A doctor and her husband who have accumulated a six-figure legal bill over a bridleway dispute are now utilising the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) after their claim was rejected by the Court of Appeal.
Dr Dawn Carnell, 59, a cancer specialist and her husband, David Moore, 63, have spent the last six years embroiled in a legal battle about a bridleway which runs through their home Breach House in Little Berkhamstead in Hertfordshire.
Despite their latest attempt being rejected to go to the Court of Appeal, the pair are now going to pursue a fresh legal battle based upon the ECHR.
Mr Moore told GB News: "We are pursuing the Article 8 human rights argument and also Article 1, Schedule 1 of the ECHR.
“This all revolves around the decision to change my defined 2015 purchase parameters (as now enshrined in the High Court).
“You are entitled to what you purchased after carrying out all due diligence.
"My solicitors and King's Counsel have put Herts County Council on notice and that position is going to stand."
His argument hinges upon the fact the local authority (Hertfordshire County Council in this case) effectively altered the legal basis on which the couple purchased their home.
The bridleway in question - the gates were installed prior to the Moores purchasing the property, to which they have now been padlocked for 'security', according to the family
|DAVID MOORE
The council introduced a right of way where none was legally established at the time of purchase, which Mr Moore and his legal team will argue this constituted a violation of his right to private and family life and to the peaceful enjoyment of his property.
Mr and Mrs Moore purchased their property in 2015 - as the building was dilapidated at the time, they did not immediately move in, carrying out works on the home over a period of five years.
Once they moved into the property full-time in 2020, the couple noticed people walking through their home, which not only shocked them but their dog, Oscar, who passed away last year.
Oscar was not pleased to see people walking through his “territory”, Mr Moore explained.
The pair soon discovered that the bridleway (named BR18), which they understood ran down the boundary of their property, as the definitive map showed when they purchased the home, actually ran directly through their garden.
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Oscar, the Moore's beloved dog who passed away last year
|DAVID MOORE
Consequently, the couple blocked the bridleway from public access.
This sparked a “lengthy investigation” between the couple and Hertfordshire County Council, at a significant cost to them and the taxpayer.
Although the official map of the bridleway had shown the path in one location since 1959, Hertfordshire County Council concluded, after reviewing historical evidence, that it had been recorded incorrectly and should instead run across a homeowner’s land.
Mr and Mrs Moore challenged that decision, arguing the original map should stand as that is how they purchased the property.
Maps which the Moore family were presented when purchasing their property, showing the BR18 bridleway running along the boundary of their property
|DAVID MOORE
The case reached the High Court following a public inquiry where a government inspector had already approved the change.
Having gone through the courts, eventually attempting to challenge the High Court ruling in the Court of Appeal, a judge refused permission for the couple to go further.
The Lord Justice Lewison ruled on March 20 that the previous decision in the High Court, stands as final, meaning the couple do not get to take their case any further.
Lord Lewison wrote: “An appeal would have no real prospect of success.”
However, the situation did not just stay within the realms of the judiciary, with Mr Moore and his family experiencing a Hot Fuzz-like string of hostilities inflicted upon them due to the blocked bridleway - ironically, Simon Pegg, writer of and lead in the 2007 action-comedy lives near Little Berkhamsted.
The family claim to have been spied on, damage caused to their property and even their car brake pipes being cut - events that forced one of their children to move away, confessing it has affected them “deeply” and felt like they had “been thrown into a surreal world”.
Speaking to the People’s Channel, Mr Moore said: “The vehicle interference took this all to another level and was incredibly frightening for both Dawn, the girls and myself.
The council served a notice to the Moore family giving them one month's notice to remove all obstacles from the bridleway in April
|ANTHONY BARRETT
“It’s something that happens to other people or that you see in fictional films. It left us feeling as to what could potentially happen next?
“The girls have been refused service in the local shop which further ostracised them in the village. My eldest was also followed in her car and harassed.”
He said it felt like “a campaign has been waged against” him and his family.
Locals in the village complained about the blocking of the public right of way as it had been an accessible bridleway for generations.
Anthony Barrett, who participated at the public inquiry and was joined as a defendant in the High Court by consent, expressed his relief to GB News that the legal proceedings had concluded, for now.
Mr Moore said his counsel has advised him to keep all gates shut
|DAVID MOORE
Mr Barrett said: "I'm very glad it's over. It's mind-boggling they went to that length to shut the bridleway."
He told GB News that the Moores have now been served formal notice giving them 28 days to reopen the bridleway and remove any obstructions to it.
He said: "If they fail to do so, enforcement action will follow."
Sarah Barrett, Mr Barrett’s wife, said that a lot of people in the village, located in east Hertfordshire, have “missed” using the public right of way.
She said: “It’s caused a lot of upset in the village.”
Mr Moore has confirmed the disputed bridleway path through his property remains closed, despite receiving threats from the council.
Hertfordshire County Council has been approached for comment.