Get Right to Resort to Multiple Remedies

When listing your remedies in a lease clause—for example, the option to terminate the tenant’s lease if the tenant stops operating its business—always start with the phrase: “In addition to any other rights and remedies available to Landlord under this Lease or at law or in equity….” You should use this phrase because it gives you the right to resort to many types of remedies—not just the ones you’re listing in the particular clause.

If you don’t start off with that phrase, a tenant could argue that you’ve limited your remedies to those listed in the particular clause and that you can’t have access to other remedies that might benefit you more. You’ll have to waste time and money trying to prove that your remedies aren’t limited to, say, terminating the lease. A lease that clearly says you have a termination remedy in addition to other rights and remedies could help you avoid this predicament.