Philip McLeish

Practice

Housing

Philip has experience across a range of housing law fields including in homelessness, unlawful eviction, defending possession proceedings on public law grounds or for ASB, allocations, mortgage repossessions, charging orders and disrepair. He has experience of using the Children Act to secure accommodation for homeless teenagers. Also undertakes judicial review proceedings arising from housing law.

Community Care and Mental Health

Philip has conducted cases in disputes around the duty to assess, the content of care plans, eligibility for NHS continuing care and eligibility for s.117 aftercare and NAA 1948 support for asylum seekers.

He has represented patients at Mental Health Tribunals, drafted appeals to the Upper Tier Tribunal, defended County Court displacement proceedings against nearest relatives, and advised on claims for assault and false imprisonment against detaining authorities.

Discrimination, employment and education.

Philip has experience in cases involving disability discrimination issues in the provision of services, particularly in the fields of education, finance and police disclosures on CRB applications.

He has conducted tribunals in the ET and EAT in a range of fields including sex, race and disability discrimination, whistleblowing, trade union victimization, TUPE and unfair dismissal.

He has conducted SEND appeals and secured special and residential school placements for children with special educational needs.

Prison law

Experience includes representation at parole board hearings.

Actions against the police

Including civil claims for false imprisonment and assault and also data protection challenges relating to damaging disclosures on CRB applications.

Articles and media comment

> 16/11/11 - Is Greater Judicial Oversight of Surveillance Decisions Needed? (Lexis Nexis Current Awareness)

Background

Following pupillage and a spell squatting at Garden Court (London), Philip worked at a small Law Centre based in a psychiatric hospital in South West London, during which time he was admitted as a solicitor. Here his casework revolved primarily around securing and retaining housing and education for young people and representing detained patients contesting their section. He is very experienced in dealing sensitively with clients in distress.

In recent years he became involved in providing legal support to Climate Camp. Some of these experiences are reflected in a paper he presented at a panel debate with Sir Hugh Orde, the president of ACPO, earlier this year.