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Appeals to the Secretary of State are heard on his behalf by a panel of independent persons appointed by the Secretary of State for that purpose. Both the OFT and the appellant can argue their case before the panel which then makes a report to the Secretary of State. The report includes the recommendations of the panel on whether the appeal should be allowed or dismissed.
It is the Secretary of State’s policy that he will, save in exceptional cases, follow the recommendations of the panel and will not depart from the panel’s recommendations without first having invited the parties to make representations.
Exceptional cases would include where the Secretary of State considers that the panel is wrong in law or where new evidence comes to light after the hearing including evidence that the panel was misled.
Decisions on appeals to the Secretary of State under section 7 of the Estate Agents Act 1979 are made by the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform (BERR).
The administration of appeals to the Secretary of State is the responsibility of the Appeals Secretariat within the Tribunals Service, an executive agency of the Ministry of Justice.
There is a standing panel of four legally-qualified Chairmen and 10 wing members. Appeals are heard by a panel of three, a Chairman and two wing members; the hearing is generally held at a location reasonably close to the appellant’s place of business.
Recent and forthcoming public hearing
You can see information on recent and forthcoming public hearings on our website by following this link
