John Pugh-Smith MA (Oxon)


(Door Tenant)

Uthwatt Scholarship & Holker Award (Gray's Inn)

Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries

 

 

John took pupillages in construction law and landlord & tenant before joining, in 1979, a large Western Circuit set of Chambers at 2 Kings Bench Walk, where he undertook mainly common law work. In 1984 he joined 2 Mitre Court Buildings under the headship of the late Sir Frank Layfield QC. The set subsequently moved, then under the headship of Lionel Read QC, to 1 Serjeants Inn in 1991 and to its subsequent address at Eldon Chambers in 2001. He moved to 39 Essex Street in April 2002 in order to provide enhanced planning and environmental expertise within the renowned public law group together with four other colleagues from Eldon Chambers.

John now practises mainly in the field of town & country planning but also undertakes related environmental, parliamentary and local government work for both the private and public sectors. Recent and current clients include Acquest Developments, Barratt Homes, Bellway Homes, Bloor Homes, Brett Group (Minerals and Waste), CITB, CPI Mortars, East Dorset District Council, English Courtyard, Fairclough Homes, Fairfield Partnership, Gloucester City Council, Hampshire Police Authority, Hopkins Homes, Lafarge, Lattice Property Holdings (formerly British Gas), Lidl Foodstores, London City Airport, London Taxis International, Mid-Essex Gravel, Moto Hospitality (formerly Granada), Nicholas King Homes, Norwich City Council, Open University, Paragon Healthcare, Peat Producers Association, Pegasus Retirement Homes, Pelham Homes, Prowting Projects (now Westbury Homes), Railtrack, RLW Estates, Sevenoaks District Council, St John’s College Cambridge, Sunrise Senior Living and Wimpey Homes.

He travels extensively throughout England. Current inquiry work has also taken him to South Wales.

 

Recent cases include:

  • Laing Homes Ltd v First Secretary of State and Pelham Homes Ltd [2003] JPL 559 – PPG3 para. 31 urban extension sites – alternative as material consideration – need to show conspicuously less drawbacks
  • Friends Provident Life Office v SSETR and Norwich City Council [2002] 1 WLR 1450 – retail impact of rival new development -article 6 of the Human Rights Act – compatibility of local authority planning powers – need for call-in by SSETR
  • British Telecommunications plc v Gloucester City Council[ 2002] JPL 993 – planning permission underpinning CPO scheme – need for environmental statement –article 6 of the HRA - compatability of CPO process
  • Granada Hospitality Ltd v SSETR and Hounslow LBC [2001] PLCR 81 –green belt – MSA Travelodge extensions - very special circumstances
  • R v South Norfolk Council, ex parte Pelham Homes Limited [2001] PLCR 125 – legitimate expectation – planning application by council during local plan process – unreasonableness
  • Christchurch Borough Council v SSETR and Billington [2001] JPL 1265 – green belt – residential caravan – personal circumstances.

Public inquiry appearances, in respect of which he spends the greatest part of his time, have included:

  • Residential development for Acquest Developments (Fisheries Estate, Windsor & Maidenhead), Bloor Homes (Camberley), English Courtyard (Elton Estate, Huntingdonshire), Fairclough Homes (Croydon), Fairfield Partnership (Forest Heath), Nicholas King Homes (Beaconsfield, Byfleet, Maidenhead, Windsor), Pelham (Fareham, Medway and South Norfolk), Pegasus Retirement Homes (Banstead, Berkhamsted), Prowting/Westbury (Hastings call-in, Tewksbury LP), RLW Estates (Cambridgeshire Structure Plan EIP advisory role), Sunrise Senior Living (Banstead, Esher) and Wimpey (Girton, South Cambridgeshire call-in)
  • Retail/leisure development for Gloucester City Council (Docks, Cattle Market redevelopments), Lattice Property Holdings (Plymouth foodstore appeal), Lidl (Blackwater, Hart, foodstore), McDonalds (Maesteg), Moto (Pease Pottage Travelodge, Mid-Sussex) and Norwich City Council (Combined Burger King & Pizza Hut appeal)
  • Low to Medium Secure Mental Health Unit (Paragon Healthcare; Barnsley)
  • Norwich City Local Plan (for the Council)
  • Enforcement of an agricultural occupancy condition for Sevenoaks District Council (8 day inquiry)
  • Transport and Works Act inquiry appearances into DLR Extension for London City Airport
  • Compulsory Purchase Orders for the Blackfriars re-development of Gloucester City Centre for the promoting authority
  • Minerals Local Plan appearances for Somerset Peat Producers Association and members
  • Enforcement and Discontinuance Inquiries (North Lincs)

Legal 500 (2009) says that he comes highly recommended and appreciated for his ‘strong leadership‘ and ‘mediatory approach to appeals, rather than combative‘. Chambers & Partners' Directory continues to place him amongst the leading junior barristers in environmental law.  John has also been described in The Lawyer and Planning magazine, as a "leading senior junior" in planning law.

 



Seminars:

John is a regular speaker at lectures and seminars on both planning and environment law and practice including Sweet & Maxwell’s Annual Planning Conference

 

 


Publications:

Neighbours and the Law (Author 1st ed - 1988, Co-Author 2nd ed - 1993; General Editor 3rd ed - 2001, 4th ed - 2006, 5th ed - 2009)


Archaeology in Law (Co-author, with Dr John Samuels - 1996)

 

Shackleton on the Law of Meetings (General Editor 10th ed - 2006; 11th ed - 2008)

 

Joint indexer for Woodfall on Landlord & Tenant (1978 to 1988) and a case editor of Current Law (1979 to 1989).

 

He has also acted as a General Editor (and chapter author on nature conservation and environmental appeals), as part of a team from his former Chambers, of Environmental Law (Oxford University Press - 2000).

Joint advisory editor to Planning, Property & Compensation Reports ("P&CR")

Regular contributor to the Journal of Planning & Environment Law and an occasional contributor to the Landscape Design Journal