The Supreme Court has delivered an important judgment concerning the statutory right to manage (RTM), clarifying the circumstances in which a failure to comply with the procedural requirements of the Commonhold and Leasehold Reform Act 2002 may invalidate an RTM claim.

The decision (Avon Freeholds Ltd v Cresta Court E RTM Company Ltd [2026]) is relevant to both leaseholders seeking to acquire the management of their building and freeholders or other landlords responding to such claims.

The Court distinguished between the substantive conditions which determine whether an RTM company is entitled to acquire the RTM and the procedural requirements governing the exercise of that right.

The Right to Manage (RTM) was introduced in 2002 giving flat owners the ability collectively TO take over the management functions in respect of their building without having to prove fault on the part of those responsible for management under their lease (usually their landlord) or paying a premium.

The right to manage (RTM) enables leaseholders of residential flats to take control of management of their building via an RTM company that they are members of so replacing the landlord or other third party appointed in the lease in this regard.

The right to manage is simple in concept but unfortunately complex in its application as there are a lot of procedural hurdles that participating flat owners can fall at and this can lead to litigation as of course their landlord needs to be sure whether management will validly vest.  Consequently there are a huge number of cases taken by landlords challenging the validity of claims which some might find surprising.