The Law Society's housing law committee was upgraded from a sub-committee of the civil litigation committee to a fully-fledged committee in December 1999.

The committee's terms of reference are to monitor and advise on all areas relating to residential letting in the public and private sectors and to make recommendations, to promote and develop relevant legal serv ices and an awareness of legal issues, and to initiate and develop guidance for the profession providing legal services in the housing field.One of the strengths of the committee is its ability to take a non-partisan approach to issues within its remit, while still bearing in mind issues of public interest generally.

As a result, the committee is able to bring a significant degree of experience and knowledge to the areas with which it deals.

Committee members also represent the Law Society on other bodies, such as the Lord Chancellor's Department's civil procedures for housing and land working group.

In addition, wherever possible the committee seeks to work in partnership with other bodies in the housing field, such as Shelter.The committee has dealt with a number of large projects over the last 12 months, and has submitted comments on a range of issues.In the past year, the committee has taken a particular interest in promoting and supporting law reform and has been particularly pleased to work with the Law Commission on its recent scoping paper on the review of housing law.

A member of the committee was on the Law Commission's working party and the commission took specific account of a paper produced by the committee.

The committee very much looks forward to assisting the Law Commission further with this work in the future.A major project overseen by the committee recently is the production of a draft protocol for housing disrepair cases.

The draft has been produced by a separate housing disrepair working party, chaired by a member of the committee and on which two committee members sit.

The draft protocol was issued for consultation in January 2001 and the deadline for responses was 9 March 2001.

A large volume of responses has been received and is currently being processed.

The working party will reconvene in the early summer to analyse the responses and consider the next steps.

The draft protocol was the result of 12 months' hard work on the part of the working group and production of the protocol is particularly significant as previous attempts by others had not proved successful.In the summer of 2000, the committee was pleased to lobby jointly with Shelter, National Association of Citizens Advice Bureau (NACAB) and the Charter Institute of Housing against government proposals to reduce the time limit for backdating housing benefit claims.

As a result of lobbying from many quarters, the government decided not to proceed with the proposed changes, which would have been disastrous for people living in rented accommodation who claim housing benefit.The committee also responded to a government consultation on the leasehold part of the draft Commonhold and Leasehold Reform Bill and to the green paper on housing, which was the first proper review of housing policy for more than two decades.

Over the course of the current parliament, the committee has worked on the leasehold sections of the Commonhold and Leasehold Reform Bill, and on part II of the Homes Bill, including taking part in a briefing at the House of Lords organised by the Law Society, and also by supporting some of the work Shelter has done on the review of local authorities' decisions on homelessness.

(The Society's land law and conveyancing committee is responsible for commonhold and conveyancing issues.)COMMITTEE FACT FILECHAIRWOMANRosaleen Kilbane (pictured) was admitted as a solicitor in 1989.

From 1992 until 1998 she was a partner in the large legal aid practice McGrath and Co, where she led the firm's housing team.

In early 1999 she became one of the founding partners of the Community Law Partnership in Birmingham, which specialises in housing and community care law.

She is an experienced lecturer and, in addition to chairing the housing law committee, she also sits on the Law Society's civil litigation committee.The committee is planning a housing law conference for 16 November 2001.

The conference will review recent developments in housing law and is aimed at practitioners working in all areas of the housing field.The committee includes members from across the country, working in a range of areas, including a charity, private practice representing tenants and landlords, a local authority and a solicitor with a law centre background.There is currently a vacancy on the committee for a solicitor working with housing associations and the committee will be advertising in due course to fill this.COMMITTEE MEMBERSDiane Astin, McMillen Hamilton McCarthy, east LondonWendy Backhouse, Hodge Jones & Allen, north LondonRussell Conway, Oliver Fisher, west LondonJennifer Israel, Jennifer Israel & Co, Law Society Council member, north LondonSally Morshead, Shelter, vice chairwoman, central LondonJohn Swan, Sunderland City Council, SunderlandMichael Tulloch, Boodle Hatfield & Co, central LondonHelen Williams, Morgans, Cardiff