Rights of Light
Encyclopedia
Easement
An easement is a certain right to use the real property of another without possessing it.Easements are helpful for providing pathways across two or more pieces of property or allowing an individual to fish in a privately owned pond...
in English law
English law
English law is the legal system of England and Wales, and is the basis of common law legal systems used in most Commonwealth countries and the United States except Louisiana...
that gives a long-standing owner of a building with windows a right to maintain the level of illumination. It is based on the Ancient Lights law. The rights are most usually acquired under the Prescription Act 1832.
The rights
In effect, the owner of a building with windows that have received natural daylight for 20 years or more is entitled to forbid any construction or other obstruction that would deprive him or her of that illumination. Neighbours cannot build anything that would block the light without permission. The owner may build more or larger windows but cannot enlarge his new windows before the new period of 20 years has expired. It is also possible for a right to light to exist if granted expressly by deedDeed
A deed is any legal instrument in writing which passes, or affirms or confirms something which passes, an interest, right, or property and that is signed, attested, delivered, and in some jurisdictions sealed...
, or granted impliedly, for example under the rule in Wheeldon v. Burrows
Wheeldon v Burrows
Wheeldon v Burrows LR 12 Ch D 31 is an English property law case on the implying of grant easements. The case established one of the three current methods by which an easement can be acquired by implied grant, and has effectively been put into statutory force by Section 62 of the Law of Property...
(1879).
Once a right to light exists the owner of the right is entitled to "sufficient light according to the ordinary notions of mankind": Colls v. Home & Colonial Stores Ltd (1904). Courts rely on expert witnesses to define this term. Since the 1920s, experts have used a method proposed by Percy Waldram to assist them with this. Waldram suggested that ordinary people require 1 foot-candle
Foot-candle
A foot-candle is a non-SI unit of illuminance or light intensity widely used in photography, film, television, conservation lighting, and the lighting industry...
of illuminance
Illuminance
In photometry, illuminance is the total luminous flux incident on a surface, per unit area. It is a measure of the intensity of the incident light, wavelength-weighted by the luminosity function to correlate with human brightness perception. Similarly, luminous emittance is the luminous flux per...
(approximately 10 lux
Lux
The lux is the SI unit of illuminance and luminous emittance, measuring luminous flux per unit area. It is used in photometry as a measure of the intensity, as perceived by the human eye, of light that hits or passes through a surface...
) for reading and other work involving visual discrimination. This equates to a sky factor (similar to the daylight factor
Daylight factor
A daylight factor is the ratio of internal light level to external light level and is defined as follows:where,Ei = illumiance due to daylight at a point on the indoors working plane,...
) of 0.2%. Today, Waldram's methods are increasingly subject to criticism and the future of expert evidence in rights to light cases is currently the subject of much debate within the surveying profession.
After the Second World War, owners of buildings could gain new rights by registering properties that had been destroyed in bombings and the period was temporarily increased to 27 years.
In the centre of London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
near Chinatown
Chinatown, London
The name Chinatown has been used at different times to describe different places in London. The present Chinatown is part of the Soho area of the City of Westminster, occupying the area in and around Gerrard Street...
and Covent Garden
Covent Garden
Covent Garden is a district in London on the eastern fringes of the West End, between St. Martin's Lane and Drury Lane. It is associated with the former fruit and vegetable market in the central square, now a popular shopping and tourist site, and the Royal Opera House, which is also known as...
, particularly in back alleyways, signs saying "Ancient Lights" can be seen marking individual windows. The design and construction of Broadcasting House
Broadcasting House
Broadcasting House is the headquarters and registered office of the BBC in Portland Place and Langham Place, London.The building includes the BBC Radio Theatre from where music and speech programmes are recorded in front of a studio audience...
was also affected by locals declaring their right to ancient lights. It resulted in a unique asymmetrical sloped design that allowed for sunlight to pass over the building to the residential quarters eastwards, long since demolished and now home to the new Egton Wing.
Recent case law from 2010, relating to a commercial development in the centre of Leeds, UK, (HKRUK II v Heany) has significantly changed the perceptions of risk associated with Right to Light, particularly in the context of commercial schemes. This case upheld an injunction against a commercial property. More information is available at http://www.smithmarstonllp.co.uk/blog . The result of this is that many developers are now looking to work with the Local Authorities to try and use Section 237 of The Town and County Planning Act. This allows potentially an injunction to a scheme that has over-riding social and/or economic advantages to an area, to proceed, thus removing the risk of injunction, or, the extortion of over valued compensation in lieu of an injunction. It does not however enable developers to 'steamroller' normal, reasonable negotiations to resolve compensation. Such an approach could bring about an action of Judicial Review against the Local Authority, and/or, actions under the Human Rights Act.
United States
Under United States tort lawUnited States tort law
This article addresses torts in United States law. As such, it covers primarily common law. Moreover, it provides general rules, as individual states all have separate civil codes...
, in Fontainebleau Hotel
Fontainebleau Hotel
The Fontainebleau Miami Beach or the Fontainebleau Hotel is one of the most historically and architecturally significant hotels on Miami Beach. Opened in 1954 and designed by Morris Lapidus, it was considered the most luxurious hotel on Miami Beach, and is thought to be the most significant...
Corp. v. Forty-Five Twenty-Five, Inc. (1959) the Florida Appellate Court
Appellate court
An appellate court, commonly called an appeals court or court of appeals or appeal court , is any court of law that is empowered to hear an appeal of a trial court or other lower tribunal...
stated that the "ancient lights" doctrine has been unanimously repudiated in the United States.
See also
- DaylightingDaylightingDaylighting is the practice of placing windows or other openings and reflective surfaces so that during the day natural light provides effective internal lighting. Particular attention is given to daylighting while designing a building when the aim is to maximize visual comfort or to reduce energy...
- Protected viewProtected viewA protected view or protected vista is the legal requirement within urban planning to preserve the view of a specific place or historic building from another location. The effect of a protected view is to limit the height of new buildings within or adjacent to the sightline between the two places...
- Air rightsAir rightsAir rights are a type of development right in real estate, referring to the empty space above a property. Generally speaking, owning or renting land or a building gives one the right to use and develop the air rights....
- Spite fenceSpite fenceA spite fence is an overly tall fence, structure in the nature of a fence, or a row of trees, bushes, or hedges, constructed or planted between adjacent lots by a property owner who is annoyed with or wishes to annoy a neighbor, or who wishes to completely obstruct the view between lots. The fence...
- Spite houseSpite houseA spite house is a building constructed or modified to irritate neighbors or other parties with land stakes. Spite houses often serve as obstructions, blocking out light or access to neighboring buildings, or as flamboyant symbols of defiance...
Further reading
- Andrew Francis, Right of light ahead!, Journal of Building Appraisal, (2008) 4, 5–13
- Paul Chynoweth (2004) Progressing the rights to light debate – Part 1: a review of current practice, Structural Survey, Vol. 22, No. 3, pp. 131–7
- Anstey's Rights of Light, John Anstey and Lance Harris, ISBN 978-1-842-19222-1
- Rights of Light, Stephen Bickford-Smith and Andrew Francis, ISBN 978-1-846-61024-0
- "Practical Neighbour Law Handbook" Alistair Redler, ISBN 978-1-842-19236-8
External links
- The Expert Witness and the Right to Light, Chartered Institution of Building Services Engineers (CIBSE)