Smith v. Barclay and Another [1919] ScotLR 93 (10 December 1919)

Smith v. Barclay and Another [1919] ScotLR 93 (10 December 1919)

Where a tenant gives unequivocal notice to quit, the landlord acts on that notice by letting to another, and the incoming tenant seeks possession, these circumstances constitute a satisfactory ground for ejectment under section 1(3) of the 1915 Act; the court's discretion is not confined to grounds ejusdem generis with those specified in the Act.

Citation
[1919] ScotLR 93
Parties
Pursuer: Sydney Scope Shedden Smith; Defender: Mrs Margaret Barclay; Defender: George Barclay
Jurisdiction
Scotland
Judgment Date
10 December 1919
Procedural Posture
Civil Appeal / Appeal to the Inner House, Second Division, Court of Session (from Sheriff Court)
Outcome
Appeal sustained; decree of ejection granted.
Legal Topics
Ejectment, Contracting Out of Statutory Protection, Increase of Rent and Mortgage Interest (war Restrictions) Act 1915, Personal Bar, Tacit Relocation
Landlord and Tenant Statutory Interpretation Ejectment Contracting Out of Statutory Protection Increase of Rent and Mortgage Interest (war Restrictions) Act 1915 Personal Bar Tacit Relocation

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Parties

Sydney Scope Shedden Smith

Pursuer

Mrs Margaret Barclay

Defender

George Barclay

Defender

Procedural Posture

Civil Appeal / Appeal to the Inner House, Second Division, Court of Session (from Sheriff Court)

Legal Issues

  1. 1 Whether a tenant who has given notice to quit and whose landlord has acted on that notice can claim protection from ejectment under the Increase of Rent and Mortgage Interest (War Restrictions) Act 1915, section 1(3)
  2. 2 Whether the Act precludes the court from granting an order of ejectment on the ground of the tenant's notice to quit and the landlord's reliance thereon
  3. 3 Whether the grounds for ejectment must be ejusdem generis with those specified in section 1(3)

Ratio Decidendi

Where a tenant gives unequivocal notice to quit, the landlord acts on that notice by letting to another, and the incoming tenant seeks possession, these circumstances constitute a satisfactory ground for ejectment under section 1(3) of the 1915 Act; the court's discretion is not confined to grounds ejusdem generis with those specified in the Act.

Court Disposition

Appeal sustained; decree of ejection granted.

Orders

  • Recall the interlocutor of the Sheriff appealed against.
  • Remit to the Sheriff-Substitute to grant warrant of ejectment as craved in the initial writ and to decern.