Cases - Video London Sound Studios Ltd v Asticus Ltd
Record details
- Name
- Video London Sound Studios Ltd v Asticus Ltd
- Date
- [2001]
- Citation
- AII ER (D) 168
- Legislation
- Keywords
- Party walls - London Building Acts (Amendment) Act 1939
- Summary
-
Under the London Building Acts (Amendment) Act 1939, it was decided by a judge in the Technology and Construction Court (TCC) that making good did not include damage to electronic equipment, as this did not fall within the term 'finishings', which was used in that Act instead of the word 'furnishings' now used in the 1996 Act. There is a distinction, used primarily in relation to leases, between 'fixtures' and 'chattels'. Whether an item is a fixture depends on the degree and purpose of its annexation to the property.
The judge in this case considered that 'finishings' meant the same as 'fixtures'. Therefore, as the equipment was free-standing and was only attached to the walls for the purpose of connection to the power supply, it was not a fixture. It seems that such electronic equipment would now fall within the term 'furnishings' used in the 1996 Act.