A North Yorkshire farmer has gone to the Court of Appeal to challenge a judges valuation of his farm tenancy.
The appellant, Jeffrey Pickles, began farming Far Gearstones Farm, Ribblehead, Ingleton, North Yorkshire, in 1980 under a partnership agreement between himself and a Mr Greenbank. The partnership was dissolved in 1993, and Mr Greenbank agreed by a consent order to assign the tenancy of the farm to Mr Pickles in consideration of a payment of 10% of the value of the tenancy at that date.
However, the two were unable to agree a valuation and in October 1998 the matter came before Skipton County Court, where Judge Altman valued the tenancy at £100,000. In his order, he ruled that Mr Pickles must pay 10% of that sum plus interest from 1993.
On appeal from that decision, Anthony de Freitas, counsel for Mr Pickles, argued that the judge should have valued the tenancy at £23,500, representing the value of the tenancy as a partnership asset before the dissolution.
The judges approach had been to award the difference between the open market value of the farm with vacant possession and its value when occupied by an agricultural tenant with security of tenure.
The court reserved judgment.
Greenbank v Pickles Court of Appeal (Peter Gibson, Mummery and Latham LJJ) 6 October 2000
Anthony de Freitas (instructed by Walker Foster, of Skipton) appeared for the appellant; Martin Rodger (instructed by Oglethorpe, Sturton & Gillibrand, of Lancaster) appeared for the respondent.
PLS News 6/10/00
