11 Death of retiring tenant
8.100 If the retiring tenant dies after serving his retirement notice, but before the nominated successor’s application has been ‘finally disposed of’ by the Tribunal, then the retirement notice is of no effect.169 If proceedings have begun pursuant to the notice they must be discontinued and the issue of succession dealt with under ss 36 to 48 of the 1986 Act, viz the nominated successor (or any other ‘eligible’ applicant) will have to make a fresh application to the Tribunal for an order entitling him to succeed to the tenancy on death.
Where proceedings on the retirement notice are well advanced, but an order not yet made, the result will be to lengthen substantially the Tribunal proceedings.8.101 Where the retiring tenant dies after the Tribunal has made a direction entitling the nominated successor to succeed to the tenancy, but before the date on which succession is to take place, then the nominated successor succeeds to the tenancy under the retirement notice, and not ss 36–48 of the 1986 Act.170 Provided the Tribunal has made a direction, therefore, a fresh application following the tenant’s death will not need to be made.
8.102 As we have seen (above), where the tenant dies at any time after the Tribunal has disposed of an application by ruling the nominated successor to be ‘ineligible’ or ‘unsuitable’ for the grant of a tenancy, the nominated successor is barred from subsequently applying for succession under the 1986 Act.171