Housing Service
The housing service caseload focuses on homelessness, possession matters, deposit deductions and disrepair as these reflect the main issues faced by our local community. Our student volunteers have been exposed to dealing with clients who are often facing crisis and learn to explain and apply complex legal concepts to client matters. For most of our students, this is the first time they have dealt with an area of law not taught on their courses.
Case study
We assisted a client with a deposit dispute, an area for which there is no legal aid funding available. The relationship between the client and their former landlord had broken down, and we were instructed to negotiate on behalf of our client. On reviewing the case papers, we identified procedural non-compliance by the landlord and advised the client on the resulting options. This allowed us to assist the client to negotiate with the landlord throughout the pre-action stage of their potential claim. The pre-action letter resulted in the landlord almost immediately offering to repay the deposit in full to our client. This prevented the need to issue proceedings, saving our client time and money to pursue this further. It also allowed them to draw a line under this stressful matter and enforce their rights in an effective and efficient manner.