Neelam Sharma

Neelam is a partner in our Housing Management team and was admitted as a Solicitor in 1998.

Neelam regularly acts for regional and national Housing Providers in actions including: Anti-social behaviour injunctions; Committal proceedings; Claims for possession against tenants, trespassers and former tenants holding over; Possession and injunction proceedings against travellers and persons unknown; Advising on policies and procedures; Advising on all aspects of tenancy management issues; Common law injunctions; and complex cases involving mental capacity and discrimination.

Neelam has a practical attitude to achieving her client’s objectives.

Neelam has provided training on all aspects of housing management and presented nationally and regionally.

Experience

• Has an invaluable insight into the challenges faced by Social Housing Providers on a daily basis as she has worked inhouse as a Housing Litigation Manager.
• Possession: possession proceedings issued against a tenant who had sever vulnerabilities and onslaught of dementia, so as to force the core agencies to take stop and provide support. The tenant’s partner who suffered from learning difficulties was violent towards her. Whilst the tenant was relocated elsewhere, the partner was evicted despite vulnerabilities as all support avenues had been offered and declined by him and he had no legal right to remain.
• Injunction: proceedings were issued on a ‘without notice’ basis against persons unknown to clear a ‘No go’ area and substituted service was granted. A multi-agency approach was taken given combined resources had been stretched and all agencies contributed by sharing their own knowledge. Lawful visitors were blatantly followed, threatened, attacked and their cars were damaged irrespective of the time of day. The police used helicopters to carry out surveillance. Orders were posted on lamp posts and posted through letterboxes and the message was sent loudly and clearly that such behaviour would not be permitted. The area was substantially improved so properties could be allocated again.
• Housing Fraud: Instructed by a Social Housing Provider in respect of recovering possession of a property, when one of their own employees had facilitated an illegal mutual exchange between two existing tenants. The case involved a combined use of both housing and employment law expertise within the firm.