2011
- Agriculture & Rural Affairs: Leslie Blohm QC of St John’s Chambers continues to attract a wealth of praise for his commitment and contribution to the sector. He is admired for his expertise in village green applications and landlord and tenant law. Market commentators commend his “polished advocacy skills” and his “gentle and calm manner that instils client confidence
- Chancery: One of only two outstanding chancery silks on the Western circuit, Leslie Blohm QC of St John’s Chambers is a man with a formidable reputation for chancery cases with a property bent. Labelled as “probably the safest pair of hands you will find,” he is a popular figure who is in full command of his practice area.
- Commercial Dispute Resolution: Heavyweight chancery guru Leslie Blohm QC is firmly established as one of the leading commercial barristers on the Western circuit. In addition to his core focus on property law, he handles a range of contractual and commercial disputes, and is known for his “fantastic intellect and case-changing courtroom ability.”
Legal 500 2011
- Leslie Blohm QC is “extremely knowledgeable in all areas of property litigation” in addition to commercial litigation: he recently led Guy Adams in a key case at the Supreme Court.
Legal 500 2010
- Leslie Blohm QC, combines a commercial, chancery, and property law practice.
